Ben
Botkin
Lane County

Grace
Chinowsky

Eugene

Lillian
Schrock-Clevenger

Springfield

A public safety fee starts in Coburg as Lane County starts to gather public input for 2027

Coburg city councilors have approved a $20 monthly public safety fee that will appear on utility bills to help pay for local law enforcement. 

Here’s a look at how the fee will work. The decision is part of a trend of other local government agencies turning to the public for approval of new sources of revenue to support basic services such as law enforcement.

For example, city leaders in Florence also approved a public safety fee that’s tacked onto utility bills. The council increased the fee to $15 per month last November. There’s also a payroll tax in Eugene and a voter-approved levy for the county jail.

And more public safety increases could be ahead. Lane County officials are gathering public input this year and weighing whether there is enough community support for a potential proposal as soon as 2027. In unincorporated Lane County, there are usually three deputies and a sergeant on patrol duty responding to 911 calls. 

County commissioners haven’t made a decision yet on whether to ask voters to support public safety through a tax increase, which could be as a special district or payroll tax increase.

Homeless funding dropping in Lane County; feds delay Roadless Rule repeal proposal; activists protest ICE on Memorial Day 

Homeless funding: Lane County’s reduction in funding for homeless services won’t be as dire as predicted, but the budget is still tighter.

Proposal delayed for Roadless Rule shakeup: The feds’ public rollout of the proposed Roadless Rule repeal has been delayed, a court filing shows. The 2001 Roadless Rule blocks road construction on nearly 45 million acres of national forest land, including about 2 million acres in Oregon and 8,000 acres in Lane County. 

Where have all the activists gone? Activists wove flowers through the fence around the Eugene Federal Building, all of them with anti-ICE messages, of course. 

— Ben Botkin

“ICE OUT” is woven in flowers into fencing at the Eugene Federal Building on May 25.
Credit: Lucas Hellberg / Lookout Eugene-Springfield

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Inside Eugene City hall with Grace chinowsky

Toxic soil in Trainsong Park: After a five-year wait, the Trainsong community in Eugene has an answer: Trainsong Park contains enough toxic soil to fill 800 dump trucks, a city analysis found. Here are the cleanup options the city is considering, correspondent Ashli Blow reports.

Checking in on Springfield With lillian Schrock-Clevenger

Ward 4 election: Community members who want to represent Ward 4 on the Springfield City Council can begin filing for the November election on Wednesday, June 3. Jill Cuadros, the current interim councilor for the central Springfield ward, can choose to run. The general election winner will serve through 2028. 

More changes may be looming for the City Council this year after Mayor Sean VanGordon won his race for Lane County commissioner, and Ward 3 Councilor Kori Rodley won the Democratic primary for Oregon state representative. 

Payroll tax: The Springfield City Council will vote this evening whether to adopt a payroll tax intended to diversify revenue for the city’s general fund. The vote comes after two public hearings with mixed support — including some community members asking for the tax to be set at a higher rate.

Springfield farmers market: Starting next Sunday, June 7, Springfield will have its own weekly farmers market. Lane County Farmers Market is launching the market to expand access to locally grown food to Springfield and rural Lane County. The nonprofit is receiving financial assistance from the city’s urban renewal agency.

beyond lane county

Governor’s race: The Oregon Capital Chronicle has a piece looking at the gubernatorial rematch between Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek and Republican lawmaker Christine Drazan. 

Democratic attorney generals excluded: Vice President JD Vance had an anti-fraud meeting at the White House, and some Democratic state attorneys general complained they were denied, States Newsroom and the Oregon Capital Chronicle reported. Not Oregon. Oregon’s Democratic Attorney General Dan Rayfield’s senior staff with the state’s Justice Department attended the meeting, the outlet reported.
Portland mask ban: Up to the north, Portland councilors approved an ordinance to ban masks for federal agents and other law enforcement, The Oregonian reported.

Public Meetings this week

Monday

  • The Springfield City Council will hold an executive session at 5:30 p.m. to review confidential records.
  • The Springfield City Council will meet for a work session at 6 p.m. to review proposed updates to the Springfield Municipal Code.
  • The Springfield City Council will have a regular meeting at 7 p.m. for a continued public hearing and discussion about annexation of land for a proposed behavioral health hospital and crisis stabilization center, as well as a vote on a payroll tax ordinance.

Tuesday

  • Lane County commissioners will meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday. 
  • The Springfield Library Advisory Board will meet at 5:30 p.m. 
  • The Springfield Planning Commission will meet at 6 p.m. to discuss a state-mandated housing plan. 

Wednesday

  • The Lane Community College Board of Education will meet at 6 p.m. to discuss LCC’s proposed 2026-27 budget.

Thursday

The Springfield Police Advisory Committee will meet at 6 p.m. to review a 2025 complaints and commendations report, among other items.

Do you have story ideas or tips? Send them our way: ben@lookoutlocal.com | grace@lookoutlocal.com | lilliansc@lookoutlocal.com

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Ben Botkin covers politics and policy in Lane County. He has worked as a journalist since 2003, most recently at the Oregon Capital Chronicle, where he covered justice, health and human services and documented regional efforts to combat fentanyl addiction. Botkin has worked in statehouses in Idaho, Nevada, Oklahoma and, of course, Oregon. When he's not working, you'll find him road tripping across the West, hiking or surfing along the Oregon Coast.

Grace Chinowsky graduated from The George Washington University with a degree in journalism. She served as editor-in-chief of the university’s independent student newspaper, The GW Hatchet, and interned at CNN and MSNBC. Grace covers Eugene’s city government and the University of Oregon.