By Julia Shumway | Editor
Consequences hit Friday for an Eastern Oregon state representative who has been fighting multiple ethics investigations in recent years over his private sector work in economic development. Rep. Greg Smith, R-Heppner, has served in the House since 2001 and, until Friday, was the only Republican to co-chair a budget subcommittee.
But late Friday afternoon, the Oregon Government Ethics Commission agreed to a $12,000 fine for Smith for abusing his position as head of the Columbia Development Authority to pocket tens of thousands of dollars in the form of a retroactive raise he engineered for himself without the board’s knowledge and approving his own timecards with paid vacation time that totaled nearly 11 weeks in his last eight months on the job. Shortly after the commission issued its fine, House Speaker Julie Fahey, D-Eugene, removed Smith’s gavel for the general government subcommittee. It remains to be seen whether he’ll face further repercussions from the Legislature or from voters in his sprawling, deeply conservative district.
Also in today's edition:
Fishermen will start testing ropeless crabbing gear
Transportation survey now open
Planners map out northwest grid upgrades
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By Mia Maldonado
Traditional crabbing gear sits at a dock in Newport, the Dungeness Crab Capital of the World. Next spring, fishermen across Oregon can begin experimenting with pop-up gear, a ropeless alternative to crabbing that prevents whale entanglements. (Courtesy of Jaime Karnik/Oceana)
Oregon fishermen will begin testing ropeless crabbing technology next spring in an effort to save whales from often-fatal entanglements.
By Shaanth Nanguneri
Rep. Greg Smith, R-Heppner, in the Oregon House on Jan. 13, 2025. He is facing a $12,000 penalty from the Oregon Government Ethics Commission over recent ethics violations. (Photo by Laura Tesler/Oregon Capital Chronicle)
The Oregon Government Ethics Commission on Friday agreed to fine Oregon’s longest-serving state representative $12,000 for abusing his position as a leader of an eastern Oregon public development authority to raise his salary and approve weeks of paid vacation.
By Mia Maldonado
Aerial view of the Interstate 5 bridge connecting Portland and Vancouver. Members of a workgroup meant come up with sustainable funding for the Oregon Department of Transportation said that among their greatest challenges is overall negative public perceptions of the agency. (Photo courtesy of the Oregon Department of Transportation)
The group tasked with developing recommendations on how to maintain Oregon’s transportation system wants to hear from Oregonians about what they think the state’s transportation priorities should be in a new survey.
By Aspen Ford | Washington State Standard
The Pacific Northwest will need a massive buildout of new energy infrastructure over the next six years to meet rising electricity demand, according to a draft regional power plan released late last week.
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