Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 17, 2000)
Measure 6 stirs up campaign controversy ■ Debate over November’s campaign finance reform ballot measure has left grassroots politics in the air By Bennett Lacy for the Emerald Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins, na tional president of the League of Women Voters, visited Eugene Monday to support Oregon Ballot Measure 6, which would give pub lic funding to candidates who limit the private contributions they re ceive. Speaking in front of approxi mately 15 people at City Hall, Jef ferson-Jenkins said campaign fi nance reforms, such as those proposed under Measure 6, would give citizens more of a voice in the political system while giving them more candidates to choose from. “We must put citizens back in the driver’s seat of American gov ernment,” Jefferson-Jenkins said. The measure would give candi dates running for state offices $25,000 to use for their cam paigns. To qualify for public fund ing, candidates must limit private contributions and receive a speci fied number of $5 contributions from Oregon residents. Candi dates running for governor, secre tary of state, state treasurer, attor ney general and legislative seats would be able to choose whether to seek the public campaign fund ing. If Measure 6 passes, Oregon will follow only four other states — Ari zona, Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont — that have passed simi lar measures. After her address Monday, Jefferson-Jenkins headed toward Missouri, the other state this year with a measure similar to Measure 6 on the ballot. We must put citizens back in the driver's seat of American government. Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins President League of Women Voters “Oregon can set the direction for reform across the country,” Jeffer son-Jenkins said. “Campaign fi nanc^^gds to be reformed be CauWKli,lcal system needs to be Both go hand in hand.” The League of Women Voters of Lane County is supporting Measure 6 because they want to see an in crease in grassroots campaigning, Dian Smissar, a member of Lane County’s league, said. “Measure 6 forces grassroots pol itics so that politicians know who they are representing,” Smissar said. “I would rather put cam paigns back in the hands of the everyday voter. I think the taxpay er’s dollar is a more sound dollar to apply toward voting issues than the corporate dollar.” Measure 6 is faced with heavy opposition, most noticeably from Oregon Taxpayers United, an anti tax organization that placed six measures on the Nov. 7 ballot. Becky Miller, an executive assis tant for Oregon Taxpayers United, said she is voting no on Measure 6. “Measure 6 would support can didates people don’t agree with,” Miller said. Another problem opponents see in Measure 6 is that it will not completely solve the problem of corruption in campaign financing. “The power to be gained in elec tions is so great, there will always be corruption,” Miller said. “There araways to corrupt Measure 6, and taxpayers would have to pay for it.” Erin Swanson-Davies Emerald The League of Women Voters’ President Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins speaks in support of Measure 6 to a group of women in the City Council Chambers Monday. Experts attribute enrollment boom to economy ■ Universities statewide are enjoying an increased student enrollment By Kristy Hessman Oregon Daily Emerald A boost in enrollment at Lane Community College this year mir rors a statewide increase in enroll ment at colleges and universities, which experts are attributing to the strength of the economy, dual-en rollment programs and new tech nology. Lane Community College has grown in overall enrollment by 10 percent since last fall, leaving some to wonder if this could mean a fu ture boost in enrollment at the Uni versity. “We have seen an increase in en rollment in full-time equivalent stu dents, which went up 4.5 percent, and in the overall headcount, which increased to 17,500,” said Marie Matson, LCC community vice presi dent for college operations. According to Matson, about one third of LCC’s enrollment popula tion is in lower-division transfer courses, but even though a large number of students are working to ward their transfer degrees, they may not choose to transfer to the University. “It would not necessarily impact the University,” Matson said. A number of students who at tend LCC are working toward spe cialized programs. “A lot of students are not on typ ical tracks. There are many profes sional and vocational tracks,” Mat son said. The programs students pick will ultimately determine if more stu dents from LCC will come to the University. “It certainly could impact the University if students enrolled in transfer programs [at LCC] contin ue their education at U of O,” said Martha Pitts, University director of admissions. The University has recorded an increase of about 400 students this fall compared to last fall. One factor that may contribute to the rise in enrollment at both LCC and the University is dual enroll ment, where students register at both the University and at LCC, Matson said. While many students may be taking classes at both LCC and the University, the exact numbers are not available. “What we are working to do now is to have a better opportunity to track dual students through a for mal program,” Pitts said. The presence of dual admission programs is also believed by Uni versity officials to be a factor for the jump in enrollment at other schools around the state. Bruce Clemetsen, enrollment di rector at Linn-Benton Community College, said their site grew more than 8 percent this year. “We suspect a lot of it has to do with dual admissions programs with Oregon State,” he said. Linn-Benton has seen the num ber of full-time applicants increase by almost 300 since last year. Clemetsen also attributes the growth in the number of high school-age demographics. Last Day! to register to vote make your voice HEARD! The strength of the economy and the shift to a more technologically driven society are two forces Mat son said could be contributing to the rise in college institutions. These two forces require people to update their skills more often, she said. “Enrollment in community col leges in the past usually goes up when the economy is down, be cause many people are training for jobs. We are seeing the opposite in the economy,” Matson said. The rise in relative wages for those who are college educated could also be a contributing factor, said Scott Merryman, a graduate student in economics. “One study [Kane and Rouse (1993)] found evidence that enroll ment in a two-year or four-year col lege program increases earnings by 5 to 8 percent per year of college credits, whether or not a degree is earned,” he said. “These results hold for returning adults as well as continuing high school graduates. ” We are people of many different faiths. We believe Measure 9 is destructive to our children and our schools. We are taking a stand against discrimination. See our ad with over 1,000 supporters in the Register Guard, October 21st. Join us at our service of 'Resistance and Restoration: an interfaith service in response to Measure 9'; October 26, 7pm, at the Central Presbyterian Church, 555 E. 15th SPONSORED BY RELIGIOUS RESPONSE NETWORK PAC, David Bernstein, Treasurer, 1414 Kincaid, Eugene, OR 97401
