Think Out Loud

Last week, stakeholders from the Upper Mississippi River toured the Columbia and Snake River to see what is similar and different from the two water systems. Last year, stakeholders from the Pacific Northwest visited the Mississippi in this continued collaboration [https://capitalpress.com/2025/05/02/mississippi-river-stakeholders-to-tour-columbia-snake/] between the two rivers. Michelle Hennings is the executive director of the Washington Association of Wheat Growers. Gary Williams is the executive director of the Upper Mississippi Waterway Association. They both join us to share what the Columbia and Mississippi River can learn from each other.

Over the last few months, the Trump administration has directed federal agencies such as the National Institutes of Health [https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/nih-scientists-speak-out-over-estimated-12-billion-trump-funding-cuts-2025-06-09/] and National Science Foundation [https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/white-house-launches-another-assault-on-science-funding-targeting-nsf-epa/] to cut funding for research with any connection [https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25928836-wa-case_memoli/] to “diversity,” “equity” or “gender ideology.” The cuts have forced researchers across the country [https://projects.propublica.org/nih-cuts-research-lost-trump/], including in Oregon, to stop their studies or scramble to locate alternative funding.   We’ll hear from three researchers whose federal grants were cancelled: Marguerita Lightfoot [https://ohsu-psu-sph.org/our-school/faculty-directory/name/marguerita-lightfoot/] is a professor at the OHSU-PSU School of Public Health. Lauren Forrest [https://cas.uoregon.edu/directory/psychology-faculty/all/lnf] is an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Oregon. Tala Navab-Daneshmand [https://engineering.oregonstate.edu/people/tala-navab-daneshmand] is an associate professor of environmental engineering at Oregon State University.    They join us to talk about the negative impact the cuts will have on efforts to address health disparities in the U.S.

Last week, the Metro Council decided it would not ask voters to extend a regional homeless services tax [https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2025/06/plan-to-ask-voters-to-extend-portland-area-homeless-services-tax-in-november-scrapped.html] on the November ballot. The Supportive Housing Services tax, which is set to expire in 2030, applies to residents in Multnomah, Clackamas and Washington counties making more than $125,000 a year (or more than $200,000 for couples filing jointly). Businesses making more than $5 million annually are also subject to the tax which helps fund programs in the tri-county area to help people experiencing homelessness move into housing.     But a poll the Metro Council recently commissioned [https://www.scribd.com/document/877856706/FM3-Research-Findings-Summary-2025-06-16] suggests that voters in the region appear to be questioning its effectiveness to help combat a crisis that has only gotten worse since the tax went into effect four years ago. The poll found that 53% of respondents said they would vote “yes” to reauthorize the tax, while 43% said they would oppose it.   The Metro Council is now exploring how to reform the tax, starting with a recent vote to index income thresholds to inflation and remove quarterly payment requirements for most high earners. Joining us to discuss the future of the Supportive Housing Services tax is Metro Councilor Christine Lewis.

When Oregon lawmakers convened in January to kick off the 2025 legislative session, among their top legislative priorities was a transportation funding fix for the state’s aging bridges, highways and roads. But the Democratic supermajority failed to get a transportation package [https://www.opb.org/article/2025/06/27/oregon-transportation-bill-2025/] over the legislative finish line when the session adjourned [https://www.opb.org/article/2025/06/27/oregon-legislature-ends-2025-session/] on Friday night.    Democrats waited until the last month to unveil HB 2025 [https://www.opb.org/article/2025/06/20/oregon-transportation-bill-moves-vote-splits-democrats/], which would have generated nearly $12 billion over the next decade through a mix of taxes and fees, including hikes in the state’s gas tax and a new tax on vehicle sales. Republicans balked at the proposal, including several who had been working with Democrats [https://www.opb.org/article/2025/06/09/oregon-transportation-bill-gets-panned-by-republicans-even-those-who-negotiated-it/] on transportation funding.     Defections emerged among Democratic lawmakers [https://www.opb.org/article/2025/06/18/oregon-democrat-plans-no-vote-on-transportation-bill-as-session-nears-its-end/] as well, most notably from state Sen. Mark Meek, D-Gladstone [https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/meek/Pages/biography.aspx], a member of the Joint Committee on Transportation Reinvestment. Senate President Rob Wagner, D-Lake Oswego, removed Meek from the committee on June 20 to boost the bill’s chance of passage. But on Friday, Democrats conceded they didn’t have the votes to pass it, and they had to abandon a last-ditch effort to raise the state’s gas tax by 3 cents to avert looming layoffs at the Oregon Department of Transportation.    Sen. Meek joins us to share his thoughts on the legislature’s efforts to tackle Oregon’s transportation challenges.

The NBA draft started last week, and free agency just began. For the Blazers and their fans, some new faces will hit the court, and others will say goodbye. Yang Hansen [https://www.opb.org/article/2025/06/27/yang-hansen-portland-trail-blazers/], a 7-foot-1 center from China, is the Blazers’ newest rookie and was No. 16 in the overall draft. The Blazers also recently parted ways with center Deandre Ayton after a slew of “bad ways,” including tardiness, tantrums and skipping rehabilitation appointments, as first reported in The Athletic [https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6463929/2025/06/30/deandre-ayton-portlant-trail-blazers-free-agency/?source=emp_shared_article]. Mike Richman is the host of the “Locked on Blazers” podcast. He joins us to share more on what to expect from Rip City’s beloved team after this player shake-up.