Oregon Governor Kate Brown announced she will be mandating a return to in-person or hybrid instruction for most Oregon public school students by the week of March 29 for K-5 students and April 19 for students in grades 6-12. The order will likely throw a wrench into the Forest Grove School District's reopening timetable.

A bill referred to the Oregon speaker’s desk that has yet to be assigned to a committee would raise the state’s minimum wage, currently $11.25 per hour at its lowest, to $17 an hour, which is an annual salary of about $35,000.

The Washington County Board of Commissioners is hosting a virtual town hall on March 6, and in other county news, Matt Cragie will serve as economic development director.

Oregon U.S. House Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Springfield), chair of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said he plans to introduce a five-year infrastructure and highway bill that authorizes a wide range of national projects. The bill could see the use of earmarks, a decade after they were eliminated from Congress.

Sometime in the coming weeks, a new camera and weather station at the junction of Highways 6 and 8 will begin providing a stream of information to motorists using Tripcheck to plan their travels. It's the first of its kind in Gales Creek.

These are the diaries of Esther Lilly Hundley, who lived in Gales Creek after the Lilly family moved to Gales Creek in the 1880’s. They are published as they were written, with original spelling. This week: An astounding amount of fishing success, and Esther takes in "Frankenstein," the famed 1931 film featuring Boris Karloff in the iconic role of Frankenstein's monster.

The Food and Drug Administration approved the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for emergency use Saturday, adding a third vaccine to the U.S. effort to combat the novel coronavirus.

The bill now faces a split Senate after the U.S. House of Representatives passed early Saturday morning what many observers and lawmakers call the COVID-19 Economic Relief Act, a $1.9 trillion pandemic stimulus package that provides $1,400 direct payments to most American taxpayers, aid for businesses, cities, schools, and an extension of unemployment benefits.

Washington County Health and Human Services announced that 1,000 vaccine appointments are available for seniors age 70 and up, healthcare workers, and others who are currently eligible for a vaccine at a drive-through clinic in Beaverton on Saturday, February 27.

We caught up with House District 29 Rep. Susan McLain and covered how the legislature is different this year, and some of the bills the Forest Grove, Cornelius, and Hillsboro (and some surrounding rural areas) legislator has introduced this session.

Gales Creek residents will vote for a number of elected positions in the Forest Grove School District and the Forest Grove Rural Fire Protection District in May. The window to file to run for local office closes March 18 at 5 p.m.

Weeks of falling COVID-19 case rates have already seen Washington County moved from the "Extreme Risk" category to "High Risk." Governor Kate Brown announced that 16 counties, including Washington, will be moved further down in the list of categories on Friday.

A roundup of some of the bills in the Oregon Legislature right now, with an emphasis on local elected leaders' ideas and bills.

Rep. Diego Hernandez (D-Portland), the once-rising political star who pundits considered to be a coming household name in Oregon politics, announced on Sunday, February 21 that he would resign from office.

These are the diaries of Esther Lilly Hundley, who lived in Gales Creek after the Lilly family moved to Gales Creek in the 1880’s. They are published as they were written, with original spelling. This week: The family renews their Oregonian subscription, and catch the pre-Code Wallace Beery & Clark Gable film — among Gable's first starring roles — "Hell Divers."

The Oregon Department of Forestry says the 2021 ice storm, which brought down many large-diameter Douglas-firs across the state created the potential for an outbreak of the native Douglas-fir beetle, and urged landowners to take immediate action.

District 30 Rep. Janeen Sollman (D-Hillsboro) is one of three chief sponsors of a new bill, House Bill 2417, that would create mobile mental health crisis intervention teams and help cities and counties throughout the state establish teams of their own.

To combat reported price gouging as families seek shelter at hotels during widespread power outages amid the fallout of the winter storm, Oregon Governor Kate Brown issued Executive Order 21-03, which declares an "abnormal market disruption" in nine Oregon counties as a result of the President's Day weekend winter storm.

