NORTHWEST
East Oregonian
Page 2A
Thursday, April 28, 2016
Grocers drop liquor privatization Bill would help state ind
to ight gross receipts tax
debtors’ bank accounts
By PARIS ACHEN
Capital Bureau
A grocers coalition says it
plans to withdraw an initia-
tive to privatize liquor sales
in Oregon so the group can
focus resources on defeating
a corporate sales tax proposed
for the November ballot.
Oregonians for Compe-
tition, led by the Northwest
Grocery Association and
Distilled Spirits Council,
suspended Wednesday its
collection of signatures in
support of Initiative Petition
71. The measure would end
state sale and distribution
of distilled spirits and allow
grocery stores to sell the
products alongside beer and
wine.
“We know Oregonians
want to buy liquor in grocery
stores alongside beer and
wine, like consumers in most
other states,” said coalition
spokesman Pat McCormick
in an April 27 statement.
“Right now, we are shifting
our focus to defeating IP
28, the unprecedented $5
billion tax on Oregon sales
that would increase costs
for working families and
consumers.”
Initiative Petition 28
would tax certain corpora-
tions 2.5 percent on their
annual Oregon sales above
$25 million.
The Distilled Spirits
Council does not plan to
participate in the campaign
against the corporate sales
tax measure but will look
for a way to move forward
its effort to allow the sale of
distilled spirits in grocery
stores, said Eric Reller of the
Distilled Spirits Council.
McCormick said the
grocers coalition also would
continue to advocate for
allowing the sale of distilled
spirits in grocery stores in the
next 12 months.
The grocers coalition
hopes lawmakers will pass
legislation in 2016 to privatize
the sale of distilled spirits
or that there will be more
movement incrementally by
the Oregon Liquor Control
Commission toward allowing
sale of distilled spirits in
grocery stores.
Laura Illig, a chief sponsor
of the corporate sales tax
initiative, said she doesn’t
anticipate any major changes
in the campaign in the wake
of the grocers’ decision.
“Our plan is to continue
to focus on what we always
have focused on, which is
explaining the need for and
importance of what IP 28 is
going to do and why it is the
right way for the state.”
‘Doing our part to
defeat it’
Pushing for
alternatives
Oregonians Against the
Takeover, which campaigned
against liquor privatization,
celebrated the news.
“We are pleased the
national grocers have decided
to withdraw their unpopular
ballot initiative to take over
Oregon’s thriving liquor
marketplace,” said Ryan
Frank, the group’s spokesman.
“Keeping liquor local will
protect revenues that support
critical government services,
will ensure consumers are
not subjected to unreasonable
price increases and will allow
Oregon beer, wine and spirits
businesses to continue to
succeed and grow.”
McCormick declined to
discuss what kind of resources
the grocers coalition will
dedicate to defeating the
corporate sales tax measure.
“Sufice it say the
members of our coalition are
very concerned about the $5
billion tax on sales and its
implications for consumers
and increasing costs, with
no exemptions for food,
medicine and other kinds of
essentials,” McCormick said.
“It is certainly is going to
have an effect on prices and
costs so we want to make sure
we are doing our part to make
sure it is defeated.”
The grocers’ decision to
end their liquor privatiza-
tion campaign came after
members concluded there
was insuficient movement
toward a special session on
coming up with an alternative
to the corporate sales tax,
McCormick said.
State Sen. Mark Hass,
D-Beaverton, who has been
pushing for the governor and
lawmakers to negotiate an
alternative, lower corporate
sales tax bill, has said the
ballot measure could result in
a bitter ight between unions
and businesses with tens of
millions of dollars spent on
political campaigns.
Hass and some other
lawmakers have been trying
to get the Legislature to hold
a special session before the
November election, in order
to pass an alternative measure
to increase corporate taxes.
The moment of truth for that
effort will likely come in late
May, when lawmakers hold
interim committee hearings
in Salem. Legislative econ-
omists are working on an
analysis of the economic
impact of Our Oregon’s tax
measure, and lawmakers
expect the economists to
release the indings during the
May hearings.
By HILLARY BORRUD
Capital Bureau
SALEM — Two months
after Oregon lawmakers
wrapped up the 2016
legislative session, some are
already working to revive
a proposal next year that
would make it easier to track
down debtors who together
owe the state more than $3
billion.
A bill that would have
forced banks to help the
state locate the accounts of
people who are delinquent
on taxes and other debt
died in early March. Now,
state Rep. Kathleen Taylor,
D-Milwaukie, is working
with banks to bring the bill
back in 2017.
“This was something
that was supported by the
Governor’s Ofice and
Department of Justice and
credit unions, and we had
bipartisan support,” Taylor,
a chief sponsor of the 2016
bill, said. “But we’re going
to do it next session. The
positive note is the (Oregon)
Bankers Association has
agreed to work on this in the
interim.”
The bill would have
brought the state an esti-
mated $18 million from
2017 through 2021 by
increasing the state’s debt
collection rate, according
to the Legislative Revenue
Ofice. It’s a small amount
relative to the $19.5 billion
in total revenues expected
under the current two-year
budget, but lawmakers
might be looking for any
additional money they can
get in 2017.
