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By Julia Shumway | Editor

“I support a moratorium until we make sure that any data center development is done on our terms.” — Gov. Tina Kotek, speaking to a crowd protesting against data centers outside the Capitol on Tuesday. Kotek ordered state agencies to pause any moves to permit data centers on state land, though she says she lacks the authority under state law to enact a full moratorium.

Also in today's edition:

  • State officials encourage ballot boxes, not mailboxes, for returning ballots

  • Legislature weighs prosperity council recommendations

  • Mail voting awaits Supreme Court

News tips, feedback or questions? Email us at [email protected]

Oregon officials urge use of ballot boxes while defending mail voting

By Julia Shumway

Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, speaks during a press conference in Salem, Oregon, on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026. (Photo by Julia Shumway/Oregon Capital Chronicle)

SALEM — Top Oregon elected officials on Tuesday urged Oregonians to use ballot drop boxes, not mailboxes, to return ballots in November as newly released data showed thousands of Oregonians missed having their May primary votes counted because of postal delays.

Gov. Kotek pauses data centers on state land. Capitol demonstrators want her to go further.

By Alex Baumhardt

Gov. Tina Kotek at a rally on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026 at the Oregon State Capitol, where demonstrators called for a moratorium on new data center development in the state for three years. (Photo by Alex Baumhardt/Oregon Capital Chronicle)

SALEM — Roughly 100 people showed up outside the Oregon State Capitol on Tuesday to call for a three-year pause on new data center development in the state.

Among them was Gov. Tina Kotek, who expressed support for the demonstrators — a coalition of environmental, public health, farm and social advocacy groups — but who stopped short of endorsing the length and breadth of the pause they desired.

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Oregon lawmakers preview Kotek’s prosperity council findings amid economic ‘inflection point’

By Shaanth Nanguneri

Gov. Tina Kotek reviews a report from her prosperity council on July 25, 2026. Lawmakers discussed the report’s findings at a committee hearing on Tuesday in Salem. (Photo by Julia Shumway/Oregon Capital Chronicle)

SALEM — Oregon lawmakers on Tuesday heard from Gov. Tina Kotek’s economic advisers about next year’s top priorities for legislation to spur economic development, including recommendations to reduce the state’s estate tax, boost infrastructure spending and eliminate excessive regulations.

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FROM OUR D.C. BUREAU

Trump doesn’t have the power to limit mail-in voting, lawmakers tell US Supreme Court | Jacob Fischler

Trump’s trade war with Canada escalates as new tariffs launch | Ashley Murray

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Oregon workplace safety complaints rise amid record-breaking wildfire season | Mia Maldonado

Study finds Oregon had the second highest rate of state lawmakers leaving office early | Mia Maldonado

OTHER OREGON NEWS Some stories may be behind paywalls.

Pacific Seafood and Oregon regulators are locked in battle over wastewater treatment from its coastal processing plants | Lincoln Chronicle

Dry farming research aims to stay ahead of water shortages | The Bulletin

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