There's less than a week left until the election, and only 23.8 percent of the state's eligible voters have cast ballots. Here in Multnomah County, we're doing worse than that (22.3 percent), and Washington County's got the second-worst turnout in the state right now, at 20.1 percent.

You know who's doing pretty good, though? Clackamas County. At any rate, it's beating the state as a whole with an even 25 percent (but still cast fewer ballots than Multnomah or Washington counties). It's time to vote, everybody.

Here, we'll help. Check out our endorsement of Measure 86, the so-called Oregon Opportunity Initiative. Then click through to see the rest of our recommendations. Then fill out that damn ballot.

THE OREGON LEGISLATURE, busy juggling endless hot potatoes like the Columbia River Crossing and the state's troubled K-12 schools, has let higher education crash to the floor.

The portion of the state's general fund put toward public universities and community colleges sits at historic lows; administrators, professors, and university staff must make do with less, causing predictable acrimony when labor contract negotiations come around; and Oregon students are tasked with chipping in where the legislature won't.

In the last decade alone, tuition in the Oregon University System shot up 50 percent, far outpacing income, and doubtlessly leaving aspiring students behind.

The status quo got us here, and it shows no signs of improving.

Which is why we agree with State Treasurer Ted Wheeler that Oregon needs to do something extraordinary to reaffirm its commitment to higher education. And Wheeler has hit on a good thing with Measure 86, his so-called "Opportunity Initiative."

Under the measure, the Oregon Constitution would be amended, allowing the state to issue potentially billions in bonds. The precise amount would be up to lawmakers. But whatever the amount, all that money would be invested—and the fruits of those investments would be dedicated to Oregon's students in the form of financial aid. That outlay might be relatively modest, Wheeler concedes—particularly in the short term—but it will also foster a better-educated workforce.

There are gripes about the measure—suggestions the fund's investments could tank and a specious argument that more aid will just let schools increase tuition—but no organized opposition. Some conservatives question the use of limited public money, saying private donations should be used to set up a fund.

But that's what's great about Wheeler's plan. Without raising your taxes, it would spur the legislature to put general fund money toward higher education, and also send a message that college education is a priority.

That message is long overdue.

READ THE REST OF OUR ENDORSEMENTS HERE>>>