Oregon to spend $300 million for seismic updates on public buildings

Oregon will spend $300 million in construction bond funding for seismic updates on public buildings.

The funds are included in the legislature’s $1.2 billion capital construction budget. Sen. Peter Courtney, the state’s Senate president, said the allotment for seismic updates is more than lawmakers have ever put toward such projects, according to the Portland Business Journal.

“We know there will be a major quake. We know too many of our schools will collapse," Courtney said. "These funds will help us fix our schools. These funds will save children’s lives.”

The bond funding plan dedicates $175 million for the Seismic Rehabilitation Grant Program, a program that helps make at-risk schools safer in the event of a major earthquake.

A 2007 Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries survey found that more than 1,000 Oregon school buildings face a high risk of collapse during earthquakes.