Abdul Saboor Hassan moved to Oregon in 2020 after qualifying for a green card for his service to the U.S. Army in his home country, Afghanistan. He became a commercial truck driver for a short period of time before becoming a commercial driving instructor, an experience that motivated him to open his own commercial driving […]
When Oregon lawmakers in 2013 passed a law establishing some of the state’s earliest guidelines for public drone usage, not a single state or local agency was using drones. The law prohibited the use of armed drones and restricted their use in law enforcement surveillance to cases involving a search warrant or life-threatening emergencies, such […]
SALEM — Bipartisanship and earlier deliberations over transportation funding are a priority in the 2027 legislative session, a mostly Democratic group of lawmakers told the business and transportation experts tasked with vetting and recommending ideas to solve the Oregon Department of Transportation’s impending funding shortfall. For a third year in a row, lawmakers in January […]
In 1955, 15 cents could buy a McDonald’s hamburger or pay the tax for 15 gallons of jet fuel. More than 70 years later, hamburgers cost several dollars but the tax rate the state’s aviation agency counts on hasn’t changed. Oregon Department of Aviation Director Kenji Sugahara shared that comparison with lawmakers on the interim […]
Oregonians driving electric vehicles will be required to pay hundreds of dollars in new taxes and fees starting next year, sending tens of millions of dollars annually to the State Highway Fund. The fund is today mostly seeded with money from the state’s 40-cent-per-gallon gas tax and pays for Oregon roads and infrastructure. That revenue […]
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek has appointed her chief of staff to temporarily lead the state’s transportation agency. Chris Warner, who has worked with Kotek since 2023, will serve as the Oregon Department of Transportation’s interim director until the agency finds its next director. He is taking over Lisa Sumption’s interim position so she can return […]
In their first meeting since Oregon voters rejected a gas and payroll tax increase to pay for roads and transit services, Gov. Tina Kotek’s transportation workgroup seemed less focused on finding new funding mechanisms for the state’s beleaguered transportation agency than the agency’s perceived marketing failures. The 12 member workgroup first met in May and […]
Under hot, dry conditions, all types of motorized vehicles can ignite a wildfire.
ALBANY – Jessica Lavery starts her mornings, sometimes as early as 6 a.m., deciding if she needs to close one of the offices she manages or shift her staff to another location. Lavery manages the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Northwest region of Oregon’s Driver and Motor Vehicle Services division, which has offices across the Willamette […]
Ten Oregon airports will receive $3.1 million in federal funding for upgrades, members of Oregon’s congressional delegation announced last week. “Small airports throughout our state need and deserve federal investments so Oregonians can count on them for small business support, emergency response, secure travel and more,” said U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat. “These […]