Sen. Richard Devlin,
R-Tualatin, said in a recent
interview that in the 2017-
2019 budget, lawmakers
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REGIONAL CITIES
Forecast
FRIDAY
TODAY
Nice with clouds
and sun
Periods of sun;
breezy, cooler
69° 47°
61° 42°
SATURDAY
Sunshine and
patchy clouds
SUNDAY
Nice with sunshine
MONDAY
Partly sunny and
pleasant
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
68° 41°
74° 45°
79° 50°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
73° 49°
66° 45°
PENDLETON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
LOW
59°
66°
95° (1926)
45°
41°
29° (1935)
PRECIPITATION
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
0.03"
0.40"
1.04"
4.39"
3.02"
5.04"
HERMISTON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
Yesterday
Normals
Records
LOW
64°
68°
88° (1947)
49°
42°
28° (1970)
PRECIPITATION
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
0.00"
0.28"
0.78"
2.98"
1.78"
3.92"
SUN AND MOON
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
Last
New
Apr 29
May 6
5:47 a.m.
7:59 p.m.
12:56 a.m.
10:44 a.m.
First
Full
May 13
80° 44°
83° 50°
Seattle
66/48
ALMANAC
Yesterday
Normals
Records
73° 42°
May 21
Today
Spokane
Wenatchee
65/45
74/49
Tacoma
Moses
66/44
Lake
Pullman
Aberdeen Olympia
Yakima 73/43
62/43
58/47
65/43
74/44
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
63/45
68/49 Lewiston
76/49
Astoria
68/48
59/46
Portland
Enterprise
Hermiston
65/47
Pendleton 57/37
The Dalles 73/49
69/47
70/50
La Grande
Salem
63/40
65/45
Albany
Corvallis 64/43
66/44
John Day
62/41
Ontario
Eugene
Bend
72/44
63/43
60/31
Caldwell
Burns
70/44
64/32
Astoria
Baker City
Bend
Brookings
Burns
Enterprise
Eugene
Heppner
Hermiston
John Day
Klamath Falls
La Grande
Meacham
Medford
Newport
North Bend
Ontario
Pasco
Pendleton
Portland
Redmond
Salem
Spokane
Ukiah
Vancouver
Walla Walla
Yakima
Hi
59
63
60
62
64
57
63
66
73
62
61
63
59
68
56
59
72
75
69
65
64
65
65
60
64
68
74
Lo
46
33
31
47
32
37
43
41
49
41
31
40
39
43
45
47
44
46
47
47
32
45
45
36
45
49
44
W
s
pc
pc
s
c
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s
pc
c
c
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NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
Fri.
Hi
58
58
56
60
59
55
59
58
66
58
60
59
55
67
56
59
68
69
61
59
59
59
60
54
57
61
67
Lo
45
33
27
46
31
37
39
38
45
39
30
40
38
41
43
45
43
43
42
45
27
43
42
35
43
45
42
Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day.
W
c
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s
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s
r
s
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sh
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WORLD CITIES
Today
Beijing
Hong Kong
Jerusalem
London
Mexico City
Moscow
Paris
Rome
Seoul
Sydney
Tokyo
Hi
79
82
69
52
85
61
54
66
70
77
65
Lo
52
73
51
41
51
43
39
50
49
61
59
W
pc
pc
s
pc
pc
pc
sh
t
pc
pc
r
Fri.
Hi
84
81
73
53
85
55
55
68
69
78
67
Lo
57
74
56
38
51
39
41
50
50
65
54
W
c
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s
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pc
r
WINDS
Medford
68/43
(in mph)
Klamath Falls
61/31
Boardman
Pendleton
REGIONAL FORECAST
Coastal Oregon: Sunny to partly cloudy
today. Mostly cloudy tonight; a passing
shower across the north.
Eastern and Central Oregon: Mostly cloudy
today, except sunnier near the Cascades; a
shower in the south.
Western Washington: Sunny to partly
cloudy today.
Eastern Washington: Times of clouds and
sun today.
Cascades: Partial sunshine today. Partly
cloudy tonight, except cloudy across the
north.
Northern California: Warmer in central
parts today; mostly sunny at the coast.
Partly cloudy tonight.
Today
Friday
WSW 4-8
W 6-12
WSW 10-20
WSW 10-20
UV INDEX TODAY
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
1
4
6
6
4
Under the Oregon bill,
each quarter the Department
of Revenue would have
sent banks a list of debtors’
names and social security
numbers, and banks would
notify the state if they had
accounts that matched the
data.
Banks
could
have
charged the state reasonable
fees to cover the costs
matching accounts and
debtors, and the state could
have passed that fee along
to the debtors. The bill
would also have allowed the
Department of Revenue to
track down debtors using a
Department of Justice child
support database of newly
hired employees and issue
writs of garnishments to
banks operating in Oregon
for out-of-state accounts.
