Oregon had the highest voter turnout rate in the nation. Learn more here.

By the Associated Press

For the first time ever, Oregon had the highest voter turnout rate in the nation for last November’s elections.

Former Oregon Secretary of State Phil Keisling, who now leads a national effort to expand voting from home, said 61.5% of all the eligible citizens in Oregon cast a ballot, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported Thursday.

“We edged out Maine by .05%,” he said.

Keisling said Oregon has had a relatively high turnout rate since the state implemented its pioneering vote-by-mail system 25 years ago. He said the numbers have really ramped up…

The average gas price in Oregon has risen 9.3 cents in the last week. Find out more here.

CHICAGO (KTVZ) — Average gasoline prices in Oregon have risen 9.3 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.73/gallon Monday, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 1,307 stations in Oregon.

Prices in Oregon are 5.2 cents per gallon higher than a month ago and stand 16.5 cents per gallon lower than a year ago. The national average price of diesel has risen 5.4 cents in the last week and stands at $4.65 per gallon.

According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Oregon was priced at $3.09/g Sunday, while the most expensive was $4.79/g, a difference of $1.70/g.

The national…

Oregon is launching an abortion hotline that will offer free legal advice. Learn more here.

By Claire Rush of AP News

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon is launching a new abortion hotline offering free legal advice to callers, moving to further defend abortion access after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last summer and eliminated federal protections for the procedure.

The state’s Department of Justice announced the initiative Monday. It is modeled on similar hotlines launched by the attorneys general of New York and Delaware, as states where abortion remains legal have seen an increase in the number of patients traveling from areas where the procedure has been banned…

Smith Rock State Park is slated to get a new, wider pedestrian bridge this summer, which means there will be no bridge access for about four weeks during construction in mid to late summer. The exact dates depend on nesting season and streamflow.

The bridge spans the Crooked River in Central Oregon near Bend and connects the front of the park with many but not all of its hiking trails and climbing destinations. There will be no temporary bridge, and…

The majority of seafood consumed on the Oregon coast isn’t from the Oregon coast.. Find out more here.

As thousands of visitors flock to the Oregon Coast every year, most of them are looking for the fresh high-quality seafood that is distinctly Oregonian.

But a study commissioned recently by the Oregon Coast Visitors Association – the destination management organization serving the entire Oregon Coast from Astoria to Brookings – found shockingly that about 90 percent of the seafood consumed on the coast is imported from other domestic and international sources.

In response, OCVA has launched the Ocean Cluster Initiative – United States Department of Agriculture-funded program entitled “Capturing Value by Keeping Local Seafood Local” – to help combat that trend. The initiative…

Oregon Democratic Gov., Tina Kotek, will focus on affordable housing and combatting homelessness. Learn more here.

By CLAIRE RUSH/Associated Press/Report for America

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon’s newly sworn-in Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek signed three executive orders intended to combat homelessness on her first full day in office Tuesday, a sign of how critical the shortage of affordable housing has become in the state and across the nation.

The orders call for boosting construction and marshaling resources to help the nearly 18,000 people living outside in Oregon.

Advocates welcomed the measures. But they said that shoring up mental health and addiction services must also occur in order to help people move off the street.

Just last year, Oregon lawmakers…

“Space, Hope and Charity” is a new documentary about a young woman from rural Oregon who wants to study astrophysics. Find out more here.

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – The new documentary film “Space, Hope and Charity” tells the remarkable journey of Charity Woodrum, a young woman from rural Oregon who overcomes tragedy as she pursues a career in astrophysics.

Woodrum grew up in poverty in Canyonville, where she had dreamed of working for NASA one day, but had never met a scientist. At the age of 28, married and nine months pregnant, Woodrum decided to follow her passion and returned to school to study physics.

Woodrum was thriving at the University of Oregon. By her junior year, she had…

Hayden Homes Amphitheater is accepting applications for food cart trucks. Learn more here.

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – The Hayden Homes Amphitheater is looking for a few good food trucks.

The application window is now open for vendors looking to partner with Oregon’s largest outdoor music venue. The Hayden Homes Amphitheater hosted 52 concerts in 2022, including sold out shows by Kenny Chesney, Nine Inch Nails, ODESZA, The Chicks, and more.

“We work long, hard and often hot hours, but we have a blast doing it,” says Kris Ann Palacios, the amphitheater’s food & beverage manager. “We’re hoping to find business partners who love food and music as much as we do.”

Palacios has as many as eight food cart openings…

Just over a dozen Oregon cities, towns and unincorporated areas had their status changed from urban to rural, the result of a new definition the U.S. Census Bureau for the 2020 census.

Those places — including Mount Hood Village, Boardman and Irrigon — joined more than 1,100 nationwide, with a combined 4.2 million residents, that are now rural areas according to the bureau.

Under the old criteria, an urbanized area needed to have at…

Bend High School has been awarded a large grant from the American Welding Society. Learn more here.

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Bend Senior High School has been awarded a $24,510 grant from the American Welding Society to upgrade its welding program and give students the opportunity to earn an entry-level, Level 1 welder certification while still in high school.

“We are really excited, since this will allow us to provide our students hands-on experience with the tools and equipment that are being used in the workplace right now, and create a pipeline for local businesses who desperately need these trade professionals,” instructor Chuck Hill said.

The funds were provided through the AWS Foundation as part of a nationally competitive…