Oregon Republicans make last-minute push for tax-free stimulus
(The Center Square) – Oregon Republicans are making one last Hail Mary pass at reimbursing Oregonians for the taxes paid on their federal stimulus checks.
Oregon is one of six states in the nation taxing federal stimulus money due to its laws on federal tax deductions. For families of four, that may mean losing out on $298.
Introduced on Monday, House Bill 3411 would create a refundable income tax credit for Oregonians to claim on their 2021 tax returns. It would take effect 91 days after the end of the 2021 session.
As of Monday, HB 3411 had 12 sponsors in the House, who include House Minority Leader Christine Drazan, R-Canby. The House Democratic Caucus hasn’t signaled whether they would support the bill in the last week of the session.
The bill marks Oregon Republicans’ latest effort this session to put more money into taxpayers’ pockets at the government’s expense. Previous efforts include a similar proposal from Sen. Dick Anderson, R-Lincoln City in February when the state’s budget woes were more pronounced. Since then, Oregon claimed a $2.6 billion slice of the $1.9 trillion aid package passed by Congress last March.
With the state’s balance sheets back in the black, state lawmakers have feuded over how to pay it forward to Oregonians. Republicans say taxpayers themselves are the best judges of where their money should go. Democrats have argued the extra money would help more taxpayers in top-tier brackets than need be. More money is better spent on government programs, they say, to help lower-income Oregonians who took bigger hits from the pandemic.
Oregon unions have called on the state to shell out more stimulus as a thank you to the essential workers who risked infection while working in grocery stores and other close-quarters workplaces.
On Monday, House Speaker Tina Kotek, D-Portland, shot down that idea, at least for the 2021 session. Instead, she promised state lawmakers would revisit the issue next session or when Oregon is likely to have fully reopened for business.
“Essential workers have been risking their lives every day during the pandemic. We must continue to put working families first as we recover from this public health and economic crisis in the short term — and as we rebuild our economy in the long-term,” Kotek said in a statement. “That’s why my top priority for the remainder of Oregon’s share of federal American Rescue Plan dollars will be additional support for frontline workers in 2022.”
Oregon Democrats have decided to go big on school spending this session with a record $9.3 billion education budget. That proposal, which drained $200 million out of the state’s billion-dollar cash reserves, was vetoed by Gov. Kate Brown, saying the state’s savings should be off-limits.
For now, HB 3411 remains on the House Speaker’s desk, waiting for a referral to committee.
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