A service of the Taxpayer Association of Oregon Foundation.
By Oregon Tax News The watchdog taxpayer group, Taxpayers for Common Sense (TCS), has included the Columbia River Crossing Bridge in its list of what it terms “common sense cuts to avoid the fiscal cliff.” The cuts total $2.0 trillion, which is more than enough to avoid sequestration, the across-the-board budget cuts mandated by law…
By Oregon Tax News California, once an epicenter of population growth and economic opportunity, is losing more residents to other states than it is taking in, according to a new study by the Manhattan Institute. Released in September 2012, “The Great California Exodus: A Closer Look” reports that California has lost 3.4 million residents since…
By Oregon Tax News In an effort to generate more money, cash-strapped states are turning to two controversial solutions—an Internet retail sales tax and legalizing online gambling. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that an Internet sales tax, referred to as the Amazon tax, could generate $23 billion for states. Historically, online retailers like Amazon…
The Taxpayer Foundation is recognizing five outstanding students for their essays on their Oregon education experience and opinions. The diversity of opinions range from authors in the 5th grade to recent college graduates covering a wide breadth of topics from the personal to policy suggestions. Oregon is honored to have these young and talented voices in…
By Oregon Tax News, Tim Geithner, U.S. Treasury Secretary, visited Portland in April and held a private meeting with about a dozen CEOs of major corporations. The Portland Business Journal wanted to know what was discussed behind the closed doors. Only one of those CEOs, Benchmade Knife Company’s Les de Asis, spoke to the media…
By Oregon Tax News The Portland City Council approved a new two percent hotel tax intended to help promote Portland tourism. The assessment applies to hotels with more than 50 rooms and takes effect on Oct. 1, 2012. Called the Portland Tourism Improvement District, the program will raise an estimated $6.6 million annually for tourism…
By Oregon Tax News, Identity thieves are using deceased people’s SSN and use it to claim him as a dependent. Then have the IRS send the ridiculously inflated refund to your prepaid debit card. Thieves spend the refund, and pull the same trick next year. The scam works when the victim died fairly recently. If…
A defining year for Clackamas Coutny Transportation By Oregon Tax News, Thsi fall, Clackamas County residents may have the opportunity to vote on a ballot measure that would require voter approval for Clackamas County’s participation in the Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail project (PMLR). Specifically, ballot measure 3-401 requires county officials to get voter approval before spending…
Natural Resource Legislative Review 2012 This report aims to look at Legislative impact of the 2012 Session on natural resource issues which is increasingly important as several issues relate to public and livestsock safety from wildlife harm and also the effectiveness of Oregon’s various agencies that currently spends over $800 million to manage its natural…
By Oregon Tax News There are huge trends and shifts in the media and it impacts how people consume their news. 1. Big U.S. media companies bought back record amounts of their own shares in the last year. Cable television networks drew strong viewership and advertising dollars, generating cash despite economic uncertainty. News Corp, Time…