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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 31, 2020)
CHRISTOPHER RUSH Publisher KATHRYN B. BROWN Owner ANDREW CUTLER Editor WYATT HAUPT JR. News Editor JADE McDOWELL Hermiston Editor FRIDAY, JANUARY 31, 2020 A4 Founded October 16, 1875 OUR VIEW Exempt ag from corporate activity tax S ince it was passed by the Ore- gon Legislature last year as part of its education reform package, we’ve been hearing pro- ducers and vendors express concerns over the state’s corporate activity tax. The tax requires businesses that generate more than $1 million annu- ally to pay, in addition to their regu- lar income tax, a 0.57% tax on that “excess” revenue. It is expected to raise $2.8 billion over the 2021-23 biennium for schools. It is a gross receipts tax. The plan is similar to the ill-fated Measure 97, an initiative petition voted down in 2016 that would have imposed on “C” corporations an additional 2.5% tax on gross receipts from sales in Oregon exceeding $25 million. It would have raised $3 bil- lion per two-year budget cycle. While the corporate activity tax is only slightly less ambitious than Measure 97 in terms of the revenue it seeks to raise, it sweeps far more businesses into its net. C and S cor- porations, partnerships, sole propri- Capital Press file photo A new state tax in Oregon will hit farmers particularly hard. etorships and other entities are sub- ject to the tax. And any business that gener- ates $750,000 in revenue must reg- ister with the Oregon Department of Revenue. Advocates like the gross receipts tax because they claim businesses use recognized deductions to avoid corporate income taxes. The biggest problem with a gross receipts tax is that it must be paid regardless of whether the business in question makes a profit. High-vol- ume, low-margin businesses, such as farming, can be on the hook for a big tax bill without making a dime. The impact of the tax is cumula- tive, with each vendor in a supply chain adding to its price to help cover the cost. The end user of a prod- uct — a farmer with a piece of farm machinery — pays the full load with- out necessarily being able to pass that expense along to whoever buys the crop. The Legislature exempted out-of- state sales. In theory that should work in favor of Oregon agriculture, which sends as much as 80% of its product out of the state. But in reality, agri- cultural exports are often commin- gled — such as grain or berries that are sold to the same processor or wholesaler. That makes it difficult to certify what is actually exempt from the tax at the farm level. The Oregon Farm Bureau is lobby- ing to get the Legislature to exempt agriculture from the tax. That would clear up the confusion and would also create an even playing field between producers who often don’t have a say on where their products are sold. We wish it luck, for once the state latches onto a tax dollar it is loath to let it go. OTHER VIEWS Want to fix the presidential primaries? Revive the fairness and equal time doctrines I YOUR VIEWS Cap and trade needs further explanation This is a response to recent spate of arti- cles in the East Oregonian attempting to show Oregon’s cap-and-trade bill in a bad light, which highlight consideration of major legislation in a short session, complexity of the bill with implications of huge impacts (giving a sense that all are negative) to Ore- gonians, uncertainties of potential revenue distribution, possibility of a wrong decision. And you add that voters deserve better. It has been my experience that major pieces of legislation are brought forward in response to serious issues that demand effec- tive and urgent action. (We have used fossil fuels for many years; why the problem now, and how bad could it be?) I could not agree more with your sentiment that voters deserve better; I feel the voters in Northeast Oregon deserve to have these issues explained and discussed in a public forum so that we may be fully informed and able to provide effec- tive input to our elected officials. This cap-and-trade bill has been in devel- opment for over a decade, with many tal- ented legislators and stakeholders giving it their best efforts. No one expects a per- fect bill and science tells us it is urgent and important to show a willingness to confront the issues associated with climate change and potential impacts. Unintended con- sequences and inequalities resulting from implementation of this bill can be corrected as needed. In light of our common interest to have informed voters, I would ask that your paper join with me in requesting that Sen. Bill Hansell arrange a few public meetings around his district specifically to inform vot- ers on this important piece of legislation. Charles LeBold Union CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES U.S. SENATORS REPRESENTATIVES Ron Wyden 221 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 202-224-5244 La Grande office: 541-962-7691 Greg Barreto, District 58 900 Court St. NE, H-38 Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1458 Rep.GregBarreto@state.or.us Jeff Merkley 313 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 202-224-3753 Pendleton office: 541-278-1129 Greg Smith, District 57 900 Court St. NE, H-482 Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1457 