Les Zaitz

By Les Zaitz | The Enterprise The Cow Valley fire in eastern Oregon's Malheur County continued its advance south Friday night, growing

Forecasters expect thunderstorms across the state likely will bring risks of new fire starts with little to no rain.

On a hot Wednesday evening, the crowd of ranchers and others settled in to hear the latest wildfire news.

We launch a new service at Salem Reporter today in our continuing effort to better serve the community.

Police arrested four teenaged boys early Saturday, Aug. 10, after a neighbor spotted graffiti being spayed on a city park fence. Police said they found two guns while taking the juveniles into custody.

A Northeast Salem man has been accused of running a major retail theft operation after police recovered nearly a half-million dollars’ worth of stolen CDs, games and toys.

AROUND OREGON: A public board Friday ordered that pay raises for Greg Smith and his staff at the Columbia Development Authority be revoked. The move may cost Smith more than $30,000 in pay to return. The action followed an investigation by the Malheur Enterprise.

Greg Smith isn't clear who he works for when he draws his $139,000 salary in Boardman. Neither are the leaders of two government agencies.

Congressman Cliff Bentz wants to designate nearly 1 million acres as wilderness with provisions to allow cattle grazing.

The Columbia Development Authority in Boardman operates without a legally-required approved budget, auditors have found. It's managed by Greg Smith – a Republican legislator who sits on the Legislature's budget committee.