That last provision was
among the problems cited
by banks during hearings
earlier this year.
“That is not consumer
friendly,” Ken Sherman,
a lawyer for the Oregon
Bankers Association, said
during a hearing in February.
“That is a terrible precedent
for this state, which has been
very much in the forefront in
leading on consumer protec-
tion, to make.”
Taylor, the bill’s sponsor,
said banks have repeatedly
asked for more time to
prepare to expand the data
match program beyond
child support. “They have
always said, ‘Oh yeah,
we’re willing participants,’”
Taylor said.
The East Oregonian works hard to be accurate and
sincerely regrets any errors. If you notice a mistake
in the paper, please call 541-966-0818.
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— Founded Oct. 16, 1875 —
could face “potentially
up to a $1.3 billion deicit
even to fund what we
would consider continuing
services.”
Devlin is one of the
co-chairs of the budget
writing Joint Committee
on Ways and Means.
Looming costs range from
the anticipated bill for the
state’s Medicaid expansion,
to minimum wage increases
and the unfunded public
employee pension liability.
The 2016 debt collec-
tion bill was based on the
recommendations in a 2015
audit report produced by the
Secretary of State’s Ofice,
which found debt owed
to the state — everything
from delinquent taxes and
pension
over-payments,
child support and court ines
— had nearly doubled since
2008 as state agencies failed
to implement collection
strategies that worked in
other states.
“When it comes to bank
garnishments and levies, all
but one of Oregon’s largest
debtor agencies have to
guess where a debtor might
be banking,” auditors wrote
in the report. The Depart-
ment of Justice’s child
support program can match
debtors to bank accounts, a
requirement under federal
law. Meanwhile, banks have
worked with the govern-
ment to match accounts
for other types of debtors
in states such as California
and Wisconsin, according to
Oregon auditors.
1
8 a.m. 10 a.m. Noon 2 p.m. 4 p.m. 6 p.m.
0-2, Low
3-5, Moderate 6-7, High;
8-10, Very High;
11+, Extreme
The higher the AccuWeather.com UV Index™ num-
ber, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.
Forecasts and graphics provided by
AccuWeather, Inc. ©2016
-10s
-0s
showers t-storms
0s
10s
rain
20s
flurries
30s
40s
snow
ice
50s
60s
cold front
70s
80s
90s
100s
warm front stationary front
110s
high
low
National Summary: Damp weather will stretch from the northern Plains to the mid-Atlantic
with spotty heavy storms from the Ohio Valley to the Southeast today. Showers and spotty
storms will affect a large part of the West.
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 100° in McAllen, Texas
Low 10° in Laramie, Wyo.
NATIONAL CITIES
Today
Albuquerque
Atlanta
Atlantic City
Baltimore
Billings
Birmingham
Boise
Boston
Charleston, SC
Charleston, WV
Chicago
Cleveland
Dallas
Denver
Detroit
El Paso
Fairbanks
Fargo
Honolulu
Houston
Indianapolis
Jacksonville
Kansas City
Las Vegas
Little Rock
Los Angeles
Hi
70
81
56
58
44
84
69
53
87
79
49
56
85
49
49
83
61
56
84
85
72
89
65
69
84
70
Lo
41
63
47
46
33
60
44
42
66
56
39
42
68
34
40
56
34
34
73
72
47
66
46
57
60
55
W
pc
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r
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c
pc
pc
s
t
t
r
c
pc
sh
r
s
s
c
sh
pc
t
t
s
sh
pc
pc
Fri.
Hi
62
87
53
57
53
87
67
49
90
74
54
51
79
40
59
75
62
61
84
83
65
89
62
80
73
72
Lo
43
65
45
43
37
66
43
40
63
50
41
40
67
31
40
53
36
39
73
70
48
64
54
60
65
56
Today
W
s
s
sh
sh
c
s
pc
pc
s
pc
pc
c
t
sn
pc
s
pc
c
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t
pc
s
c
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r
s
Louisville
Memphis
Miami
Milwaukee
Minneapolis
Nashville
New Orleans
New York City
Oklahoma City
Omaha
Philadelphia
Phoenix
Portland, ME
Providence
Raleigh
Rapid City
Reno
Sacramento
St. Louis
Salt Lake City
San Diego
San Francisco
Seattle
Tucson
Washington, DC
Wichita
Hi
80
85
87
44
49
85
84
59
76
57
60
76
53
58
83
40
63
79
73
60
66
67
66
77
61
71
Lo
57
62
74
37
39
57
74
46
59
41
47
59
31
40
62
29
40
50
52
44
59
52
48
51
52
52
W
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pc
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pc
s
c
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c
c
pc
s
c
c
s
s
pc
r
s
Fri.
Hi
76
79
89
50
60
82
87
55
73
59
57
82
49
57
83
42
70
81
71
61
71
66
59
77
60
66
Lo
58
67
73
40
46
62
74
45
52
47
46
63
31
39
57
32
41
54
57
47
59
53
46
54
48
51
Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain,
sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.
W
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c
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