Two finalists have been picked to become the next director of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Debbie Colbert and Kaitlin Lovell were selected from a pool of 30 candidates to lead an agency with more than 1,000 employees and the often polarizing task of managing the state’s fauna.
Colbert is current ODFW deputy director for fish and wildlife programs while Lovell works for the Portland Bureau of Environmental Services on stream restoration. They were chosen by a subcommittee that included two members of the Fish and Wildlife Commission and two representatives of Gov. Tina Kotek’s office.
The candidates will have a public question and answer session Friday before the full commission meeting at ODFW headquarters in Salem. Afterward, the commission may pick the new director. The meeting is open to the public and will be streamed live at: www.dfw.state.or.us/agency/commission/
Advertisement
An online form remains available until 5 p.m. on Tuesday to submit questions for the candidates during the public question and answer.
The job is one of Oregon’s more challenging, often putting the agency in the middle of the state’s urban-rural divide over issues such as wolf and cougar management, hatchery versus wild fish, and the cost for fishing and hunting licenses, among many other issues.
Other candidates considered were Shannon Hurn, ODFW deputy director for administration, and Jason Miner, former natural resources policy advisor for former Gov. Kate Brown.
Debbie Colbert
Advertisement
Colbert has worked for two decades on natural resources issues, according to the biography provided by the hiring committee.
Since 2021, Colbert has served as ODFW’s deputy director for fish and wildlife programs, overseeing fish, wildlife, habitat, and regional programs statewide as well as legislative engagement.
“In this leadership role, she has been thrilled to collaborate with ODFW’s many talented staff, hunters, anglers, tribal leaders and staff, volunteers, landowners, state and federal agency staff, elected officials, and statewide advocacy groups,” the biography said.
In 2023, Colbert served three months on special assignment to the governor’s natural resource office.
Previously, Colbert served six years as the board of trustees administrator at Oregon State University. Before that, she worked for five years as ODFW’s deputy director for administration.
Advertisement
Colbert earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and has a master’s in oceanography and a doctorate in interdisciplinary oceanography. She was selected as a 2022 National Conservation Leadership Fellow.
“Debbie is passionate about working with diverse groups to advance Oregon’s fish, wildlife, and habitat,” the biography said.
Kaitlin Lovell
Lovell has led the City of Portland’s efforts to protect and restore fish and wildlife and their habitats since 2007, the provided biography said.
“Lovell has strategically transformed degraded waterways, resolved competing land uses, protected fish and wildlife against acute climate impacts, and centered frontline communities, especially Indigenous communities, in fish and wildlife management,” the biography said.
Advertisement
Prior to working for Portland, Lovell worked as an attorney for Trout Unlimited on salmon recovery, hydropower and hatchery issues throughout Oregon and the West Coast.
“A lifelong resident of rural places, including 22 years on her Colton area farm with her husband and son, she knows firsthand the challenges and rewards of living with wildlife, adapting to climate change, and the critical role of working lands in habitat protection and restoration,” the biography said.
Lovell is a graduate of Bucknell University’s environmental science program and Cornell Law School, with legal expertise in the Endangered Species Act and the Clean Water Act.
Zach Urness has been an outdoors reporter in Oregon for 16 years and is host of the Explore Oregon Podcast. Urness is the author of “Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon” and “Hiking Southern Oregon.” He can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on X at @ZachsORoutdoors.
PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) – Starting in 2026, a new law in Oregon requires all non-motorized boats, regardless of size, to buy and carry a waterway access permit. That includes paddleboards and kayaks.
But there has been some push back from one organization.
Ben Roche is part of Let Us Paddle. The organization aims to repeal the updates to the waterway access permit.
“It’s Oregonians constitutional right to free access to our waterways. And human powered watercrafts are the best way to do that, and the least environmentally impactful,” said Roche.
Advertisement
According to the Oregon State Marine Board, permit fees range from $6 to $35.
If you’re caught without a permit, there’s a $115 fine.
The state agency says the funding goes directly to two programs.
One supports aquatic invasive species watercraft inspection stations and the other improves access points to the water that specifically serve paddlers.
“There is a need for inspection and we support that. What we don’t support is charging recreational paddleboarders for cleaning of motorboats that enter our state,” said Roche.
Advertisement
Roche adds, the state is only funding a few dozen access points.
Let Us Paddle has collected at least 20,000 signatures, and they want about 130,000 more by July 2.
They need at least 120,000 verified signatures to put the repeal before voters on the November ballot.
But even if they don’t meet the requirement, Roche says he’ll keep pushing for change.
“I think it’s really a poorly crafted bill that collects a small drop in the bucket of revenue but impacts thousands of recreational kayakers across the state,” said Roche.
