Jeff Merkley

On Friday, senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley pressed the Bureau of Reclamation to prioritize Oregon when it comes to drought relief.  A letter sent by the two lawmakers, said, in part, “we strongly urge the Bureau of Reclamation to provide critical funding to areas in Oregon that have been devastated by the historic, multi-year, extreme drought conditions."   ...

Earlier this week, Oregon senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkely announced that Oregon State University will receive more than $180,000 in federal funds to help hops growers.  The funding will be used to research and develop management strategies for the fusarium canker fungus killing hops in Oregon, Washington and Idaho.   “...

Over a million dollars in federal funding is coming to Oregon for firefighting efforts.  Senator Jeff Merkley said it’s a step toward disaster prevention. "These funds go to the fire chiefs to prepare and basically develop their plans for tackling the fires. They’re v...

On Wednesday, Oregon Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced the USDA’s approval of a $52 million purchase of Pacific Northwest seafood products.  The two democrats say this purchase will support the state’s seafood industry which has been hit hard by COVID-19 and climate chaos. “Not only do...

Oregon’s U.S. Senators are praising plans by the Biden Administration to increase federal wildland firefighter pay to a minimum of 15 dollars an hour.  The President is also establishing a wildland firefighter health and wellbeing program. Senato...

According to the latest Drought Monitor Numbers, over half of Oregon is designated as severe, extreme or exceptional drought.  Farmers and ranchers in many portions of the state are already worried they won’t have enough water this growing season.  And some prod...

Oregon’s Congressional delegation is asking for a renewed commitment to the Western Oregon Operating Plan, also known as “WOOP”, to better respond to wildfires. The current plan is set to expire in 2024. In a letter to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, Oregon’s U.S. Senators and Represe ...

Oregon senator Jeff Merkley says he has secured much needed funding to help rural communities across the state, make forests more resilient and protect public lands. The bill is the basis for negotiations with the House, as Congress works to fund the government for fiscal year 2022 ...

Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and Congressman Cliff Bentz released a statement Tuesday focused on the drought conditions in the Klamath Basin. The three met with Interior Secretary Deb Haaland about the dire water year the southwest corner of the state will face, and the emergency resources needed to provide the community relief ...

The U.S. Interior Department is delaying the Trump administration’s last-minute roll-back of federal protections for the northern spotted owl. On February 22nd, federal officials said the changes will be reviewed, delaying their effective date from March 16th to April 15th. D ...