POLITICS
Students go to Salem to survey state legislators
By Joe Kidd
Emerald Potties Editor
With a flock of University programs hcadod to
ward the ondangored species list, how will Ore
gon's legislators respond to the budget-slashing
results of Ballot Measure 5?
Do they want now taxos to fill In the budget
chasm created hy the tax-limiting measure? If so.
how soon?
Ten University students set out Tuesday to find
answors to those questions and moro with an
ASUO-sponsored survey of 38 members of the
stato House and Senate.
With Measure 5's budget shears heading for all
state-funded agencies — Including many Univer
sity programs and services — the poll results
pointed up two important conclusions:
• Proposed University program cuts and tuitlor
increases will probably arrive in July as planned;
a tax replacement won't lie sought in time to stave
off the Initial pains of budget reductions.
• Those budget woes may find some relief by th«
fail of 1H92. if legislators' hopes of finding a new
money source are eventually realized.
University Sens Laura DoLeono and Kimberly
Hoinoy spearheaded the effort, originally hoping
to find support for a University Senate motion to
suspend proposed cuts until other money is
found.
"Wo wanted to got a feel for what is going on
up there (in the Legislature)." DeLeono said, "if
(legislators) an; going to look for replacement rev
enues In time to help the University and other
state-funded institutions."
The pollsters found some encouragement for
Oregon's colleges and universities. Most legisla
tive respondents favored finding a new tax after
I ho first of Measure 5's six budget-squashing
years.
Nevertheless, the students' plan for a Universi
ty Senate motion to temporarily stave ofT the pro
posed S13 million in University cuts fell through.
In the face of a long bureaucratic process, tho
motion wouldn't fly before the Saturday deadlino
— when collogns and universities must submit
their austority plans to the State System of Higher
Education, DoLoono said.
"Now I don't know If it could stop tho cuts,"
the said. "Now it's pretty late. But it looks like
there will bo a replacement revenue by November
1992, and that will save us from further damage
in tho future."
Measure 5, passed In tho November elections,
sets a 1.5 percent lid on property taxes, requiring
tho state to shift an additional S633 million in
1991-93 to secondary school funding.
Proposod budgot reductions in rosponso to
Measure 5 have trickier! down to all state-funded
agencies, with higher education having to sllco
$74 million from its two-year budgot.
Measure 5 begins with the next fiscal year,
starting on July 1. University cuts would simulta
neously kick In, "then thoy'll start weeding out
the programs slowly," DoLeone said.
Oecauso Measure 5 has a six-year lifespan,
which will take increasingly larger chunks out of
state coders, most legislators expect to find anoth
er source of funding The poll results point to a
sale's tax as the most popular.
According to the poll hoth Republicans and
Democrats place a high priority on developing a
new tax. But among those respondents, Republi
cans leaned more heavily toward a sales tax. rath
er than an increase in income taxes or somn form
of corporate tax.
Portland light rail gets approval
SALEM (AIM — Tho Oregon
Sonato unanimously passed a
hill Thursday to spoor! expand
ed light rail service to tho Port
land area. But tho measure may
bo on a collision course with
tho House.
Rep. Fred Parkinson, R-Sll
verton, chairman of tho House
Environment Si Energy Com
mittee, has persuaded a major
ity of the panel to add language
to tho House light rail bill that
would approve siting of a
church in rural Marion County.
County commissioners have
refusod to permit (hat project.
House Democrats vow to op
poso the Irail bill unless
the church provision is rw
rnovod.
Further complicating the sit
uation is the federal govern
ment, which lias offered to pay
75 percent of the cost of the
S910 million project to extend
light rail lines west of Portland.
The offer is jeopardized if the
bill isn't passed by March 1.
The Tri-Mot transit system
must have final approvals by
Sept. 30 to get that level ol fed
eral help. To make the dead
line. the bill would speed up
processes for appealing the pro
ject's location.
