The pros and cons of Oregon ballot Measure 97 were debated Friday at the City Club of Eugene. With a $1.4 billion projected shortfall, both sides agree the state needs more money but not about how to raise it.
Measure 97 would require certain corporations which do more than $25 million of business in Oregon to pay a 2.5 % tax on their in-state sales. Advocates say it would raise $6 billion in two years to fund education, health care and senior services. Chuck Sheketoff with the Oregon Center for Public Policy spoke in favor:
We can buy back the cuts to education. We can get rid of the large class sizes. We can lengthen our school year. We can have more offerings.
Paul Nicholson, who owns 2 Eugene bike shops, argued against Measure 97, saying the costs will be passed on to citizens.
“I think there are going to be a lot of unintended consequences.”
Nicholson says the measure is badly written and there’s no guarantee the money will go to education, health care and senior services. You can hear the whole City Club debate Monday night at 6:30 on KLCC.