Rep.GregSmith@state.or.us U.S. REPRESENTATIVE SENATOR Greg Walden 185 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 202-225-6730 La Grande office: 541-624-2400 Bill Hansell, District 29 900 Court St. NE, S-423 Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1729 Sen.BillHansell@state.or.us Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the East Oregonian editorial board. Other columns, letters and cartoons on this page express the opinions of the authors and not necessarily that of the East Oregonian. will spare you the full joke, but the ald. Keep going. … It may not be good for America, but it’s damn good for CBS.” punch line is, “If you can’t govern, you CBS and other networks saw how had better entertain!” Trump grabbed us. And, unrestrained, There are many important reforms they gave us more. to our presidential selection process that In the face of this network entertain- should be adopted — curbing the cor- rupting influence of money, ending the ment imperative now run amok, both par- ties have morphed into spineless, acqui- Electoral College, making voting a con- escent blobs. Their primary rules reward stitutional right. But none are so urgently needed as a restoration of the doctrines of entertainment at the expense of serious- ness. As The Washington Post‘s equal time and fairness to media Matt Bai recently observed, “the coverage of our electoral contests. (Democratic) party’s criteria for There was a time not long ago allowing candidates to debate when fairness and equal time in are boneheaded and not terribly the coverage of candidates and democratic (small ‘d’) in spirit. the conduct of candidate debates If you’re going to choose your was the law of the land. These field based on polling and fund- time-honored doctrines have been raising data, turning presiden- abandoned over the past 15 years, M artin tial politics into a fantasy football and the slide of democracy into O’M alley league, then you should create a the media-entertainment abyss has COMMENT third metric to recognize service been fast and furious. in statewide or federal office. … Most Americans who do know Especially when you hold yourself out as about the doctrines focus on how their the party that values public service.” end paved the way for the rise of conser- vative media — particularly talk radio. Yes, Democrats should, but the parties But less acknowledged is the effect of the are no longer running the show. doctrines’ demise on the nomination con- By setting entertainment value above tests of our political parties. As a result, the ability to build consensus, we are set- ting up our republic for leadership failure. the media’s entertainment imperative has Leaders who alienate as many people as displaced the parties’ consensus-building they excite on the campaign trail will not imperative — in both primary and general be able to hold a governing consensus. In elections. fact, good governors and mayors — by Under this imperative, candidates gain which I mean those with track records of traction and greater media attention by important accomplishments in difficult alienating as many people as they enter- tain. (And if they are really good at divid- times — would not have been successful ing people, the Russians come into our in office if they repelled as many people as they energized. game and help from afar through social Ultimately, of course, we — we the vot- media troll farms.) ers, we the viewers, we the people — are Consider the confession of Les doing it to ourselves. The great danger to Moonves, the former head of CBS. In our democracy today is that we’d rather early 2016, he was asked about the net- work’s inordinate coverage of Donald be well-entertained than well-governed. We’d rather emote than think. We’d rather Trump during the primaries — a del- uge that would continue through Election be lied to than led. But there is a big dif- ference between public entertainment and Day. Recall the uninterrupted start-to-fin- ish coverage of his rallies; recall the dis- public discourse. Restore the doctrines of proportionate speaking time he received fairness and equal time — only then will in debates. Under the old rules, no net- we have a fighting chance to restore the work would have gotten away with giv- integrity of our democracy. ing so much attention to one candidate. ——— Martin O’Malley was governor of But, as Moonves gushed, “I’ve never seen Maryland from 2007 to 2015 and a candi- anything like this, and this is going to be date for the Democratic presidential nom- a very good year for us. Sorry. It’s a ter- rible thing to say. But, bring it on, Don- ination in 2016. The East Oregonian welcomes original letters of 400 words or less on public issues and public policies for publication in the newspaper and on our website. The newspaper reserves the right to withhold letters that address concerns about individual services and products or letters that infringe on the rights of private citizens. Letters must be signed by the author and include the city of residence and a daytime phone number. The phone number will not be published. Unsigned letters will not be published. Send letters to the editor to editor@eastoregonian.com, or via mail to Andrew Cutler, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801
