Legislature closing in on sales tax solution
SALEM (AP) — The Oregon Legislature
completed action Monday night on a
measure proposing the first statewide
vote on a sales tax since 1969.
The measure, already passed by the
House, is the key ingredient in a property
tax relief package.
Three related bills still need final ap
proval before the package is complete.
But the House vote on the proposed con
stitutional amendment appears to pave
the way for adjournment of the
Legislature's special session, which com
pletes its third week today.
Even if the package is endorsed by
lawmakers, though, sales tax supporters
have another hurdle to clear.
The tax measure won't reach the
statewide ballot unless the plan is ratified
by a majority of the state's 603 counties,
cities and school districts.
That provision was added at the in
sistence of Senate President Ed Fadeley,
an ardent sales tax foe.
The nine-month legislative stalemate
over tax relief was broken early Saturday
when the Senate approved, by a 16-14
vote, the measure endorsed by the House
Monday.
The key House vote, 31-26, came on a
motion to approve the compromise tax
measure drafted by a Senate and House
negotiating committee.
But the House action was no surprise.
That chamber twice has approved tax
measures this year, only to see them die in
the Senate.
The House also passed and sent to the
Senate Monday night two of the three re
maining bills. They would set up the
machinery for a sales tax election next
year and implement the proposed 4 per
cent retail sales tax if voters approve it.
The last measure, which has passed the
Senate and needs House approval, would
impose limits on local property tax rates
and increases in assessed property values.
During Monday night's House debate.
Rep. Rick Bauman, D-Portland, said that
sales tax supporters had been forced to
pay too high a price to get the sales tax
through the Senate.
He said the language requiring local
government approval to put the measure
on the ballot is "an unconstitutional
abrogation of our responsibility" and a
"booby trap" that could doom the
proposal.
Some lawmakers have questioned
whether the state constitution allows the
Legislature to attach such conditions
when it refers a measure to the voters.
The sales tax measure provides that any
legal challenge will go directly to the
Oregon Supreme Court.
Rep. Kip Lombard, R-Ashland, said Gov.
Vic Atiyeh has pledged to call another
special session so lawmakers could refer
the sales tax directly to the ballot if the
court blocks a vote on the measure as it is
now written.
During the past 50 years, Oregon voters
have turned thumbs down on the sales tax
in six separate elections.
Fadeley urges voters to back away
By Paul Ertelt
Of llw Emerald
It a proposed state sales tax of 4 percent
is passed by the Legislature and by
Oregon voters, it will bring relief to a few
businessmen at the expense of con
sumers, state Senate President Ed Fadeley
said Monday.
Though consumers will pay 60 percent
of the tax, 60 percent of the property tax
relief would go to commercial property
owners, Fadeley said.
Speaking to the Lane County Women's
Political Caucus, Fadeley called the sales
tax a “butcher knife" in the back of con
sumers and likened it to the "Return of
the )edi" character (abba the Hut: "it
sucks up everything."
Fadeley's opposition to a sales tax is a
personal crusade that he says stems from
his memories of poverty as a child.
"They wanted us to pay $1.04 for
something when we didn't have the $1 in
the first place," he said.
Fadeley said the poor would pay a
disproportionate share of the tax.
Though some have argued that the sales
tax would bring in money from tourists,
Fadeley said those revenues would be
eaten up by the cost of administering the
tax.
"I think the tourists should come here
and spend money because there is no
sales tax," he said.
Though Fadeley has been criticized for
his attempts to prevent the sales tax from
going to the voters, he said there was no
reason to have a resolution that voters
almost certainly would reject.
"Oregonians don't need a sales tax and
they don't want a sales tax," he said. He
also said the election would cost tax
payers about $300,000.
Fadeley said that his unsuccesful at
tempt to block the tax in the Senate had
one good effect: it forced debate on the
issue and brought information about the
tax to voters.
And Fadeley's battle against the sales tax
is far from over.
"We have a chance to do some good for
everyone in Oregon by defeating the sales
tax," he said.
Trihutp
Continued from Page 1
higher education and said his top priority
was the tuition freeze — which he claimed
is already having a positive impact on fall
term enrollment. Davis is "confident"
enrollment increases will hold up.
"Students are the greatest renewable
resource in Oregon," Davis said.
After Atiyeh read the proclamation, stu
dent body presidents from all but one state
system college signed it. Southern Oregon
State College was not represented.
And for what Atiyeh dubbed "the visual
effects," hundreds of helium ballons col
ored with all the state system school colors
— plus "some added colors" — were set
loose.
After the ceremony, Davis responded to
questions about the tuition freeze, calling it
"a good thing," and saying he "wants to
keep tuition low," though he was unsure
how long the freeze would last.
When asked about the possibility of los
ing professors to other schools able to pay
higher salaries, Davis held to a positive
outlook.
"The fear of losing professors is always
there," he said. ' But we have not had a
large exodus of faculty this year. Many peo
ple live in Oregon because they want to live
here."
The tougher entrance standards for new
students is another important part in the
higher education plan, Davis said. While he
admitted some high schools may have trou
ble preparing their students for the new re
quirements, the gains are worth it.
"Already we re seeing a tremendous im
pact," he said. The evidence is more "anec
dotal" than statistical, but students seem to
be taking more math, science and com
puter science than before, Davis said.
The ASUO is not planning any special
events for higher education week, says
ASUO Executive Assistant Sherri Schultz.
"We're not planning anything special
because every week is 'higher ed' week,"
Schultz says.
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