Advertisement
FOX 12 reached out to the Oregon State Marine Board to ask more questions, but have not yet to heard back.
Oregon DMV temporarily paused dispersing new undercover vehicle license plates starting April 15.
FILE – The U.S. Department of Justice seal is seen on a podium before a news conference, May 4, 2026, in Washington.
Julia Demaree Nikhinson / AP
Advertisement
The Justice Department is suing four states after they refused to issue confidential license plates to federal law enforcement agencies, despite having done so in the past.
The lawsuits, filed Wednesday in Oregon, Washington, Massachusetts and Maine, seek to force states to resume what the federal government describes as long-standing, routine policies.
The scope of the combined litigation raises questions about ways the federal government has aggressively carried out immigration enforcement since President Donald Trump’s reelection, and whether the Constitution grants states the power to deny federal law enforcement agencies license plates that effectively conceal officers’ identities.
“Oregon’s DMV policy illegally discriminates against the United States, violates the Supremacy clause, and is unconstitutional,” attorneys for the federal government argued in court filings.
Oregon DMV temporarily paused disbursing new undercover license plates to all federal agencies starting April 15.
Advertisement
“The DMV is currently evaluating the undercover vehicle registration program to ensure the program complies with Oregon law,” Oregon DMV Administrator Amy Joyce explained in a May 22 letter to Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate.
A recent lawsuit filed against Oregon State Police alleges the state is providing personal information to federal immigration authorities through databases, including Oregon’s DMV.
“If the DMV process for issuing undercover plates could be questioned under Oregon law, the State is at risk for additional litigation,” Joyce explained in the letter to Shumate.
The state’s review of the undercover license plate program doesn’t prevent federal vehicles from legally driving on Oregon roads.
“State and local law enforcement are unaffected by this pause and the federal agencies that participate in the program are able to continue to use their existing unexpired plates,” Kevin Glenn, a spokesperson for Gov. Tina Kotek wrote in a statement.
Advertisement
Immigration officers have relied on these license plates for enforcement, including during Operation Black Rose in Oregon. According to U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement, officers arrested more than 1,498 people between September and March, which led to 1,057 removals.
The lawsuits filed Wednesday argue the states’ DMV policies undermine ongoing federal investigations.
“Federal law enforcement agencies should not be subject to the challenged DMV policy, which is unconstitutional and recklessly disregards officer safety, public safety, and federal operational needs‚” the Justice Department’s lawsuit states.
Sign up today for OPB’s “First Look” – your daily guide to the most important news and culture stories from around the Northwest.
Thursday is shaping up to be another active weather day across the region, with the potential for strong to severe thunderstorms developing this afternoon and evening. The greatest severe weather threat is expected across southeast Oregon, where the Storm Prediction Center has issued a Slight Risk for severe storms. Portions of southwest Idaho remain under a Marginal Risk, meaning isolated severe storms are possible. Boise and much of the Treasure Valley are mainly under a general thunderstorm threat, but storms could still bring gusty winds, blowing dust, lightning, and brief heavy rain later today.
Idaho News 6
Storms are expected to first develop across southeast Oregon and near the Nevada border this afternoon before tracking north and northwest through the evening hours. The strongest storms will likely stay west of Boise, especially across areas of Malheur County, western Owyhee County, and parts of the west-central Idaho mountains.
Advertisement
Impacts
The biggest impact today will likely be strong outflow winds. Some storms could produce wind gusts between 40 and 60 mph, with isolated gusts near 70 mph possible in the strongest storms across eastern Oregon. Winds of that strength can blow around patio furniture, trampolines, garbage cans, and other loose outdoor objects, bring down tree limbs, and cause isolated power outages.
Blowing dust may also become a major issue in open desert and agricultural areas, especially across eastern Oregon and southwest Idaho. Visibility could quickly drop on roads and highways, creating dangerous travel conditions for drivers.
Some storms may also produce hail capable of damaging vehicles and outdoor property, while brief heavy downpours could lead to ponding on roads and reduced visibility. Frequent lightning will also make outdoor activities dangerous through the afternoon and evening.
Even though Boise is not currently in the higher severe weather categories, residents should still stay weather aware because any thunderstorm that moves through the Treasure Valley could produce sudden gusty winds and localized blowing dust.
Looking ahead
Storm chances continue Friday with additional showers and weaker thunderstorms before conditions gradually dry out heading into the weekend. Temperatures will cool closer to normal on Saturday before another warming trend develops next week.
Advertisement
Have a way to get updates and alerts, download the Idaho News 6 app from the app store. Will keep you covered here.
