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.
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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