Jeff Merkley

Two wildland firefighters died in Oregon this fire season, and a federal bill sponsored by U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley would expand death benefits for families like theirs.

The bill, introduced Monday with Republican Sen. John Curtis of Utah, would give survivors of fallen wildland firefighters the same benefit — up to $100,000 — that families of military members killed in action receive.

Right now, the death benefit for federal wildland firefighters is capped at $10,000, Merkley’s office said.

The bill would make the expanded benefit available to the families of all wildland firefighters, including those employed by contractors and federal, state or local agencies.

Merkley is seeking a fourth term in the upcoming midterm election. His main challenger is Republican state Sen. David Brock Smith, R-Port Orford.

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We went to a key Oregon city to ask voters about the governor’s race

The latest public poll results show Gov. Tina Kotek and her Republican challenger, state Sen. Christine Drazan, statistically tied in this November’s governor’s race, a rematch.

Perhaps nowhere in Oregon is the closeness of the race — and the lack of overwhelming excitement for either candidate — as evident as it is in Sherwood, the Washington County city of 20,000 where just three votes separated Drazan and Kotek in the 2022 governor’s race. That was the tightest margin in all of Oregon that election, when 47% of overall voters sided with Kotek and 43.5% picked Drazan.

Reporter Carlos Fuentes recently made several trips to Sherwood to ask voters how they’re feeling about next month’s election. Read his dispatch here.

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As Oregon weighs universal healthcare, federal lawmaker pushes national plan

U.S. Rep. Janelle Bynum, who is facing her first reelection campaign for Congress this November, is tapping into public support for improved health insurance by touting a federal single-payer healthcare proposal that’s backed by more than 100 fellow Democrats in Congress, including every Democratic member of Oregon’s delegation.

Her support of the bill comes as Oregon prepares to consider its own universal healthcare plan, with a state board expected to deliver recommendations for a publicly funded system to lawmakers by Dec. 1.