Sen. Jeanette Hamby. K-Hills
boro. floor manager for SB573,
said the measure doesn’t side
step normal land use require
ments but only accelerates tho
appeals stage.
"This is not a super-siting
bill,” she said. "Those are all
the sumo lumps that have al
ways boon there."
mi emu (i i n rai iowl m presents FEAR AND LOATHING WITH
Dr HUNTER S.
V- «
GONZO JOURNAUST - CULT HERO
In a career of writing for Time, the New
York Tribune, the National Observer.
The Nation. Ramparts. Rolling Stone
and author of Fear and Loathing in Las
Vegas, among five other books, Dr.
Thompson is known for his brilliantly ^ J
unusual stream of consciousness 4|P ^
writing style. He is the model for
Uncle Duke” in the Doonesbury
comic strip as well as the
inspiration for the movie, ’ >
Whore the Buffalo Rq0mA
:
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28 7PM EUGENE HILTON
TICKETS AVAILABLE AT THE EMU MAIN DESK: $8 UofO STUDENTS $12 GA
Measure 5 Legislator Poll
The following if* — looted questions from ■ survey of M mombor*
of the itala Sana la and Houaa. The raaponaaa wara aubmlttad
anonymoualy by tha laglalatora; tha ASUO-aponaorad poll waa
conduct ad Tuaaday at tha Capitol by 10 Uni varsity atudanta.
Abbreviations R Republican, D Democrat
Respondents
• 5 Senate Republicans. 11 House Republicans, 11 Senate Democrats;
11 House Democrats (R-16. D-22)
• 11 Women; 27 Men
Holt There me a fdel at X members m the Democratic controbad Senate am) 60
members m the Hapubbcan -controlled House
• Do you favor or oppose instituting a replacement revenue solution to
compensate for the recent reduction in properly taxes ?
All but 1 Republican favored a replacement revenue
• How important is it to find additional sources of revenue to prevent the
cuts resulbng from Ballot Measure 5? (On a scale from five to zero; ex
tremely important — five, not important at all — zero )
Five —25 (R 8 D 16)
Four — 5 (R-1, D-4)
Three —4 (R 2. D-1)
Two — 0
One — 0
Zero — 2 (R-1, D-1)
• Which typo(s) of revenue replacement do you favor?
Sales la* — 22 (R 12, D 15)
Personal income tax — 11 (R-1, D-10)
Corporate income tax — 9 (R 2, D-7)
Gross receipts tax — 6 (R 1, D-5)
12 other respondents were divided among 4 other torms ol taxes
• Given the tact that $633 million is being lost in the first year because
of the reductions m Oregon 's property taxes, what is the size ol replace
ment revenue you are aiming for?
The most common response was in the $600-800 million range, re
sponses ranged from no new taxes to $2 billion during 1991-93
• Realistically, when should a replacement revenue take elfect?
Sooner than May 1991 — 4 (R 0. D-4)
May 1991 — 1 (R0. D-1)
June 1991 — 2(R0, D-2)
November 1991 — 5 (R-1, D-4)
Novomber 1992 — 11 (R-6, D 5)
Sooner than November 1992 — 10 (R-4, D-5)
• How would you prefer to see a replacement revenue solution on
acted7
Legislative action with referral to citizens — 25 (R 8, D-17)
Solely through legislative action — 7 (R-1, D-5)
Solely through citizen action — 2 (R-2, D-0)
• Do you think it is wise for the Legislature to preview a citizen revenue
mitiabve?
Yes. preview — 19 (R 8. D-11)
No — 13 (R 5. D-8)
• Do you feel that Oregon already places too much burden on its per
sonal state income tax?
No — 15 (R 2. D 12)
Yes — 14 (R 6. D 8)
• Do you favor the Legislature adopting a temporary surcharge on per
sonal income tax to buy time for a long term solution?
No — 12 (R-3, D-9)
Yes —8 (R-1, 0 7) __
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