Legislative Session Results In New Benefits For Oregon National Guard Members (Photo) -07/09/25

SALEM, Ore. - This legislative session, the Oregon legislature and Gov. Tina Kotek continue to show their support for the Oregon Military Department through ongoing efforts to provide benefits to help strengthen the Oregon Army National Guard.

Two specific initiatives for recruiting and retention support went into effect on July 1, 2025. The first is a $5,000 bonus for a three-year extension for Guard members who have completed their initial enlistment and have not completed 17 years of service. The second is the Enlistment Enhancement Program. This is an agency-funded program where current Guard members and retirees can receive $2,000 payments for any recruitment leads that result in an enlistment into the Oregon Army National Guard. 

In addition to these benefits, the Oregon National Guard offers State Tuition Assistance, which provides tuition assistance for serving Guard members enrolled in an eligible Oregon postsecondary institution and now offers instate tuition rates to Oregon Guard members who live out of state.

“The Oregon National Guard is on track to increase strength by 2% by the end of the fiscal year, but were still more than 1,200 members short of reaching full strength,” said Lt. Col. Stephen Bomar, Director of Public Affairs for the Oregon Military Department.

The Oregon National Guard is authorized to have approximately 8,100 service members, consisting of 2,300 Air and 5,800 Army National Guard members.

“These initiatives assist with the Adjutant General’s goal to make the Oregon National Guard the Service of Choice for Oregonians,” Bomar said.

 The approved legislative actions for the Oregon Military Department this session were met with nearly unanimous bipartisan support.  Some of those highlights include:

1. SB 807 – One-time General Fund of $2.5 million towards Retention Bonus Program:
   1. Allows the Adjutant General to pay a bonus to a member of the Oregon National Guard who re-enlists or extends their service
       
2. SB 798 – In-state tuition rates apply to Oregon National Guard service members who live out of the state of Oregon.
    
3. SB 808 – Provides hiring and promotion preference in public employment for current and former Oregon National Guard members
    
   1. Adds 5 points to current and former state service members’ scores during interviews and 10 points for disabled veterans
       
   2. Provides equity for Oregon National Guard members who did not meet the previous statutory definitions to receive the preference
       
4. SB 5505 & SB 5506 – Authorization for three Capital Construction Projects for the Oregon National Guard
   1. Southern Oregon Field Maintenance Shop – $6.6 million
       
   2. Klamath Falls Readiness Center - $2.0 million
       
   3. Albany Armory Service Life Extension Project - $7 million
       
5. SB 5533 – Solution to a long-term funding issue for OMD IT Division and the Portland Air National Guard (PANG) base
    

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Released File Images of Oregon National Guard Soldiers and Airmen:

220520-Z-ZJ128-1003: Spc. Whitney Badders on rappel during the 821 Troop Command Battalion, Oregon National Guard team-building event, rappelling at the local Fire Department in Salem, Ore., on May 20, 2022. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. W. Chris Clyne, Oregon National Guard Public Affairs)

200816-Z-NJ272-0003: Oregon Army National Guard Soldiers with 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment, 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team paddle an inflatable boat during training on August 16, 2020, at Cullaby Lake, near Warrenton, Oregon. Members of the unit completed tasks which included a swim test, paddling and maneuvering, and broaching recovery drills during their two-week annual training. (National Guard photo by Maj. Leslie Reed, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)

231127-Z-NV612-2003: Oregon Air National Guard Tech. Sgt. Christopher Hernandez, 173rd Fighter Wing aircrew flight equipment, fits a mask to Maj. Gen. Clark Quinn, 19th Air Force commander, in preparation for Quinn's flight in an F-15D at Kingsley Field in Klamath Falls, Oregon, Oct. 27, 2023. Quinn spent two days at Kingsley Field meeting with Airmen and observing their F-15C training mission first-hand. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Master Sgt. Jennifer Shirar)

200506-Z-CH590-0128: Oregon Army National Guard Soldier assigned to BRAVO 1-168 Aviation gives the ‘thumbs up’ as she helps prepare a CH-47 Chinook helicopter at the Pendleton Army Aviation Support Facility, May 6, 2020. Approximately 60 members of the unit are traveling to Fort Hood, Texas, as they prepare to deploy to Afghanistan. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)

200914-Z-LM216-0424: Oregon Army National Guard Citizen-Soldiers support the Oregon Department of Forestry with wild land firefighting efforts at the Two Four Two fire, Chiloquin, Ore., Sept. 14. Approximately 1000 Oregon Guard members are supporting overall firefighting efforts with both aviation and ground crews, in addition to supporting county liaison teams and Oregon State Police with both traffic control points and fatality search and rescue operations. (Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Zachary Holden, 115th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

230604-Z-GP610-0208: Oregon Air National Guard Tech Sgt. Ron Mercer, Staff Sgt. Sam Ziegler, and Senior Airman Bailey Buck, all 142nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron aircraft armament Airmen, participate in a weapons loading competition, June 4, 2023, Portland Air National Guard Base, Ore. (Air National Guard Photo by Staff Sgt. Sean Campbell)

