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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (April 1, 2020)
STATE MyEagleNews.com Wednesday, April 1, 2020 A7 Tax filing deadline extended to July 15 By Dick Hughes For the Oregon Capital Bureau Oregonians now have until July 15 to file and pay their 2019 state personal or business income taxes. But any quarterly payments for 2020 still will be due April 15. The IRS previously extended its deadline to July 15 for filing personal and corporate federal tax returns, paying those taxes, contributing to an IRA for 2019 and making the first quarterly estimated tax pay- ment for 2020. However, for those who make quar- terly payments, the “sec- ond” payment for 2020 still is due on June 15. Oregon is not going quite as far. The changes announced Wednesday afternoon by the Oregon Department of Revenue include: • Oregon personal income tax returns and pay- ments for 2019 are now due July 15. • For corporate income and excise taxpayers, the deadline for filing returns and payments is extended from May 15 to July 15. Returns due after May 15 do not have extended deadlines. • The extensions are automatic. Taxpayers do not need to apply for them. • Any interest and pen- alties under the extended Oregon tax filings and pay- ments will start accruing on July 16. • Deadlines for other taxes are not extended. Business groups and some legislators have called for a delay in the new corporate activity tax. In its announcement, the department said the extensions were because “the governor’s state-de- clared emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the action of the IRS will impair the ability of Ore- gon taxpayers to take cer- tain actions within the time prescribed by law.” “The governor’s clearly stated goal is for Oregon families to stay home, save lives,” said department Director Nia Ray, echoing Gov. Kate Brown’s tagline for social distancing. “After consultation with the state treasurer and state budget officials, the Department of Revenue will extend per- sonal and corporate income tax deadlines during this challenging period.” The tax payment exten- sion could create up to a $1.5 billion cash-flow problem for the state bud- get, said Rep. Paul Holvey, D-Eugene, co-chair of the Legislature’s Joint Special Committee on Coronavirus Response. “That’s a huge cash-flow problem, which probably takes many of the items we want to help with off the table, I’m afraid,” he said during the committee meet- ing Tuesday. His comments drew a strong response from Sen. Tim Knopp, R-Bend. “Cash flow problems, really? The government just shut down about 90 percent of our businesses in the state of Oregon, who now have massive cash-flow prob- lems. And the whole reason to delay the filing and pay- ment is for them to be able to catch up,” Knopp said. “So for the government to, at this point, claim pov- erty or to claim cash-flow problems after what they’ve done to business, quite frankly just seems incredi- bly hypocritical.” Knopp said the deadline should be delayed so busi- nesses could recover and have sufficient cash-flow to pay their taxes. Rep. Greg Barreto, R-Cove, agreed and added, “I can tell you right now businesses across the state are laying off.” The committee also dis- cussed whether to delay implementation of the new corporate activity tax as part of proposals to help businesses and individuals. Rep. Janelle Bynum, D-Happy Valley, urged the state government to stay disciplined: “That means we find out who’s in trou- ble and who’s not. I don’t want people who are doing just fine to hide behind those of us who really are struggling.” Bynum, who co-owns several fast food restaurants in the Portland area, added that she probably wouldn’t have the cash to pay all her taxes. “I’m one of those busi- nesses that looks like it has a lot of money,” she said, “but it goes out faster than I can keep it. But I’d rather be upfront about what is hap- pening in my business, so that whatever help I need, I know what to ask for.” Separately on Wednes- day, the state Department of Consumer and Busi- ness Services issued a tem- porary emergency order requiring insurance com- panies to extend grace peri- ods for premium payments, postpone policy cancella- tions and non-renewals and extend deadlines for report- ing claims. “Many of our insurers have already stepped up and done the right thing,” Insurance Commissioner Andrew Stolfi said Wednes- day. “This order will ensure every Oregonian who needs it has relief from these insurance policy terms, giv- ing them a measure of secu- rity and stability.” More cases, self-serve gas, federal money and more: A roundup of coronavirus developments in Oregon By Dick Hughes For the Oregon Capital Bureau Oregon has experienced 690 confirmed cases of COVID-19 since January, as of Tuesday morning. The 84 new cases announced by the Oregon Health Authority were led by 18 each in Marion and Washington counties. Washington County has had the most cases, 168, followed by Marion with 123. Eighteen Oregonians have died from the disease, all over the age of 60. The state reported on Sunday that 140 patients had been hospitalized for COVID-19, but 291 adult ICU beds were available, as were 67 pediatric ICU beds. In a video posted Satur- day, Gov. Kate Brown said the latest modeling shows that Oregon is unlikely to run out of available hospi- tal beds if people practice social distancing. Passenger traffic at Port- land International Airport is down 90%, and ridership on TriMet is down about 80%. “These are the kind of metrics that indicate we are reducing the transmission of the virus,” Brown said. Here’s a round-up of other coronavirus news: • Self-serve gas: Oregon Fire Marshal Jim Walker temporarily suspended the state’s ban on self-serve gas. His office produced a handy flier for service sta- tions to post for customers who don’t know how to fuel their vehicles. Service stations