letters
Continued from Page 2A
Masters doctor their theses
Doctors master their theories.
The students shuffle...
Birkenstocks and blue jeans
"Fasts for Life"
Greek boys and Big Gulps
while the grafitti growls:
"Your mother drinks decaf."
"Why me Toto? Why am I here?
— I've always liked Donald
Duck...
and I want a degree
from his university."
George Bergeron
senior, journalism
Taxing, a point
Oregonians have heard only
about 20 percent of the facts
about the last legislative session.
Here are important facts they
haven't heard.
The sales tax passed by the
House in the last session was
designed to increase state of
Oregon general fund taxes by
$800 million a year. This
represents a proposed increase of
over one-half in state general fund
taxes. The sales tax was much
broader in coverage than either
California or Washington sales
taxes. Most services like dry clean
ing, hair cuts, a house call by your
plumber, etc. were to be taxed at 4
cents on the dollar, as well as
retail sales. Some have said failure
of that proposal was a failure to
provide tax relief.
The state had not levied proper
ty taxes for over 40 years.
However, local governments and
schools' property tax levies have
increased statewide by 51 percent
in the last three years. At the same
time the income of all Oregonians
statewide has remained about
level. It is easy to understand why
people feel pinched by the local
property tax growth rate and by
tax increases in general. They
don't have any increased ability to
pay taxes.
The Legislature provided pro
perty tax relief, despite claims to
the contrary. Direct property tax
relief totalling $411 million will be
paid to or for homeowners and
renters in this two-year budget
period through the existing
HARRP program and the general
all homeowners and renters
program.
Other state payments for the
next two years which reduce the
demand for property taxes are
$917 million in aid to local school
districts, $104 million for com
munity colleges, $25 million of
local court costs, and millions of
dollars of other state payments.
All of these latter state-paid
letters policy
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on topics of interest to the University community.
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amounts have increased since the
last state budget.
Did the state have money to pay
these increases? Only by continu
ing cigarette and income tax in
creases made in 1981-82, and by
increasing the tax per person.
These totalled $419 million. Direct
payments to homeowners and
renters were $411 million which,
with administrative costs, almost
equals the amount of increase
voted.
Did the state government need
this money for its own operations?
No. General property tax relief
was started by state government
in 1978. Since then it has applied
$5,145,000,000 of state collected
taxes to fund direct property tax
relief and basic school support
and other aids to local govern
ment. If state government had
kept back this money, it would be
enough to fund all state govern
ment activities at current levels for
the next six years — without
another nickel of state taxes being
collected during that time span.
Edward Fadeley
pres., Oregon senate
War Powers
I quote from the War Powers
Resolution, title 50 U.S. code 1976:
1. President's executive power
as commander-in-chief; limitation.
The constitutional powers of the
president as commander-in-chief
to introduce United States armed
forces into hostilities, or into
situations where imminent in
volvement in hostilites is clearly
indicated by the circumstances,
are exercised only pursuant to:
(1) a declaration of war
(2) specific statutory authoriza
tion, or
(3) a national emergency created
by attack upon the United States,
its territories or possessions, or its
armed forces.
2. Congressional legislative
power:
Under article 1, section 8, of the
Constitution, it is specifically pro
vided that the Congress shall have
the power to make all laws
necessary and proper for carrying
into execution, not only its own
powers but also all other powers
vested by the Constitution in the
government of the United States,
or in any department or officer
thereof.
Violations: Lebanon, El
Salvador.
The sovereign power of the
United States rests with its
people.
Ken Tomkinson
citizen\
—.—I
/
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