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Good morning, Portland! Itâs going to be downright HOT today. Donât forget to pop on some sunscreen before catching some rays.
In local news:
â˘Â A check-in on Portlandâs 2016 $258 million housing bond: The bond has funded 314 affordable apartments currently in use and is on track to deliver 1,200 more by next year. This means the housing bureau will exceed the bondâs goal of 1,300 affordable apartments by 2023. However, city officials note that the progress still isnât enough to cover Portlandâs affordable housing needs.
â˘Â Oregon schools received about $1 billion in pandemic-related funding last year. With a spending deadline of September 2024, education leaders in the state are directing about 30 percent of the money towards âunfinished learning,â or efforts that try to make up for student learning loss during the pandemic. That includes funding community organizations that offer tutoring and providing grants for innovative school programs.
A rally and march for Transgender Day of Visibility brought people together to celebrate and bring attention to issues impacting the transgender community. https://t.co/9kQmKamZei
â Street Roots (@StreetRoots) April 6, 2022
â˘Â If an Oregon taxpayer has unpaid debts like old parking tickets or court fees, the state has a program that recoups the fundsâand related interestâby taking the money directly from their tax return. A KGW investigation found that sometimes people arenât even notified that they have outstanding debt accruing interest and that the program disproportionately recoups funds from low-income Oregonians and people of color.
Portlandâs chief administrative officer Tom Rinehart will receive one yearâs salary in exchange for his resignation, but itâs not immediately clear why he's departing. https://t.co/5IeJyDyKg3
â OPB (@OPB) April 7, 2022
In national news:
â˘Â Texas Governor Greg Abbott plans to use state funding to transport migrants from the Texas border to Washington DC via bus, seemingly as a protest against President Bidenâs plan to end a pandemic-era policy that immediately removed migrants from the US. âWe are sending them to the United States Capitol where the Biden administration will more immediately be able to address the needs of people that they are allowing to come across our border,â Abbott told reporters Wednesday.
â˘Â Prosecutors are not filing charges against the Minneapolis police officer who shot and killed Amir Locke while executing a no-knock warrant in February. The officer shot Locke within seconds of entering the 22-year-oldâs apartment after Locke was seen on his couch with a handgun. Prosecutors said there is not enough evidence to file criminal charges.
âAmazon, here we come. Watch.â â President Bidenpic.twitter.com/DHQZINLSyn
â Ken Klippenstein (@kenklippenstein) April 6, 2022
â˘Â The US Senate will vote this afternoon whether or not to confirm Judge Kentaji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. The Senate is expected to confirm Jackson.
â˘Â Economists estimate that the average American family will need $5,200 more this year to cover the same purchases they made in 2021 due to the countyâs inflation rate. Ooof.
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â˘Â AHOY THERE, STONERS! The SPLIFF Film Festivalâfeaturing short, hilarious, trippy, and thoughtful mini-movies about cannabis and made by stoners just like YOUâis coming to Revolution Hall for one night only on Saturday, April 16! GET THOSE TICKETS NOW!
â˘Â An example of how to go outside and enjoy today's sun:
pic.twitter.com/XVvxiAfCov
â Oregon Zoo (@OregonZoo) April 5, 2022