Is Measure 91 good for Oregonians? No! While many people agree with the principle of Measure 91, which would stop Oregonians from paying taxes on the money that is paid as federal tax, the financial impact of the measure and the uncertainty of it’s intended effects could make this measure financial devastating to the people it intends to help. In order to be able to make an informed decisions on the measure, it is important that we, first, discover what the measure proposes to do, second, determine who the measure will benefit, and finally, what effect the measure will have on the lives of Oregonians. So what does this measure propose to do? Under the current law, personal income tax payers may deduct up to $3,000 paid in federal income taxes from their state tax liability and corporations paying Oregon income tax get no deduction. However, if this measure were to pass, it would allow for full deduction of all federal income taxes paid by both individuals and corporations towards their Oregon income tax returns. Who benefits from this measure? According to research done by the Oregonian, a family who makes $46,000 would actually end up paying $159 more money in taxes. However, a family that makes $100,000 would see a savings of $849 and a family making $250,000 would save over $4,700. So in effect, this measure will only help the rich, but also hurt the poor and middle class by actually making them pay more taxes. Now that we know what the measure would do if passed, what affects would it actually have on Oregonians? According to the Oregon Legislative Fiscal Office , Measure 91, if passed would cut nearly $1 billion, or 25 percent, out of Oregon’s 1999-2001 biennium budget and more than $1.66 billion, or 15 percent, from the 2001-2003 general fund. So, where does this money come from? $32.4 million from community colleges and $56.7 million from Oregon’s Universities, which will cause tuition increases of 50-100%, la...
