ADVISORY ONLY--NOT FOR PUBLICATION: 2025 Media Access To Natural Disasters Training Now Available
- 04/13/26
The auto-generated credential functionality for the annual training required for journalists to gain unescorted access to natural disaster scenes is now live. The free, one-hour online training course is provided by the Oregon Department of Forestry.
If you haven’t renewed your training credentials for this calendar year, complete the training at 
https://odftraining.thinkific.com/courses/media-access-2026. After you pass the quiz at the end of the course, the system will automatically generate a completion certificate that serves as your proof of training.
Journalists are encouraged to print two copies of their credentials—one to display in their vehicle and another to keep in their wallet—and to save an electronic copy to their phone or computer, just in case.
House Bill 4087 (2022) granted journalists access to certain natural disaster scenes even if a public safety organization escort is unavailable. The bill’s access provisions apply specifically to natural disaster scenes on non-federal public lands that are also closed to the public due to the disaster.
The HB 4087 guidelines created by a joint committee of public safety and media representatives provide additional important information including personal protective equipment requirements and circumstances when access may be denied.
For more information about HB 4087 and media access to natural disasters in Oregon, check out these resources from the Safe Media Access to Disaster Sites Committee and the Oregon Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.
ADVISORY ONLY--NOT FOR PUBLICATION: 2025 Media Access To Natural Disasters Training Now Available
- 04/13/26
The auto-generated credential functionality for the annual training required for journalists to gain unescorted access to natural disaster scenes is now live. The free, one-hour online training course is provided by the Oregon Department of Forestry.
If you haven’t renewed your training credentials for this calendar year, complete the training at https://odftraining.thinkific.com/courses/media-access-2026. After you pass the quiz at the end of the course, the system will automatically generate a completion certificate that serves as your proof of training.
Journalists are encouraged to print two copies of their credentials—one to display in their vehicle and another to keep in their wallet—and to save an electronic copy to their phone or computer, just in case.
House Bill 4087 (2022) granted journalists access to certain natural disaster scenes even if a public safety organization escort is unavailable. The bill’s access provisions apply specifically to natural disaster scenes on non-federal public lands that are also closed to the public due to the disaster.
The HB 4087 guidelines created by a joint committee of public safety and media representatives provide additional important information including personal protective equipment requirements and circumstances when access may be denied.
For more information about HB 4087 and media access to natural disasters in Oregon, check out these resources from the Safe Media Access to Disaster Sites Committee and the Oregon Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.
