March 25, 2009
PageA2
Brouhaha in the Legislature Over Beer Tax
by J ake T homas
T he P ortland O bserver
M entioning the w ord "O r­
egon" conjures up im ages o f
p r is tin e b e a c h e s , o rg a n ic
veggies, bike lanes, and high-
quality beer.
This last item has been spar­
ingly taxed for decades. But
with state revenue in a slump,
legislators are putting this in­
d u stry in its sig h t as a new
source o f funding for ad d ic­
tions treatm ent- a chronically
under-funded service. But the
beer industry isn ’t giving up
w ithout a fight.
House Bill 2461 would slap a
$49.61 tax on each 31 gallon
barrel, up from $2.60. The tax
applies to Oregon-m ade as well
as national brand beers. Money
raised from it w ould be e a r­
m arked for alcohol treatm ent
services and prevention.
The tax hasn't been raised in
nearly 32 years, and has re ­
m ained as one of the low est in
the county.
It's not clear how m uch con­
sum ers w ill have to pay if it
p a s s e s . F ifte e n c e n ts to a
couple of bucks per glass are
num bers that have been thrown
around as possible amounts.
A d v o ca tes fo r the tax say
that it will fund O regon’s hor­
ren d o u sly ig n o red a d d ictio n
treatm ent services.
"1 th in k this bill is a very
good idea," said G ina N ikkei,
the ex e cu tiv e d irecto r o f the
A sso ciatio n o f O reg o n C o m ­
m u n ity M e n tal H ea lth P ro ­
gram s. She ex p lain e d th at so ­
ciety as a w hole has to pay
for the ad d ictio n s o f oth ers.
C h ild ren from broken hom es
h av e to go in to fo ste r care,
and addicts that do n 't receiv e
tre a tm e n t en d up p riso n . It
m akes m ore sense, acco rd in g
to N ikkei, to pay for treatm ent
early on.
A rep o rt from the O reg o n
D e p a rtm e n t o f H u m an S e r ­
vices sug g ests that the state
loses billions o f d o llars each
y e a r in p r o d u c t i v i t y a n d
spending on health care co sts
d u e to u n tre a te d s u b s ta n c e
problem s. T he rep o rt re c o m ­
m ends that m illio n s m ore be
spent on trea tm e n t an d p re ­
ven tio n .
However, the bill is not w ith­
out its critics.
"It's a bad road to go down,"
Oregon lawmakers are considering the first increase in
the beer tax in three decades to pay for addiction treat­
ment programs.
said Steve Buckstein, a senior
policy analyst at the free-m ar­
ket-oriented Cascade Policy In­
stitute. He argued that any tax
in crease sh o u ld be b ro ad so
that the state do esn 't becom e
too dependant on it. He is also
critical o f how supporters o f the
tax claim that they are targeting
the beer industry, but, in fact,
consum ers are the ones that will
bear the burden.
P o in te d o p p o s i t i o n h a s
com e, unsurprisingly, from the
b eer industry.
A cc o rd in g to in fo rm a tio n
from the O regon G overnm ent
Ethics Com m ission the O regon
B eer an d W ine D istrib u to rs
Association shelled out $75,600
last year alone to retain a lob­
bying firm , the Rom ain G roup,
to m aintain its clout in the leg­
islature. T he firm , headed by
Paul Rom ain, is know n for b e­
ing aggressive and effective.
R om ain argues that tax in g
b eer pro d u cers is a bad idea
because m iddlem en will raise
the price significantly before it
reaches the consumer.
“ It co u ld be d e v a sta tin g ,”
said Paul G atza, the director o f
the B rew er’s association.
However, C huck Sheketoff,
the ex ecu tiv e d irecto r o f the
Oregon Center for Public Policy,
said it's about tim e for a beer
tax increase. He argued that the
idea that m iddle m en will drive
up the price o f m icro-brew s up
so high that they’ll be drinking
m ore hum ble brew s is "just bi­
zarre." He points to increases
in the gas tax as an exam ple,
sa y in g th a t the m id d le m en
haven't added additional costs.
He also argued that if the beers
are that good, people will pay a
bit m ore for them.
A re c e n tly issu ed p o ll by
M oore Inform ation, Inc. states
that 61 percent o f O regonians
w ould support paying 15 cents
m ore for a glass o f beer.
W hen asked about the influ­
e n c e o f th e b e e r lo b b y ,
S heketoff points to the fact that
the beer tax hasn't risen in 32
years as p ro o f o f the lo b b y ’s
su ccess.
T h e bill is cu rren tly in the
h o u se R e v e n u e C o m m itte e
an d is not sch ed u led to com e
up befo re the H o u se c o n s id ­
e rs o th e r re v e n u e b o o ste rs ,
lik e in creasin g the co rp o rate
m inim um tax.
Mixed Results for Charter School Success
Portland Public Schools ap­
proved its first charter school
in 1999. Almost 10 years later, a
perform ance audit finds that
P o r tla n d ’s se v e n c h a r te r
sc h o o ls have a m ix e d track
record in im pro v in g student
achievem ent and education in­
novation, but highly satisfied
parents, staff and students.
The school district audit re­
viewed student assessm ent re­
sults, financial data, enrollm ent
records and other inform ation.
In 2 0 00-01,PPS had only 66
charter school students, attend­
ing the M cCoy A cadem y (since
closed). Today, 1,080 students
attend one o f seven PPS char­
ter schools: A rthur Academ y,
Emerson, LEP High, Opal, Port­
land Village, SEI A cadem y and
Trillium public charter schools.
