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HAZE Temp: 54 °F Wind: W at 4 mph Friday, January 31, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend January 5, 2003 Raymond Dishaw of Central Point opposes the temporary income tax hike on the Jan. 28 ballot, saying government spends money frivolously. Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli To opponents, 28’s just another excuse to spend By JOHN DARLING for the Mail Tribune Opponents of Measure 28 point to government waste, the poor economy and the fact that average people just don’t have the money now for more taxes. Legislators who referred the measure to voters "keep saying we have a taxing problem," said Jim McCormick of Medford. "We don’t. They have a spending problem. "I’m better off than most people and don’t particularly feel the burden of taxes, but the problem with taxes is they keep dreaming up new ways to tax," added McCormick, who is retired. "They always want to hire new teachers, when a high percentage of educators don’t teach but just go to meetings. People are tired of it. The quality of schools won’t be affected if Measure 28 fails." McCormick is not alone in his opposition to the temporary tax increase. A fall poll by Portland pollster Tim Hibbitts showed just 37 percent of Oregonians favored the measure. Oregon’s taxes are low compared to those of other states, according to a summary by the state Legislative Fiscal Office, but Oregonians pay a higher percent of income in taxes than most. The summary says Oregon taxpayers spend 10 percent of their income for property, income and other taxes, making Oregon 45th of 50 states in tax burden. The national average is 11.1 percent. Oregonians pay 4.4 percent of income for income taxes against a national average of 2.6 percent, making the state No. 2 in income tax levels. Oregon, the summary said, is characterized by high income tax, average property tax and low consumption tax, making a generally low tax burden, with high non-tax or fee revenues. Measure 28 opponents were not impressed. "Statistics don’t lie, but liars use statistics, so I don’t believe it," said Raymond Dishaw, a Central Point retiree. "The government is not spending the money right. How come school districts keep blowing money on things like travel for sports teams? I notice Mae Richardson (elementary school) just put in some real pretty new parking spaces. They spend on frivolous things." Waste of state money is seen in "stupid ideas" like the proposal to help Portland with bonding for a baseball team and the Seven Corners (formerly Big Y) intersection — "the biggest boondoggle I ever saw, and it’s congested worse than ever," Dishaw said. Julia Fletcher of Medford will vote against Measure 28 "because people are out of work and just don’t have the money," she said. "Schools want you to give money, but when we don’t, they suddenly find it like it was lost," she added. "They get money from the lottery, the state and from property taxes and there are hundreds more houses being built (for property tax revenue) but they never seem to have enough money. ... Who do we (taxpayers) have to go to for more money? We have to do with what we have." Hartley Anderson of Medford agreed. "They should have put some aside during the bonanza of the ’90s," he said. "Empire building is human nature, and it’s my experience that government agencies and workers are almost socialistic, with a terrible work ethic yet a guaranteed income. We need to force them to trim back." Sen. Jason Atkinson, R-Jacksonville, is among a group of legislators who oppose Measure 28 and argued in the Voters’ Pamphlet that the state "should not ask for more taxes until Oregonians are back to work and waste and low priority programs are eliminated. Increasing taxes maintains non-essential government spending and stops true reform." In a solo argument in the Voters’ Pamphlet, Atkinson quoted the Republican Party platform: "We support the reduction of all taxes to a level needed only to maintain minimum government that can protect life, liberty, and property." Republican Gordon Anderson, newly elected state representative from Grants Pass, said he opposes Measure 28 because his constituents have voted down virtually every money measure, including the city’s public safety increase. "This indicates that people are tired of paying more taxes every year and they want smaller government," he said. "We’re going to be taking out things not mandated for the state to do and balance the budget with cuts in the rest." John Darling is a free-lance writer living in Ashland. E-mail him at [email protected]. Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy webmaster feedback A D V E R T I S E R S