Dirk VanderHart
JPR Oregon State Capitol CorrespondentDirk VanderHart covers Oregon politics and government for Oregon Public Broadcasting, a JPR news partner. His reporting comes to JPR through the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington. Before barging onto the radio in 2018, Dirk spent more than a decade as a newspaper reporter鈥攎uch of that time reporting on city government for the Portland Mercury.
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Sen. Bruce Starr, R-Dundee, will lead a group looking into ODOT鈥檚 finances. -
Senate Bill 551, the so-called 鈥渂eyond the bag ban鈥� bill, would build on regulations lawmakers approved in 2019. -
Senate Bill 473 would make it a crime to make public officials fear imminent violence. -
Several people who were added to Oregon鈥檚 voter rolls because of errors by state employees could face prosecution for voting despite not being U.S. citizens. -
As state lawmakers search for billions of dollars to maintain deteriorating roads, it's one of many options under consideration. -
A directive to freeze federal aid was widely decried by Democrats, but there was little clarity on what it will actually do. -
As the Legislature prepares to meet, the governor talked of 鈥渇ragile鈥� progress on a variety of crises during her state of the state address. -
Despite billions spent and thousands of people helped, the most recent available data shows homelessness is still increasing in the state. -
Nearly two dozen bills passed by Oregon lawmakers in early 2024 took effect on New Year鈥檚 Day. -
The Legislature spent $218 million to cover the costs of the most expensive fire season on record. -
City leaders around the state want more authority to remove encampments they deem problematic. Homeless advocates say it鈥檚 a distraction from real solutions. -
This year鈥檚 record wildfire season has left contractors who fought fires sitting unpaid for months.
