Shrinking 82nd Avenue: John Charles Responds to Tyler Frisbee
By John A. Charles, Jr. At TriMet’s December 10 board meeting, director Tyler…
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Oregon’s “Prosperity Roadmap” Must Follow the Path of Liberty
By Naomi Inman Early this December, Governor Tina Kotek’s newsroom unveiled “Oregon’s Prosperity…
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“Fully Funded Schools” Are a Moving Goal Post
By Kathryn Hickok How much money does it take to “fully fund” Oregon’s…
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Portland Public Schools’ Risky Real Estate Gamble
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. On December 2, Portland Public Schools (PPS) board voted…
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Oregon’s 19th Century Energy Strategy
By John A. Charles, Jr. Recently the Oregon Department of Energy (ODOE) published…
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“Inspire Oregon” Tackles Rural Housing Crisis
By Madilynne Clark The University of Oregon’s Institute for Policy Research and Engagement…
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Cascade Quarterly Fall 2025
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Multnomah Audit Finds Fraud in Construction Recycling
By Naomi Inman What happens to all that construction debris on public works…
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TriMet Retreat Should Focus on Crisis, Not Expansion
By John A. Charles, Jr. On November 12, the TriMet Board will hold…
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News Release: Cascade Identifies Purchase Risk for PPS One North Building
11/06/2025 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Cascade Policy Institute4850 SW Scholls Ferry Rd., Ste 103Portland…
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$2 Trillion and No One Aboard
By Randal O’Toole Since 1965, when Congress began subsidizing urban transit, taxpayers have…
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Dear PPS Bond Committee: Please Tell the Taxpayers
By John A. Charles, Jr. Cascade’s president, John Charles, testified online at the…
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Acton Dinner: “The Future of Faith and Freedom” with Rev. Robert A. Sirico
By Naomi Inman On October 21, the Acton Institute held its Portland Dinner…
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Decision Time for TriMet’s 82nd Ave. Road Diet
By John A. Charles, Jr. TriMet’s “Road Diet” planned for 82nd Avenue is…
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Over-Sized, Over-Priced Schools Accelerate PPS’ Fiscal Crisis
By Naomi Inman Cascade’s President and CEO, John Charles, emailed a Memo on Monday to…
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The Center for Black Student Excellence Should Be a Private Venture
By John A. Charles, Jr. In September, the Portland Public Schools Board voted…
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Why Affordable Housing is Unaffordable
By Randal O’Toole Last week KGW news reported that Portland area rents are…
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Improve Education Outcomes by Removing Barriers
By Kathryn Hickok The National Association of Education Progress (NAEP) annually releases a…
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Oregon Energy Strategy is Doomed to Fail
By Randal O’Toole The Oregon Department of Energy “Oregon Energy Strategy” for saving…
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Oregon’s Electric Vehicle Policy Fail
By John Charles On September 15, the Oregon Department of Energy (ODOE) released…
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John Charles’ Sept. 9 Testimony for PPS Board Meeting Re: Purchase Agreement for Center for Black Student Excellence
Executive Summary: On September 9th, the Portland Public School (PPS) board met to…
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Student Excellence for Every Portland Public School
By John Charles On September 9th, the Portland Public School (PPS) board was…
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Separate but Equitable at Portland Public Schools
By John A. Charles, Jr. In 1954 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that…
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Spending Solutions for ODOT’s Spending Problems
By Naomi Inman The Oregon Legislature’s Joint Committee on Transportation Funding will consider…
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John Charles’ Testimony Re: ’25 Special Session Transportation Funding
Testimony of John A. Charles, Jr.Regarding LC 2Before the Joint Interim Committee on…
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The Tapeworm Eating ODOT’s Record Gas Tax Revenue
By John A. Charles, Jr. Governor Tina Kotek has called a special session…
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Special Session Should Use Emergency Funds, Not Punish Oregonians
By Connor Roberts The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) has a $350 million…
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Tina Kotek’s Energy Policy: Whichever Way the Wind Blows
By Maxwell Powers Governor Tina Kotek has long expressed support for wind power….