240723-Z-UZ129-5529: U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Jonathan Osborne from the Task Force Guardian rotation led by 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team with the Oregon National Guard assaults the objective in a force-on-force exercise during Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) rotation 24-09, Fort Johnson, La., July 23, 2024. The JRTC's goal is to create realistic environments that help prepare units for complex operations. (Oregon National Guard photo by Sgt. Emily Simonson, 115th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

240725-Z-NV612-1069: Oregon Air National Guard Tech. Sgt. Ashley Vela, 173rd Fighter Wing weapons oad crew chief, monitors as Staff Sgts. Quinten Green and Samantha Kloss, 173rd Fighter Wing weapons, load live 20mm bullets into an F-15C Eagle at Kingsley Field in Klamath Falls, Oregon, July 25, 2024. Additional precautions must be taken when loading live ammunition into the aircraft, making this training essential to ensuring that weapons Airmen are prepared and mission-ready. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Master Sgt. Jennifer Shirar)

180803-Z-ZJ128-0002: Oregon Army National Guard 2nd Squad, Squad Leader Sgt. McFerrin from 1st Platoon, B Company, 1st Battalion, 186th Infantry directs an assault on an enemy position, during the platoon’s Movement to Contact lane, part of the training of the Oregon Army National Guard’s, 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team’s eXportable Combat Training Capability (XCTC), Aug. 3, 2018 in Camp Roberts, California. (U.S. Army Photo by Maj. W. Chris Clyne, 41st IBCT Public Affairs)

240225-Z-SP755-1002: Oregon Air National Guard Senior Airman Perry Johnston, an avionics technician with the 142nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, closes a hatch on an F-15C aircraft at Portland Air National Guard Base, Ore., on February 25, 2024. As a traditional guardsman, Johnston works as an ensemble skater for "Disney On Ice" when he's not maintaining electrical systems inside the F-15Cs and EXs. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Steph Sawyer)

250315-Z-CH590-4173: Oregon Army National Guard Soldiers and Airmen take part in the Mogadishu Challenge event at the urban training village at Camp Rilea, near Warrenton, Oregon, on March 15, 2025, during the Army Best Warrior Competition from March 13-15, 2025. The full range of events assessed the warriors' physical fitness, land navigation skills, marksmanship, and other battlefield scenarios. These included a physical fitness test, rifle qualification, a 3-gun competition, an obstacle course, and a ruck march. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)

250314-Z-CH590-3076: Oregon Army National Guard Spc. Justin Slothower, assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment, takes on the Obstacle Course during the Army Best Warrior Competition on March 14, 2025. Slothower won the Soldier tier competition, completing a full range of events that assessed the warriors' physical fitness, land navigation skills, marksmanship, and other battlefield scenarios. These included a physical fitness test, rifle qualification, a 3-gun competition, an obstacle course, and a ruck march from March 13-15, 2025. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)

230221-Z-NJ272-0010: Oregon Army National Guard Capt. Kyle Roe, a troop commander with 1st Squadron, 82nd Cavalry Regiment, skis the first of four legs of the men's relay competition at the Chief of the National Guard Bureau's Biathlon Nationals at the Camp Ethan Allen Training Site in Jericho, Vermont, Feb. 21, 2023. Soldiers from more than 26 states and territories participated in the annual competition, which began in 1975. (National Guard photo by Maj. Leslie Reed, Oregon Military Department)

210517-Z-SP755-1027: Oregon Air National Guard Senior Airman Paul Julum, 142nd Civil Engineer Squadron, prepares the foundation for the construction of cabins to be utilized by the Girl Scouts at Camp Paumalu in Haleiwa, Hawaii, as part of an Innovation Readiness Training (IRT) mission, May 17, 2021. IRT Civil Engineer squadrons will be constructing new cabins, demolishing old structures, and beautifying Camp Paumalu from May through August 2021. Innovative Readiness Training builds mutually beneficial civil-military partnerships between US communities and the Department of Defense, providing high-quality, mission-essential training for Active, Guard, and Reserve support personnel and units. According to the recent easing of mask restrictions by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, IRT personnel are allowed to be unmasked when working outdoors. (Air National Guard photo by Tech. Sgt. Steph Sawyer)

190515-Z-LM216-0940: Oregon Army National Guard Sgt. Blaze Bault, a crew chief with G Co. 1-189 AVN, Oregon Army National Guard, pauses during training at Exercise Maple. Maple Resolve 19-01 is located in Wainwright, AB, Canada. Maple Resolve is an annual brigade-level validation exercise for the Canadian Army's High Readiness Brigade and is designed to foster partnership among allied forces. (National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Zachary Holden, 115th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

142nd Wing To Conduct Independence Day Flyovers (Photo) -07/02/25

Eastern Oregon Military Installation Saves Endangered Owls Through Innovative Program (Photo) -06/24/25

UMATILLA, Ore. – Deep in the sandy terrain of Rees Training Center, a small owl with bright yellow eyes peers from an artificial burrow that has become home to the most successful burrowing owl colony in the United States.

