Rainmakers for the Week of July 5, 2026
Rainmakers of the Week
Oregon Health Authority (+3)
The Oregon Health Authority earned the highest score this week by distributing $97 million in rural health grants while also expanding grocery assistance for medically vulnerable Oregonians. Together these actions focused on improving access to care rather than simply expanding bureaucracy.
Oregon Bee Project / Oregon State University (+2)
Years of coordinated education and pesticide-management efforts continue to pay off, with no confirmed acute pesticide-related bee kills since 2020.
Mattress Recycling Council / DEQ (+2)
Oregon's mattress recycling program diverted more than 130,000 mattresses from landfills in its first year. The next challenge is ensuring the program's fees better match its actual costs.
Biggest Setbacks
Tina Kotek (−5)
The week's largest negative score went to Gov. Tina Kotek for allowing implementation of Oregon's Climate Protection Program to continue despite publicly acknowledging that the state should instead pursue a market-based approach similar to Washington and California. The concern is that Oregon is moving ahead with a more expensive system that could increase costs for households and businesses while becoming harder to unwind later.
Portland Short-Term Rental Fines (−3)
Portland increased already steep penalties for short-term rental violations despite criticism that the fines are among the highest in the nation.
Oregon State Insurance Fund (−3)
A record prison settlement highlighted years of underfunding and weak oversight of Oregon's self-insurance system.
Theme: Good Ideas, Poor Execution
Several stories shared a common thread.
Preschool for All collected far more money than expected while underpaying providers.
Portland still struggles to deliver timely police response.
Oregon's climate strategy may achieve environmental goals but at a higher cost and with less transparency than neighboring states.
In each case, the policy objective may be worthwhile, but implementation raised concerns about affordability, accountability or effectiveness.
Weekly Scoreboard: Full score: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1V0FRXMP3-yV6YkEjI5qcDZGWXVFrqhddYDUwfT_0v8M/edit?gid=1616499859#gid=1616499859
| Leader | Weekly Score | Articles Scored | Stories Scored This Week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multnomah County | -2 | 1 | After Anemic Early Results, Multnomah County Updated Its Program to Divert Drug Users Into Treatment. Is It Working? |
| Oregon Health Authority | +3 | 2 | Oregon awards the largest round of federal rural healthcare grants; Oregon expands Medicaid to help some members buy groceries |
| Mattress Recycling Council | +2 | 1 | New Oregon recycling program keeps more than 130,000 mattresses out of landfills in first year |
| Oregon Department of Environmental Quality | +2 | 1 | New Oregon recycling program keeps more than 130,000 mattresses out of landfills in first year |
| Oregon Bee Project | +2 | 1 | Fewer Oregon bees are dying from pesticides, report shows |