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Metro Council Votes to Approve $88.5 Million Bond for Road Diets: One Intern’s Reflection
By Connor Roberts The summer of 2025 brought Cascade three talented Research Associates…
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Metro’s Ballooning Bond for Road Diets
By Jacob Beckwith On July 31st, the seven Metro councilors will vote to…
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“What Does It Cost?” Film by Discovery Institute Exposes the West Coast Climate Agenda
This summer, Cascade’s summer Research Associates reviewed a film produced by the Discovery…
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Metro Should Reject the Burnside Bridge Road Diet
By Connor Roberts The new “Earthquake Ready Burnside Bridge” lane designs, backed with…
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TriMet’s Plan for 82nd Avenue “Road Diet” Looms in Metro Decision
By Maxwell Powers TriMet has a new “road diet” planned for Portland, this…
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HB 2089 Brings Oregon into Compliance with the Supreme Court’s Tyler Ruling on Property Rights and Home Equity
By Kathryn Hickok With the passage of House Bill 2089 in late June,…
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Voters Aren’t Interested in New Transportation Taxes
By John A. Charles, Jr. The Oregon legislature ended on June 27 without…
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Cascade Quarterly Spring 2025
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New Hampshire Is First in New England to Enact Universal School Choice
By Kathryn Hickok New Hampshire has removed the income cap for families applying…
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Jefferson High School’s Dual Enrollment Dilemma
By Naomi Inman Last week, Portland Public Schools Superintendent Kimberlee Armstrong announced her…
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From Gas Tank to Paycheck: Oregon’s Plan to Tax Everything That Moves
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. Executive Summary Three major transportation funding proposals are circulating…
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Educational Choice for Children Act Would Expand Private Scholarship Options for American Children
By Kathryn Hickok Groundbreaking, school choice legislation called the Educational Choice for Children…
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Testimony Before Tax Supervising Conservation Commission on PPS Proposed 2025 Budget’s Race-Based Funding Disparities
June 6, 2025 Ms. Harmony QuirozChair, Tax Supervising Conservation Commission808 SW Third AvenuePortland,…
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SB 1182: The New Racism
John A. Charles, Jr. The Oregon legislature is about to pass Senate Bill…
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Metro Should Scrap Visioning and Long-Range Planning
By Randal O’Toole Metro will soon be revising its 1995 Regional Framework Plan,…
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Testimony on SB 702 Limits Sale of Flavored Tobacco/Nicotine Products to OLCC Outlets
May 21, 2025 Senate Committee on Revenue and FinanceOregon State CapitolSalem, OR 97301…
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Well Permitting Fees (HB 2808), Not Taxpayer Bailouts (HB 2165), Should Fund Oregon Water Resources Shortfall
By Madilynne Clark Should permitting agencies receive increased funds? If budget increases are…
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Amended Bill 3103-1 Would Hold ODF Accountable to Fulfill Its Promises on Sustainable Timber Sales
By Madilynne Clark Over-promising and under-delivering has been the habit of Oregon Department…
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House Bills on Oregon Water Resources to Double Dip Taxpayers
By Madilynne Clark House Bill 2808 and House Bill 2165 seek to address…
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Oregon Department of Forestry’s Bad Habit: Over Promise, Under Deliver
By Madilynne Clark Over-promising and under-delivering has been the habit of Oregon Department…
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Testimony on SB 1182 to Gift, Lease, or Sell I-5 Rose Quarter Property to Albina Vision Trust, Inc.
