老夫子传媒

Oregon Governor Tina Kotek visited Lake, Klamath and Jackson counties the first week of October as part of her pledge to visit all 36 counties during her term.

Just in time to go home for Memorial Day weekend, legislators bulldozed their way through a bunch of bills at the end of the week to beat the even bigger deluge next week, when there鈥檚 a Friday deadline to pass remaining bills through the house where they were introduced.

On an average day in California, about 18 people die due to overdoses from fentanyl and other synthetic opioids. That works out to nearly four people every five hours.

Northern California鈥檚 Yurok Tribe declared an emergency this month over a surge in fentanyl overdoses. The problem exists among tribes across the region.

A bill aimed at reducing use and deaths from fentanyl and other opioids among young people is headed to Gov. Tina Kotek to sign.

Democrats on a Senate committee declined to advance a bipartisan proposal to require written warnings for dealers who knowingly distribute drugs containing fentanyl that results in someone鈥檚 death.

What could have been a dramatic showdown Thursday, orchestrated by Republican legislators demanding action on bills addressing California鈥檚 fentanyl crisis, was ultimately avoided with a deal for a special hearing next week.

Family members of people who have died from fentanyl overdose demanded greater urgency on the issue from state lawmakers on Tuesday, expressing frustration at the number of bills that have so far failed to advance this year.

Expect a lot of debate over how California should respond to the state鈥檚 mounting fentanyl epidemic when state lawmakers return to Sacramento early next year.