The Takeaway is a weekly session publication making sense of Oregon politics and policy. Every Friday while the legislature is in session, we publish a review of the week’s prominent topics and controversies. Our readers span from politicians and corporate executives to journalists and every day political junkies.
Jun
28
Oregon Legislative Session Ends in Disarray
Oregon’s long session ended without its marquee achievement, as lawmakers failed to deliver a transportation package and left key issues unsettled.
6 min read
Jun
23
Transportation Plan Roils Final Week of Oregon Session
With just days remaining in the 2025 legislative session, Oregon lawmakers are grappling with internal party divisions over a $15.5 billion transportation funding plan.
3 min read
Jun
13
Running on Fumes
With just two weeks remaining, Oregon’s legislature is compressing months of work into days. The result is a volatile and unpredictable endgame where the biggest proposals often surface with the smallest amount of notice.
4 min read
May
31
Speed Over Substance: When the Capitol Runs Out of Road
With sine die declared imminent, the Capitol enters its most volatile and least transparent phase.
3 min read
May
16
Deadlines, Detours, and Directionless Drift
With six weeks remaining in the 2025 session, lawmakers are starting to race against the clock, but the final destination is anyone’s guess.
3 min read
May
09
The Wait is Almost Over
The final chapter of the legislative session begins next week.
3 min read
Apr
18
Oregon’s Self-Inflicted Uncertainty
As global trade tensions rise and markets reel, Oregon lawmakers are doing little to ease the strain — and much to fuel the fire.
3 min read
Mar
28
Spring Break? Not at the Capitol
Sun, rest, and... 84 work sessions in a single committee? While most of Oregon unplugged, the legislature barrels through its first major deadline.
4 min read
Mar
21
At Legislature’s First Deadline, Still No Dominant Theme
Oregon lawmakers are working through their first major deadline. Yet the session remains defined more by motion than direction.
4 min read
Feb
21
A Quiet Shift in Oregon’s Tax Politics
If Oregon’s rules around raising revenue gradually weaken, the political barriers to increasing taxes will also erode.