May 12, 2025 Joint Committee on TransportationOregon State LegislatureState CapitolSalem, OR Dear Co-Chairs…
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Affordable Housing Does More Harm Than Good
By Randal O’Toole So-called affordable housing is anything but affordable. Instead, it is…
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Metro Should Scrap Visioning and Long-Range Planning
By Randal O’Toole Metro has begun rewriting its 1995 “Future Vision,” which is…
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PPS Bond M26-259
Author: Naomi Inman, naomi@cascadepolicy.org PPS Bond Measure 26-259 isToo BigToo VaguePoorly Managed Hit…
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School Choice Is Bigger in Texas
By Kathryn Hickok It’s official: More than half of America’s K-12 students are…
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Testimony before the Multnomah County Tax Supervising and Conservation Commission regarding the PPS general obligation bond budget
John A. Charles, Jr.President and CEOMay 5, 2025 Re: PPS 2025 Bond Measure…
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Testimony to Metro on Proposed Transit Bond
From: John CharlesDate: Wed, Apr 30, 2025 at 4:49 PMSubject: Comment on proposed bondTo: transportation@oregonmetro.gov…
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North Dakota Legislature Passes ESA and Charter School Bills
By Kathryn Hickok On Monday, the North Dakota legislature passed the state’s first…
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Race-Based School Funding
By John A. Charles, Jr. On April 14, Governor Tina Kotek held a…
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School Choice Options Now Reach More Than 40% of American Children
By Kathryn Hickok What if every child could attend the school where he…
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Amending the Constitution Is Not a Children’s Game
By John A. Charles, Jr. A decade ago, 21 youth plaintiffs in Oregon…
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Testimony: HB3792-3 Consumer Protection for Utility Ratepayers
March 28, 2025 Rep. Nathan SosaChair, House Commerce and Consumer Protection CommitteeOregon State…
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New Law Expands School Choice to All Wyoming Children
By Kathryn Hickok This month Wyoming became the 15th state to give students…
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Education Funding Should “Follow the Child” When Parents Choose Oregon Charter Schools
By Kathryn Hickok Charter schools are public schools, but students attending Oregon charter…
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WES Commuter Rail Should be Shut Down, Not Expanded
By John A. Charles, Jr. On March 11 the Joint Transportation Committee of…
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A Failure to Launch at PPS
By John A. Charles, Jr. At its March 4th meeting, Portland Public School…
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Tobacco Testimony HB 2528
February 26, 2025 House Committee on Commerce and Consumer ProtectionOregon State CapitolSalem, OR…
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Tobacco Testimony on SB 702
March 4, 2025 Senate Committee on Early Childhood and Behavioral HealthOregon State CapitolSalem,…
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Nuclear Energy Testimony
February 26, 2025 House Committee on Climate, Energy and EnvironmentOregon State CapitolSalem, OR…
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Oregon’s Neighbor Idaho Passes a School Choice Tax Credit
By Kathryn Hickok Idaho families are the winners after the state’s legislature passed…
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Restructuring Oregon’s Death Tax Would Benefit the State
By John A. Charles, Jr. Oregon’s death tax has earned our state a…
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Testimony on HB 2301
February 6, 2025 House Revenue CommitteeState LegislatureSalem, OR Re: HB2301 Dear Committee members:…
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In 2025, Universal School Choice Comes First to Tennessee
By Kathryn Hickok Tennessee’s Education Freedom Act of 2025 has become the nation’s…
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More School Choices Mean Better Opportunities for Oregon Students
By Kathryn Hickok This week parents, educators, and students nationwide are celebrating National…
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The Government Should Try to Do a Few Things Well in 2025
By John A. Charles, Jr. This week marks the inauguration of President Trump…
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Annual Celebration Highlights Importance of Effective Educational Opportunities for All
By Kathryn Hickok January 26-February 1 will be the 15th annual National School…
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Trust Is Earned, Not Given
By John A. Charles, Jr. The Portland School Board (PPS) wants voters to…
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PPS Bond Request Is Too Big and Too Vague
January 7, 2025 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Cascade Policy Institute4850 SW Scholls Ferry Rd.,…
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Testimony for Portland Public Schools Meeting on January 7, Agenda Item #9, Resolution 7038
January 7, 2025 Mr. Eddie WangChair, PPS Board501 N. Dixon StreetPortland, OR 97227…
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