Poverty in Oregon food stamps, welfare, Medicaid reliance by county

Nearly five years after the Great Recession officially ended, more than one in five Oregonians continues to rely on food stamps, and nearly 17 percent live in poverty. Rural Oregon counties continue to fare the worst, with food stamps and Medicaid rates exceeding 30 percent in Jefferson and Josephine counties. In some timber-reliant counties, the poverty rate exceeds 20 percent. The Oregonian mapped state and county unemployment, poverty, food stamps, welfare and Medicaid rates using January 2014 numbers from the Oregon Department of Human Services. The figures show slight improvements from last summer, when The Oregonian last mapped poverty by county. But it's clear that the state continues to struggle and that rural Oregon continues to be left behind in the recovery.
www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2014/04/pove....html

Oregon food stamps, welfare numbers rose after long-term unemployment aid ended

SALEM -- The number of Oregonians relying on welfare and food stamps rose slightly in January after long-term unemployment benefits ended in December. The increases illustrate the almost immediate impact local families felt after the federal unemployment benefits ran out, pushing families already living on the margins into welfare. "What they are, in almost all the cases we looked at, would be a single mom and she's on (food stamps), and she's getting unemployment," Porter said. "When her unemployment exhausts, she has no income and is eligible for TANF. They're already a client, so they're very quick to respond to losing that income." About 92,500 Oregonians relied on TANF in January, about 2,000 more than than in December. At its peak in February 2013, TANF helped about 99,000 Oregonians. About 796,200 Oregonians -- one in five residents -- relied on food stamps in January, up about 4,000 from December.
www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2014/04/oreg....html

Governors group, including Kitzhaber, seeking new extension of federal tax credit for wind farms

A group of governors including Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber wrote to congressional leaders Monday urging them to approve a multi-year extension of the federal production tax credit for wind farms as soon as possible. FEDERAL WELFARE BY ANY NAME IS STILL WELFARE. Kitzhaber was chairman of the Governor's Wind Energy Coalition last year, which includes 23 states. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee will chair the coalition next year. Margi Hoffman, a policy advisor for Kitzhaber, says the wind industry has invested some $9 billion in Oregon, though the state's wind energy boom has cooled off in the last two years. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore and now chair of the Senate Finance Committee, will likely play a key role in the PTC debate. He is expected to move this week or next to revive a package of tax breaks – known collectively as tax extenders - that expired at the end of last year. Wyden declined to comment on the package Monday, but said its no secret that he's been a big supporter of the PTC in the past.