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December 11, 2015 CapitalPress.com 11 Oregon Oregon ag’s economic impact yields jobs, sales By ERIC MORTENSON Capital Press Farmers might be tempted to say they told you so, but a new report from Oregon State Uni- versity economists says food, fi- ber and other aspects of state ag- riculture are linked to $50 billion in Oregon sales and account for 326,617 full- and part-time jobs. Agriculture held its own when the rest of Oregon’s economy staggered during the recession, and it continues to grow, Extension Economist Bruce Sorte said. In that sense, farming is like the “good, steady worker” that doesn’t get noticed when other sectors of the economy are do- ing well, he said. “It’s kind of like the founda- tion of your house,” Sorte said. “You don’t think about it much but you’re glad it’s there.” Ag’s economic impact ex- tends from the farm or ranch into warehousing, transporta- tion, wholesale and retail sales and processing operations, among others. “It’s not just rel- egated to the soil,” Sorte said. Sorte said Oregon producers have become much more effi- cient in the way they use water and other inputs and increased production over the decades even though the number of farms declined: from 40,033 in 2002 to 35,439 in 2012. “The recent recession seemed to have taken its toll on many of the smaller farms that did not have the reserves or assets to weather the hard times,” the report concluded. The report, chiefly written by Sorte and OSU Extension Community Economist Mal- lory Rahe, noted opportunities for continued industry growth. For example, Oregon grows and processes the ingredients for 31 percent of the food and beverages created and served in the state. Increasing that to 50 percent would add $350 million to annual ag sales, ac- cording to the report. Oregon lawmakers ask for impacts of gross receipts tax Capital Bureau SALEM — Economists who work for the Oregon Legislature are beginning the complicated task of analyz- ing how a proposed corporate sales tax measure would af- fect the economy. The union-backed tax measure planned for the 2016 ballot would require certain corporations to pay a 2.5 per- cent tax on sales in Oregon greater than $25 million. Re- publican lawmakers in par- ticular have pushed for the Legislative Revenue Office to analyze the potential eco- nomic impact of the measure, currently referred to as initia- tive petition or IP 28. Economists in the office have already projected the tax would raise an addition- al $2.65 billion annually for the state, but they have yet to complete a more detailed analysis that includes the in- direct impact or “behavioral response” from businesses and the broader economy. “This is the third time I’ve asked this, by the way, gentlemen,” state Sen. Bri- an Boquist, R-Dallas, said during an interim meeting of the Senate and House reve- nue committees Dec. 2. Bo- quist called the tax measure “the 800-pound gorilla in the room” and said Oregonians need the independent analy- sis in order to make informed decisions about the measure. Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-On- tario, also called for econ- omists to move ahead with the analysis. “I’ve lost track, literally, of the number of times different folks up here have said something about the unforeseen consequences of measure fill in the blank, 55, you name it,” Bentz said. Lawmakers could also use the information to draft an alternative tax measure in the 2016 legislative session, al- though it is currently unclear whether there will be enough support for a bill. Chris Allanach, a senior economist in the Legislative Revenue Office, said the staff planned to start immediately on the analysis. Until recent- ly, the Legislative Revenue Office was busy producing a report ordered by the Legis- Eric Mortenson/Capital Press Hood strawberries ripen in the summer sun in Clackamas County, Ore. A new study by Oregon State University economists says the output of Oregon farmers increased 39 percent from 2010 to 2014, primarily because of a combination of increased efficiency and higher prices. Legislator proposes regional minimum wage rates By PARIS ACHEN Capital Bureau lature on options to overhaul Oregon’s state and local tax system. The office presented that report to lawmakers on Dec. 2. Legislative Revenue Of- ficer Paul Warner said it will be complicated to analyze the impact of the proposed corporate sales tax, large- ly because it applies to very specific companies: “C” cor- porations with more than $25 million in sales inside Ore- gon. The proposed measure also contains an exemption for corporations registered with the state as “benefit companies.” Staff at the Legislative Revenue Office will have to review tax returns at the Oregon Department of Rev- enue to gather the detailed data they will eventually feed into a computer model. “We do have quite a bit of work to really make a decent esti- mate on IP 28,” Warner said. “And we’d much rather do that than throw something together that we aren’t con- fident in, and we’ll end up having to change at a future time.” SALEM — Spurred by two ballot initiatives to raise Oregon’s minimum wage, a Portland lawmaker plans to propose legislation