A bill being considered by the Legislative Assembly proposes an amendment to the Oregon Constitution allowing state residents to register to vote the same day as a general election. If passed, the proposed amendment would appear as a state ballot measure in the next general election.

These are the diaries of Esther Lilly Hundley, who lived in Gales Creek after the Lilly family moved to Gales Creek in the 1880’s. They are published as they were written, with original spelling. This week: Esther heads to Tillamook for several days to see family.

The winter storm continues, with the Greater Portland region in danger of seeing significant ice accumulation starting Sunday afternoon and continuing through early Monday morning, the Portland branch of the National Weather Service said.

Oregon Governor Kate Brown declared a state of emergency on Saturday due to the severe winter weather in the Willamette Valley that has left hundreds of thousands without power and closed highways , roads, and public transit across the region.

A layer of ice and snow blanketed the region overnight, and there's more coming in the forecast.

A number of bills in this year's legislative session pertain to various aspects of policing, crime, and the justice system. Here is an overview of just a few of them.

In a year when fine dining indoors might not be the best idea, take your date fishing instead - it's free on Valentine's Day

A slew of bills in committees at the Oregon Legislature could reverse tax cuts for harvested timber that have been on the books for scores of years, and that observers say has kept nine counties in Oregon's timber-heavy regions from receiving more than $3 billion since 1990.

Governor Kate Brown announced changes are coming to the Oregon Heath Authority's guidance prohibiting outdoor contact sports, opening a path for Forest Grove School District athletes to potentially return to the field.

The Portland branch of the National Weather Service issued a Winter Storm Watch for most of northwestern Oregon and southwest Washington on Wednesday, warning of weather conditions starting Thursday and extending through Saturday that could bring rain, snow, freezing rain, wind, and plunging temperatures.

The Washington County Sheriff's Office spent the weekend searching the Hagg Lake area with a Clackamas Co. dive team, drones, and boats in an attempt to locate a woman reportedly a danger to herself after her vehicle was found at Boat Ramp C.

On Friday, ten Oregon counties — Washington County among them — will move from the “extreme risk” category, nine to the high risk category and one to the moderate risk category as COVID-19 stats improve in most of the state, Governor Kate Brown announced Tuesday morning.

The Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) Executive Board met Monday, February 8 to discuss the fate of a number of sports, approving soccer and cross-country for a Feb. 22 start with games to start in March, and punting more discussions on football and other sports to a Feb. 17 meeting.

The Oregon Legislature is in danger of being cut out of the process of drawing up new legislative and congressional voting districts, Rep. Weber sponsors education bills, and more from Salem's 2021 legislative session.

These are the diaries of Esther Lilly Hundley, who lived in Gales Creek after the Lilly family moved to Gales Creek in the 1880’s. They are published as they were written, with original spelling. This week: Gladie makes a birdhouse, and Charley picks up some records at Sutherland's.

More than 2,000 have died in Oregon since COVID-19 began its course, and other vaccine news from the state.

Local students in high school and college who are pursuing an education in the fields of agriculture, education, nursing or vocational training are eligible for scholarships offered by the Washington County Farm Bureau this year.

A Tillamook man died in a head-on collision between a log truck and a pickup truck about one mile west of the Timber Road junction on Highway 6, the Oregon State Police said.

A fatal crash has closed Highway 6 one mile west of the Timber Rd. junction, according to the Washington County Sheriff's Office.

In a letter to district parents, Forest Grove School District Superintendent Dave Parker laid out the district’s timeline for a possible reopening of in-person learning starting in April, but the superintendent cited a number of unknowns — the virus, the vaccine rollout, guidance from federal, state, and county officials — to note that the plan could change.

The Oregon State Police are seeking information in a case involving a poached antlerless deer left in front of a gate on Stimson Lumber property north of Mountaindale

These are the diaries of Esther Lilly Hundley, who lived in Gales Creek after the Lilly family moved to Gales Creek in the 1880’s. They are published as they were written, with original spelling. This week: Racoon hunting, and the weather sours.