Jeff Golden

Environmental groups met with Gov. Tina Kotek's office, urging state action on long-delayed repairs at Winchester Dam in Douglas County as legal battles drag on.

Kotek told reporters that suspending $1 billion of the expected tax refund could be crucial to pay wildfire costs.

The bill would exempt from state income taxes any money received as a result of a wildfire-related lawsuit.

Officials in Southern Oregon are trying to get more state funding to combat the explosion of illegal marijuana cultivation over the past year.