What began as a desperate conservation effort in 2008 has transformed into a remarkable success story, with the Oregon National Guard training installation now hosting more than 100 nesting pairs of the diminutive raptors – a dramatic increase from just five remaining pairs 17 years ago. Rees Training Center serves as the Oregon Military Department's premier training facility for the Oregon National Guard.

"This has become one of the most successful colonies in the United States right now," said Janet Johnson, Natural Resources Program Manager for the Oregon Military Department, during recent monitoring operations at the site. "Last year was a bumper crop. We had an amazing amount of forage, and the population doubled from 2023 to 2024."

The colony's success stems from an innovative partnership between the Oregon Military Department, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, and wildlife researchers led by conservationist David "DJ" Johnson of the Global Owl Project. When natural badger burrows disappeared due to decades of military development, the team developed an artificial burrow system using repurposed apple juice barrels from a local processing plant.

Each artificial burrow consists of two chambers – one for nesting and another for food storage – connected by irrigation tubing that serves as the entrance tunnel. The system is designed to last 10-15 years and can be relocated when military training requirements change.

"My number one job here is to ensure that the military can continue to train on this parcel into perpetuity," Johnson explained. "In order to do that, they need a healthy ecosystem without restrictions from endangered species or species of concern. Those tend to go together quite nicely."

The collaborative effort has attracted researchers from around the world to study the colony. Solai Le Fay, a master's student in raptor biology at Boise State University, is currently leading field research efforts and using 11 years of data for her thesis work.

"Every single chick and every single adult in 17 years has been banded," Johnson noted. "We know their ancestry, who was their father, who was their mother. We're getting six generations over time."

The program demonstrates how military installations can balance training missions with conservation goals. Lt. Col. Mark Timmons, incoming commander of the 249th Regional Training Institute at Rees Training Center, said his Soldiers frequently train in areas near the owl burrows.

"We walk that ground training, and they do tend to coexist quite well," Johnson said of the relationship between military operations and the owl population.

The research has contributed to nine different scientific discoveries about burrowing owl behavior and biology, with studies ranging from vocalization patterns to migration tracking using GPS transmitters.

Lindsay Chiono, Wildlife Habitat Ecologist for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, leads tribal conservation efforts on adjacent lands where about two-thirds of the colony's burrows are located.

"The tribal side and the Oregon Military Department biologists work together to manage the colony as a whole," Johnson said. "The tribe is doing a tremendous amount of effort on their end and has really dedicated a lot of resources."

The colony's success has made it a model for other military installations across the Department of Defense, proving that conservation and military readiness can advance hand-in-hand.

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Released B-Roll Video: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/967966/oregon-national-guards-rees-training-center-hosts-nations-most-successful-burrowing-owl-colony

Released Photos:

2510611-Z-ZJ128-1001

A visitor holds a burrowing owl chick during monitoring and banding operations at Rees Training Center, Oregon, June 11, 2025. The installation hosts the most successful burrowing owl colony in the United States, with over 100 nesting pairs supported through artificial burrow systems developed through a collaborative conservation effort between the Oregon Military Department and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. W. Chris Clyne, Oregon National Guard Public Affairs)

250611-Z-ZJ128-1002

Solai Le Fay, a master's student in raptor biology at Boise State University, holds an adult burrowing owl during monitoring and banding operations at Rees Training Center, Oregon, June 11, 2025. Le Fay is leading field research efforts for the colony and using 11 years of data for her thesis work as part of the ongoing collaborative conservation effort between the Oregon Military Department and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. W. Chris Clyne, Oregon National Guard Public Affairs)

250611-Z-ZJ128-1003

Three burrowing owl chicks sit in a collection bucket during monitoring and banding operations at Rees Training Center, Oregon, June 11, 2025. Researchers use the buckets to safely hold the young owls while conducting measurements, health assessments, and banding procedures as part of the ongoing conservation program that has grown the colony from four pairs in 2008 to over 100 nesting pairs today. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. W. Chris Clyne, Oregon National Guard Public Affairs)

250611-Z-ZJ128-1004

Janet Johnson, Natural Resources Program Manager for the Oregon Military Department, places a burrowing owl on a digital field scale during monitoring operations at Rees Training Center, Oregon, June 11, 2025. Weight measurements are part of the comprehensive data collection that tracks the health and development of the owls in what has become the most successful burrowing owl colony in the United States. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. W. Chris Clyne, Oregon National Guard Public Affairs)

250611-Z-ZJ128-1005

Christine Clyne sets a burrowing owl chick on the ground before it returns to its artificial burrow through the irrigation tubing entrance at Rees Training Center, Oregon, June 11, 2025. The artificial burrow system, constructed from repurposed juice barrels and irrigation tubing, has enabled the colony to grow from four remaining pairs in 2008 to become the most successful burrowing owl conservation program in the United States. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. W. Chris Clyne, Oregon National Guard Public Affairs)