in February that would set different region- al minimum wage rates based on cost of living and median income. Sen. Michael Dembrow, who chairs the Senate work- force committee, said a legisla- tive agreement could help avert an acrimonious and prolonged battle over the minimum wage at the ballot box. “Our hope is if we can pass it in February, that the campaigns will stop collecting signatures, and they’ll feel comfortable with it,” Dembrow said. A legislative work group be- gan at the end of the last session looking at some of the issues to consider in setting a minimum wage. “What became clear from that was we needed to do some- thing that is not one-size-fits- all,” Dembrow said. “We need- ed to take into account cost of living and economic vitality in different parts of the state.” Dembrow said he envisions setting three regional minimum wage rates — with the highest rate in the Portland metro area and the lowest in rural areas. The rates would be phased in during a three- to four-year period, he said. “Our goal here is to get the wage where families can make it without relying on public as- sistance,” he said. Senate workforce commit- tee members have yet to settle on exact numbers but hope to have those details ready in time for a public hearing Jan. 14. The regionally tiered min- imum wage would address the need for higher incomes in Portland, where housing costs are skyrocketing, without crip- pling businesses in slower eco- nomic areas such as the south- ern coast, Dembrow said. One ballot initiative under- way proposes hiking the state’s minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2019. Another initiative by a union-led coalition seeks to boost minimum wage to $13.50 and give cities the authority to hike wages beyond that. Dembrow’s legislation would not repeal state pre- emption on wage hikes, which prohibits municipalities from increasing the minimum wage. Giving cities the authority to independently hike wages can be problematic, Dembrow said. “If Portland does raise the minimum wage, and Beaverton doesn’t, there is a concern a lot of businesses would relocate,” Dembrow said. “We have had a lot of experience with the state setting its own minimum wage but haven’t had a lot of experi- ence with cities doing it. That is a relatively new phenomenon.” In the past two years, Wash- ington, D.C., Seattle, San Fran- cisco and Los Angeles have taken action to gradually raise their minimum wage to $15. House and Senate leader- ship and Gov. Kate Brown have indicated passing minimum wage legislation is a priority for the upcoming session. Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem, said he supports increasing the min- imum wage but has yet to de- cide on a specific amount. He said he also agrees with repeal- ing the preemption on local wage hikes so that cities such as Portland could raise wages beyond the statewide floor. But passing wage legisla- tion in February will depend on securing support from key busi- ness leaders, he said. Educating the next generation is very important to Capital Press. All of us here wish to extend a sincere “Thank You!” to all the valued sponsors who have contributed to our NIE program. It’s your continued support that will help to educate the next generation on the importance of agriculture. Here’s what Ag teachers say about our NIE Program: “Your weekly was a great, highly used tool in my classes and with my FFA Chapter. Grandview Ag Education would like to thank all the donors for providing us with the Capital Press.” - Ryan Maiden, Grandview High School Grandview, WA “Capital Press weekly is a tremendous resource for our Ag Department. Thank you!” - John Fuller, Shandon High School Shandon, CA Help educate the next generation about the business that feeds the world - AGRICULTURE! Yes I can help Capital Press’ NEWSPAPER IN EDUCATION program by sponsoring an ag classroom for $150. This provides 6 classroom copies a week for the school year. Yes I want to sponsor papers in the classroom. Here is my check for __________. * NAME __________________________________________________ ADDRESS _______________________________________________ Thank you for your generosity and gift to secure the future of agriculture. CITY ___________________________________________________ STATE _________ ZIP ________________________ Make check out to Oregon Newspapers Foundation (ONF) and note on the reference line of the check “Capital Press NIE fund.” *Your donation may be tax deductible. 50-4/#5 By HILLARY BORRUD Rahe cautioned, however, that the figure is a rough esti- mate and doesn’t account for opportunity costs or what such growth might mean to existing businesses and to resources such as water. There could be signif- icant reasons for not striving to reach the 50 percent figure, such as a loss of quality, Rahe said. OSU economists Larry Lev and Bruce Weber, head of the Rural Studies Program, reviewed the work. Oregon Department of Agriculture chipped in $14,525 to help pay for the work, provided statistics and wrote descriptive passages in the first part of the report, Sorte said. P.O. Box 2048 Salem, OR 97308 800-882-6789 www.capitalpress.com Cultivating young minds • www.capitalpress.com • 1-800-882-6789 50-2/#13