This is KGWN news at sunrise.
Good morning thanks for getting up
with us on this Saturday morning.
I'm Tim Gordon.
A new month brings new laws
to Oregon and Washington.
The big changes across the northwest
plus the warning from local
health experts is COVID cases and
hospitalizations are increasing.
The CDC has moved even more Oregon
counties into the high risk category.
But before we get to all that,
let's check in with Joe Ranieri
for a quick look at the forecast.
Well, welcome to your holiday weekend and
it's really going to be a nice start,
but I am tracking some changes
that arrive for some of us by the
later part of today and into Sunday
with some scattered showers heavy
at times basically throughout the
Oregon Cascades and Central Oregon.
I'll talk more about that in
detail in just a few minutes,
but as we look at the weather headlines,
holiday weekend starts dry again.
Those showers move over later on
this afternoon and into the evening
hours throughout the mountains.
Showers likely on the 4th of July,
but again, rainfall amounts are going to be.
Pretty much on the drier end as we go
throughout the later part of this morning,
we'll be seeing mostly cloudy skies,
clear skies,
though throughout the central
and eastern side of the state,
but again by the afternoon and
in the evening hours we could
be seeing some heavy downpours.
If you have plans to do any
camping at all this weekend,
expect to see some showers at times
throughout parts of Bend and Redmond and
those showers and thunderstorms carry
over into the eastern side of the state.
Coming up with my detailed forecast.
We are going to be seeing some
cooler conditions for the holiday
weekend for Sunday and into Monday.
Basically,
after we get into the earlier part of the
week was our see a bit of a warm bath.
Talk more about that in just a few minutes.
OK, there you go.
Thanks Joe. New this morning,
Portland police declared an unlawful
assembly after a group of protesters
broke windows on a vacant building
near Peninsula Park in North Portland.
The vacant building was the only
one that was damaged and police
broke up the group fairly quickly.
A nearby church has been on guard this week,
worried they'd be the target of vandalism.
Church leaders at Holy Redeemer.
Catholic Church say they heard the
protest would focus on abortion rights,
a nonprofit,
several businesses and an anti abortion
center have all been vandalized in
Portland since the Supreme Court's
reversal of Roe versus Wade.
Well, heading into the holiday weekend,
most Oregon counties are now in the
high risk level for COVID cases.
Some new variants are throwing off
predictions for how the virus might behave,
and delaying the latest COVID forecast.
These are omicron sub variants.
BA four and five,
and they can really spread.
Doctors say they now make up
more than half of new cases.
It's part of the reason the CDC just
upped the number of counties at high
risk for COVID transmission in Oregon.
You see them on the map.
Their most counties now in red,
so expect more of what we saw in June,
including more people in the hospital.
That's according to Peter Gravan,
who forecast COVID activity for OHSU.
Now I think we have a pretty good
idea that indeed we will see some
increased infection rates we are
seeing and and with that has come
some increased hospitalizations,
well, recommendation number one is
still be vaccinated and get boosted.
The booster is really important when
it comes to these Omicron variants,
and that is Doctor Paul Cieslak
with Oregon Public Health.
The reminding us of the most
important way to be in that low risk
category for COVID vaccinations,
and we know a lot of you.
We'll be celebrating the 4th
of July holiday this weekend.
Doctor Cieslak says avoid indoor gatherings,
but outdoors he is much less
concerned with the virus spreading.
All up in Washington.
Governor Jay Inslee is making
the COVID vaccine requirement
for state agency employees.
Permanent current employees have one
year to get up to date on their shots.
That includes all boosters
recommended by the CDC.
New employees will need all of
their shots before starting work
as a Washington state employee.
Well,
it's July and a number of new laws
are now in effect in Oregon and Washington.
For instance,
some Oregon workers got a raise on Friday.
The minimum wage increased
statewide varying based on where
you live in the Portland metro
area the minimum wage is now 1475
and is now 1250 in rural areas.
Also a major reformed Oregon bail
system now arrested suspects will
be released or held in jail before
their first court hearing or trial
based on their threat to the community
in the most dangerous cases,
they won't be allowed out on bail no
matter how much they're able to pay.
