Serving Central Oregon since 1903 • $1.50
Monday • May 10, 2021
ELECTION 2020
Kropf did not disclose $45K from teachers union
By HILLaRy BoRRUd
The Oregonian
State Rep.
Jason Kropf,
d-Bend
A Bend lawmaker who picked up a
long-desired seat for Democrats in 2020
failed to disclose $45,000 in campaign do-
nations from the statewide teachers union.
Rep. Jason Kropf, a Democrat, was a dep-
uty district attorney when he ran for the seat
held by Republican restaurant owner Cheri
Helt last year. It was one of the most conten-
tious legislative races in the state.
Helt reported spending nearly $1 million
to hold onto the district where Democrats
significantly outnumbered Republicans,
and Kropf reported spending $522,000, ac-
cording to state campaign finance disclo-
sures. Kropf defeated Helt 60% to 38.9%.
Missing from Kropf’s spending total and
donor disclosures is $45,000 worth of cam-
paign advertising purchased or produced on
his behalf by the Oregon Education Associ-
ation, according to state campaign finance
disclosures reviewed by The Oregonian. The
news organization discovered the discrep-
ancy while reviewing the union’s political
action committee donations to legislative
candidates. Most of OEA-PAC’s donations to
Kropf were for television and radio ads.
Kropf’s campaign coordinated with do-
nors to fund his advertising efforts with
in-kind expenditures, Federal Communi-
cations Commission records show. For ex-
ample, the ad time buying company Media
Analysis purchased time slots from a Bend
television station on behalf of Kropf’s politi-
cal action committee, “Jason for Bend.” Then
OEA-PAC and other campaign donors paid
Kropf’s campaign bills from Media Analysis
and other vendors.
The only OEA-PAC contribution Kropf
disclosed in state filings was a $500 cash do-
nation.
Under state campaign finance rules, Kropf
and his campaign staff were responsible for
reporting the union’s $45,000 of in-kind do-
nations at the time they knew of the contri-
butions and received the advertising services.
See Kropf / A4
Pandemic movers
Study:
People
left big
metros
EAGLE BROOD
Moves most common for
higher-income earners
By MIKE SCHnEIdER
Associated Press
A new study and data from the
U.S. Census Bureau show thousands
of people migrated out of the nation’s
largest metropolitan areas and into
smaller ones during the pandemic.
The study found that many of the
migrants weren’t driven by new jobs or
weather — or even a fear of the virus
— but a desire to be closer to family
and a freedom to make it happen be-
cause of remote working. Although the
pattern of people moving from larger
to smaller cities has been going on for
several years, the pandemic exacer-
bated that trend, said Peter Haslag of
Vanderbilt University, who conducted
the study on migrant motivations with
Daniel Weagley of Georgia Tech. Their
paper has not yet been published.
The data adds to understanding
of how the pandemic has changed
where and how Americans live. The
moves were most common among
those with higher incomes and more
job flexibility. If the trends continue, it
could have long-term implications for
real estate markets, tax bases and the
wealth inequality in cities, according
to researchers.
“For us, the question is, is this a
temporary blip or is it going to con-
tinue?” Haslag said. “If work-from-
home really is going to be a factor in
job and company decisions, and by
allowing work and location to be sep-
arate decisions, people are going to be
able to optimize their locations, if they
have the right jobs.”
The Census Bureau data shows that
the New York metro area — which
was hit early by the new coronavi-
rus — declined by about 108,000
residents, or 0.5%. Roughly 216,000
residents moved out of the metro-
politan area, but the natural increase
from births and gains in international
migration offset the departures. The
New York metro area has experienced
decelerated growth over the past sev-
eral years, but last year’s decline was
a bigger bite of the Big Apple than in
2019, when it lost 60,000 residents.
The nation’s next largest metro ar-
eas — Los Angeles and Chicago —
also experienced greater population
declines last year compared to the
previous year: around 0.5% last year
compared to 0.3% in 2019 for both
metros. San Francisco also had a drop
of around 0.5% last year compared to
a 0.1% gain in 2019.
By Ryan BREnnECKE • The Bulletin
A
trio of eaglets pop their heads up as one of their parents
lands on a perch above the nest after returning from a short
flight along the Deschutes River near Sunriver on Saturday.
TODAY’S
WEATHER
Mostly sunny
High 68, Low 38
Page a10
INDEX
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Dear Abby
Horoscope
A7-8
A4
A4
Kid Scoop
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Nation/World
A9
A2-3
A10
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A8
A5-6
A10
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See Movers / A4
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