nei- ther are required to offer self-serve nor, under some circumstances, are they required to have any atten- dant present. For years, Oregon and New Jersey have been the only states disallowing self-service, but Oregon gradually has been easing restrictions, especially in rural areas. Oregon politicians had differing reactions to the news. Oregon Capital Bureau/Jake Thomas Gov. Kate Brown details steps Oregon is taking to limit the spread of COVID-19 at a press conference in Portland on March 12. “Personally, I think the best solution is to have the customer run their own card and let the attendant pump the gas, thereby limiting the number of different people touching the pump,” Sen. Michael Dembrow, D-Port- land, wrote in his daily con- stituent update. “This is preposterous. Gas pump handles could become breeding grounds for virus,” tweeted Sen. Mark Hass, D-Beaverton. Consumer Reports offers these tips on self-protection while pumping gas: Con- sider carrying disposable nitrile or latex gloves to use when gripping the pump handle. Or use paper tow- els to grip the handle and to touch the keypads. When done, invert the gloves and throw them away, along with any paper towels, etc., that you’ve used. Use hand sanitizer before getting back into the vehicle. “Cleaning your hands after you’re done seems like the quickest, easiest precaution. But some driv- ers might want to have dis- infectant wipes handy for wiping down the gas pump handle and the payment keypad before pumping,” Consumer Reports said. • “Stay Home, Stay Alive”: The governor’s social distancing campaign launched Saturday with the Portland-based ad agency Wieden+Kennedy produc- ing the ads for free. They include slogans such as “Don’t acciden- tally kill someone,” “Keep Portland alive” (instead of “weird”) and “Essential workers, as you stay out- side for us, we will stay at home for you. Thank you.” • Online charter schools: Colt Gill, director of the Oregon Education Depart- ment, clarified that online education may continue. Virtual public char- ter schools were included in the school closure that Brown ordered through April 28. However, the Edu- cation Department also said schools that offered online education, or were capa- ble of doing so, could keep operating if there was no in-person contact. All Oregon schools have been ordered to provide “supplemental” education — informal or review mate- rials for students — whereas the closed schools in Wash- ington state have been told to resume teaching students, although not in person. For Oregon online char- ter schools, it pretty much can be business as usual, Gill said. But they may not enroll new students until Brown reopens schools. • Trump signs aid: Ore- gon Rep. Greg Walden joined President Donald Trump at the White House signing ceremony for the $2 trillion coronavirus relief package that Congress passed last week. “I was proud to help write and pass the rescue package and to stand next to the President when he signed it into law,” Walden wrote in a newsletter. “This package is not the first response to the COVID-19 pandemic, nor will it be the last.” • Getting to Capitol Hill: Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio flew back to Washington, D.C., on Thursday night to vote for passage of the coronavirus response on Friday. He said his Alaska Airlines flight had four pas- sengers with four or five flight attendants. • Special session: Sen. Dembrow said it was too early to tell when Gov. Brown might convene a special legislative session. State government will receive a hefty amount of money from the congres- sional aid package. “Until we have a better understanding of the gaps in the federal legislation, we won’t know exactly what is needed in a special session,” Dembrow wrote in a constituent update. “The Governor is com- mitted to calling us into session only when (a) we know exactly what finan- cial assistance is needed from the state and (b) it is clear that any actions taken are supported by both the Democratic and Republi- can caucuses. “Another reason for her reluctance to call us into session is that our state budget outlook is not yet clear.” Some legislators have said a special session might not be necessary. In a disaster, Brown has wide- spread authority to move money around in the state budget and to take certain other actions without legis- lative approval. Grant SWCD Weed Control Dept. Working for You in 2020 www.nsvrc.org/saam #SAAM #IAsk © 2020 National Sexual Violence Resource Center. All rights reserved. S177194-1 Thanks to the Grant County Court and Northeast Oregon Forests Resource Advisory Committee, Grant Weed Control is able to offer a 25% Cost share program for Noxious Weed Control on Private Grazing Lands, through a Title II funded Grant Project. This program will provide a maximum $5,000 of noxious weed control services with a $1,250 maximum landowner contribution to qualifying participants. To be eligible for participation, the treatment property must not be actively irrigated and must be primarily managed for livestock grazing, minimum of 20 acres in size, located within Grant County, and must contain priority noxious weed species. Applications for this limited weed control assistance opportunity will be ranked and funded according to a priority noxious weed list. Contact the Grant Soil and Water Conservation District Office at (541) 575-1554 or visit 721 S. Canyon Blvd., John Day, OR 97845 for applications and additional information. This application deadline for this program is April 10th, 2020. Heart of Grant County, 541-620-1342 • Grant County Victim Assistance Program, 541-575-4026. This project was supported by Grant No. 2015-WR-AX-0008 awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this publication/ program/exhibition are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women. Designed by the Blue Mountain Eagle. Remember: sex without consent = sexual assault S181103-1
