A companion bill, HB-1553, has already failed in the House, noted co-sponsor Representative Jim Moeller (D-Vancouver). However, he said, even if the Senate version of the bill fails, it’s not a total wasted effort.
“Any time you introduce a bill you start to educate legislators who are probably unfamiliar with your district or the area or the financial situation, so there’s a benefit there,” Moeller explained.
According to Moeller, the bill is a tough sell for a couple of reasons:
Due to the current budget situation, the state isn’t looking to take on any additional costs by giving up revenue.
The bill essentially redefines Clark County as a rural county, which legislators in other parts of the state aren’t buying.
Looking ahead, Moller said a possible solution might be to find a different mechanism to fund economic development – one that doesn’t redefine Clark County as rural and includes more than one county as a beneficiary because “you want to have allies when you go through this process.”
“We just need to get rid of the entire tax exemption for Oregonians,” said Moeller, chuckling. “That would bring in $68 million. This bill would cost us $8 million.”
Editor’s note: We will update this story following today’s review of SB-5325 by the Senate Ways and Means Committee.
{jathumbnail off}