Advocates say this will make Oregon.
Justice system more equitable.
However,
critics say for lower level criminals,
arrests will just become an inconvenience
if they don't have to post bail.
In Washington,
new laws include a ban on the sale and
distribution of high capacity gun magazines.
High capacity is defined as a magazine
that holds more than 10 rounds.
The law, however,
does not impact possession of them,
just the sales and other law attempts to
crack down on catalytic converter thefts.
It requires businesses to buy them
to show that that buy them to show a
record of their transaction and pay
through a traceable source like a
check or credit card and not with cash.
Catalytic converter thefts have been
rising nationwide in recent years.
And Washington license plate
fees went up on Friday.
Now you'll pay $50.00 for
a new plate instead of 10.
The money will go toward funding
Washington's transportation initiatives.
OK,
Portland's moonstruck chocolate
has a new owner and all of its
stores will be closing.
There's a bummer for folks that love that,
Moonstruck,
we've learned the business has
been sold to the New York based
company called Chocolate Works.
They'll still make Moonstruck locally,
but they'll consolidate operations
at a facility in Northeast Portland.
KGW reached out to the new CEO.
He said some office and manufacturing
workers are staying on,
but many retail workers were let
go next Friday.
Moonstruck will close its last.
Three stores in St.
John's Beaverton and in downtown Portland.
Reason why I've always loved
Moonstruck so much as some of
their specialty stuff that they
don't really sell in the stores.
So
the brick and mortars have
always been the place to get it,
and I've loved coming down here
to the St. John's waterfront for
years to pick
stuff up from them and so
I don't know.
Now the new business model includes selling
Moonstruck online and in big box stores.
Well, this is big news for travelers.
Amtrak train service between
Seattle and Vancouver,
BC will resume in September.
That's actually three months
earlier than previously reported.
Amtrak still hasn't released details
about ticketing or reservations.
Well, school is out for summer break,
but students mental health needs
are still front and Center for
a lot of educators and parents.
After such a tough couple years
as Christine Peter wants reports,
there's a new resource to identify ways
to help young people who were struggling
in all of the years that
I've been a psychologist.
I've never seen a single point in
time where the entire world is
dealing with simultaneously a crisis.
The crisis, not just the pandemic.
Over the past couple of years,
the stress of remote school politics
inflation has an impact on everyone,
including kids and teens.
You know, we're still hearing from
a lot of families that there's a
stigma around mental health and
I think Doctor B, Grace Bullock,
the senior mental health officer for
the Oregon Department of Education,
says OD E just launched a new
website this week to help people
deal with mental health issues.
So the Oregon classroom wise platform is
a lot of tools and resources to help.
Support use mental health and staff,
mental health and schools and that's directly
in response to all the needs that have
been expressed over the last few years.
The website has links to videos,
articles and online courses
for anyone from parents,
teachers to community organizations
that deals with a lot of
really important topic areas,
like how to support children
and adolescents when they need
emotional support or social support,
what to do when students
are experiencing distress
this past school year.
Teachers, parents, and administrators
across various districts said students
had higher needs than ever before,
in part caused by the stress of the pandemic.
Often those needs presented themselves
through behaviors at school,
some violent, pretty
much everybody I know is feeling.
You know, the effects,
the fatigue, the stress,
the anxiety of the unknown,
and the exhaustion.
But Bullock says the silver lining,
if there is one, is the growing recognition
that mental health. Is important
effects how we learn effects our jobs.
It affects our lives literally,
she says the online platform will
be updated with more information,
but they're relying on
feedback from Oregonians.
The Department of Education has
$5.5 million in federal COVID relief
money dedicated to mental health.
The website is one of three things
that money is being used for.
Funding will also go toward
developing higher education courses
around mental health and getting
more mental health professionals.
Into a handful of districts to connect
families with resources in the community.
Christine pinewatch.
KJWW news.
Well, it's safe to safe rest villages
for homeless people open across the city.
A nonprofit is taking a different
approach to housing the homeless at a
church parking lot in Northeast Portland.
Coming up next to look at the
plan and why some neighbors aren't
sure it is the best option.