A uditor Richard Tracy found
Soul Train Host gets Probation
(A P) - D on C ornelius has
been sentenced to three years'
p ro b atio n a fte r p le ad in g no
contest to m isdem eanor spou­
sal battery.
C o u rt
r e c o rd s
sh o w
Cornelius' attorney entered the
plea M arch 18 on behalf o f the
creator and host o f the televi­
sio n show "S o u l T ra in " on
W ednesday.
C o rn e liu s w as ch a rg ed in
Novem ber with spousal battery,
assault with a deadly w eapon
Don Cornelius
and dissuading a w itness from
making a police report, all m is­
dem eanors.
The 72-year-old was arrested
a month earlier after police were
called to his H ollyw ood Hills
hom e follow ing a report o f do­
m estic dispute.
R eco rd s in d icate the other
c h a r g e s w ere d is m is s e d as
p art o f C o rn eliu s' p lea a g re e ­
m ent. He w as o rd ered n ot to
u se th re a ts o r fo rc e a g a in st
a n y o n e , in c lu d in g h is w ife
V icto ria, an d m u st atten d a
y e a rlo n g d o m e stic v io le n c e
c o u rse .
that ch arter schools attracted
students who were, on average,
far less likely to be low -incom e
and m inority learners than the
PPS average.
W hile some charter schools
posted impressive academ ic re­
sults (m easured by- state stan­
o f one. Enroll and pay for “Word
2007, Level I,” and then take
‘W ord 2007, Level II” for free; or
pay fo r “ In tro d u ctio n to the
Internet and e-m a ilin g ,” and
bring a friend along for free.
Located at M HCC’s Maywood
Park Campus, 10100 N £ . Prescott
St., the skills center offers a num­
ber o f c re d it-fre e self-p aced
classes. Register and begin the
course anytime throughout the
year. Knowledgeable instructors
are available in the com puter lab
to answer any questions.
To take advantage o f this of­
fer, the flee class must be of equal
|NEW S E A S O N S.
dent achievement is difficult to
fully assess due to lack o f spe­
cific, measurable charter contract
goals and insufficient annual re­
porting." He also concluded that
a "lack of timely financial reports
inhibits assessm ent o f charter
school financial stability."
Spring Break Patrols Added
Portland Police have begun
a cityw ide enh an ced patrol
m ission during Spring Break.
This m ission, w hich will run
through Sunday, M arch 29, is
designed to provide a posi­
tive and safe environm ent for
juveniles and im prove neigh­
borhood livability by minimiz­
ing juvenile-related crime.
T he P olice B ureau's five
precincts, school resource o f­
ficers, traffic division, and the
transit police division are par­
Discount Computer Classes at Mt. Hood
If you need to upgrade your
com puter skills or you leam bet­
ter with a friend, the Mt. Hood
Community College Community
Skills Center has a deal for you.
During spring term, the center is
offering two classes for the price
dardized assessm ents), others
la g g e d b e h in d c o m p a r a b le
schools statewide. M ost ch ar­
te r sc h o o l stu d e n ts sh o w e d
sm aller gains in read in g and
m ath ac h ie v e m e n t th an PPS
students in the sam e grades.
However, Tracy noted, "stu­
or lesser value than the pur­
chased class; enrollm ent for
both classes is required at time
o f registration; and registration
must be in person/
Fore more information, call
503-491-6100. For a complete list
o f classes offered at the Com ­
m u n ity S k ills C e n te r v isit
www.mhcc.edu/commskills.
•
M A R K E T
N O W D E L IV E R IN G
Y o u r fa v o r ite n e ig h b o r h o o d g r o c e r y s to r e n o w d e liv e r s
g r o c e r ie s r ig h t to y o u r h o m e o r o ffic e .
»
ticipating in curfew m issions,
tra n sit are a en h a n c e d p atro l
m issions and traffic m issions.
O fficers will concentrate on
areas in the city where juveniles
c o n s is te n tly c o n g r e g a te in
larg e g ro u p s o r w h ere th e re
have been ongoing problem s
w ith speed racing, vandalism ,
and property crim e.
E very year, the Portland P o­
lice Bureau partners w ith the
O ffic e o f N eig h b o rh o o d In ­
volvement, Portland's Parks and
Recreation, Oregon Youth A u­
thority, Youth G ang Outreach,
Police A ctivities League, the
B o y s an d G irls C lu b s and
other com m unity partners, to
o f fe r sa fe a lte rn a tiv e s fo r
youth during Spring Break.
A list o f som e o f the offer­
ing, com piled by the Office of
Youth Violence Prevention, is
o n th e c i t y ’s w e b p a g e at
portlandonline.com .
PSU Hires
Assistant
B ran d o n S h elb y has b een
n a m e d th e n e w s e c o n d a ry
co ach fo r the P o rtlan d S tate
football program.
Shelby jo in s PSU after being
the defensive backs coach at
the U niversity o f San D iego in
2008 where the Toreros w ent 9-
2. He will take over as coach o f
th e V iking c o rn e rb a c k s and
safeties and begin w orking with
them during spring football.
Shelby is a 2004 graduate o f
the U n iv ersity o f O k lah o m a
with a degree in Business M an­
a g e m e n t. H e a lso e a rn e d a
M asters degree in H um an R e­
lations from O klahom a in 2005.
Shelby spent the 2006 sea­
son as a defensive assistant at
Oklahoma. In
2007 he served as a graduate
assistant at the U niversity o f
Arizona.
Brandon Shelby
A d e fe n s iv e b a c k fo r the
S ooners, S helby w as a four-
year letterman from 2001-04. He
w as a tw o-tim e Academ ic All-
B ig 12 s e le c tio n a n d a lso
earn ed A ssociated Press All-
Big 12 honors.
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