🔥 PacifiCorp now owes $1B in wildfire damages

PacifiCorp’s $1B in Wildfire Costs

A Multnomah County jury last week awarded a surprisingly high $305 million in damages to 16 of the plaintiffs suing PacifiCorp over 2020’s wildfire damages. Last week’s award brings the company’s total obligations past the $1 billion mark, with more expected, as another 1,500 of the 2,500 total plaintiffs have yet to go before juries for damages. [Oregonian]

• Related: A separate jury in 2023 found that the power company was grossly negligent in failing to shut off the power during severe windstorms that led to four of 2020’s wildfires. [Oregonian]

A 12-Year Low for Apartment Building Permits

The state then hit a 12-year low in permitting multifamily housing, with just 4,800 units approved in 2024. The figures for 2025, once finalized, are expected to be only slightly higher. For comparison: Gov. Tina Kotek has set a goal of building 36,000 housing units a year across the state. [Oregon Journalism Project]

A Lodging Tax Increase To Save Endangered Species

With rare bipartisan support, the Oregon House passed a bill to increase taxes on hotel stays, Airbnbs, and similar short-term lodging. Raising the tax — set now at 1.5% — by another 1.25% would generate about $37 million a year, with most of the new revenue going to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife for conservation efforts and identifying threatened species. [Portland Mercury]

DC Police Clear US Labor Secretary’s Husband

Washington, D.C., police found no evidence of criminal conduct, following a report that the husband of U.S. Labor Secretary and former Oregon congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer had engaged in sexual abuse. The New York Times recently reported that Portland anesthesiologist Dr. Shawn DeRemer was barred from visiting the U.S. Labor Department’s offices after two women reported that he’d engaged in unwanted sexual contact. The police report only mentioned one woman. [Oregonian]