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Measures would sap services Mail Tribune/ Bob Pennell Measures 8 and 91 would cause 20 to 25 percent in state funding for higher education, Oregon university presidents report during a press conference Thursday. From left are Dave Frohnmayer, University of Oregon; Phil Creighton, Eastern Oregon University; and Joe Cox, chancellor and former president of Southern Oregon University. Communities face tough tax issues By Jessica Smith The school board in Ashland doesn�t want to make staff cuts. The city of Jacksonville wants to keep visitors informed. And Medford officials want to make good on their promise to fix up city streets. Leaders in each community say it�s for these and other reasons they oppose three tax-and-spending measures on the Nov. 7 mail ballot. "Police protection is a service. Fire protection is a service. Educating our children is something we need to do. We need to have a transportation system that is safe and accessible," said Medford Mayor Lindsay Berryman, ticking off a list of public services that she says are threatened in the November election. "All of these things take money and those dollars are provided through state and local governments," Berryman added. "These measures are stripping governments of their ability to provide these services." Authors of the initiatives, however, balk at the notion they want to dismantle government. "Our opponents are focusing on how �the sky will fall� " if these measures are approved, said Becky Miller, a chief petitioner for measures 91 and 93 with Oregon Taxpayers United chief Bill Sizemore. "It won�t fall. Not at all." Measure 93 would require voters to OK all new, and some already-approved, fees and taxes. Measure 91 would amend the constitution to remove the cap on federal taxes that can be deducted from Oregon returns. And Measure 8, from property tax limitation champion Don McIntire, author of 1990�s Measure 5, would limit state spending to no more than 15 percent of the total personal income of Oregonians. Although state and local officials worry about the cumulative effects of the measures, Miller and McIntire say the initiatives won�t mean an end to public services. "(Measure 8) will bring about a system in Oregon where the Legislature will then budget on the people�s ability to pay and not just the government�s ability to spend," McIntire said. If approved, Measure 8 would require the state to reduce appropriations in the 2001-03 budget by about $5.7 billion. Contrary to claims by opponents, passage of Measure 8 doesn�t mean "budget cuts," McIntire said. The measure instead seeks to prevent the state budget from growing faster than the gross income of the people who foot the government�s bills, he said. Measure 91 also is intended to slow budget growth, said Miller. According to her, the state budget would take an immediate hit in 2001 by requiring an estimated $870 million cut. But the measure�s effect on following budgets would be negligible. "It�s pretty much a wash," Miller said. "Government won�t be smaller than it is right now." Still, officials throughout Jackson County say they fear legislators might sacrifice aid to local governments to spare state programs if measures 8 and 91 are passed. Combined, the measures would require the state to trim about $6.5 billion from the 2001-03 budget. "It seems fairly likely that counties, in effect an arm of the state government, would be affected by an expenditure limitation," said Dave Kanner, deputy county administrator. About 40 percent of the county operating budget is funded by the state, Kanner said. Programs like the Community Corrections Restitution Center, which costs about $900,000 a year to run, could be threatened if the state pulls funding, he added. Cities, too, get state funds to bolster local revenues. This year that means about $975,000 coming into Medford, said finance director Jef Faw. While no specific programs are at risk, Faw said a reduction in state support would mean "something would have to go." Perhaps the most unsettling proposition on the November ballot for local governments and schools, however, is Measure 93, which would require public votes on fee and tax increases adopted after Nov. 7. "That�s the dumbest one of all," said Jim Lewis, mayor of Jacksonville. "It�s the double-majority on steroids." Measure 93, which would also put to vote certain fees initiated after Dec. 6, 1998, has unknown financial impacts on local governments. In Jacksonville, city leaders approved a 15 percent increase to its lodging tax to augment its tourism budget. Keeping Measure 93 in mind, however, officials decided to delay implementation until Jan. 1. "We carefully avoided putting ourselves in that box," Lewis said. The city didn�t want to collect fees and then be forced to reimburse payments as Measure 93 would require. That�s just what leaders in Ashland and Medford would be required to do. This July, Ashland voters renewed a three-year levy that sponsors youth activities in Ashland schools and parks. This year, the city expects to collect about $1.7 million. Combined with possible reductions in state aid � the state could face budget cuts up to 20 percent � the measure would have "catastrophic" effects on the Ashland district, said board chairwoman Terry Littleton. "Since Measure 5, the district has faced cuts in custodial and library services, music and athletics," she said. "You can only trim so much without having to look at personnel and other big-budget items." If Measure 93 passes, leaders in Medford likely would have to decide whether to continue collecting recently increased business license and system development fees in the hope that voters would approve the rates in a November 2002 election. By December, the city expects to collect about $575,500 more in fees, according to figures prepared by Medford number-crunchers. Additional fee increases are planned in January. Should the city stop collecting the money, or be forced to make reimbursements, officials say they would be unable to keep up with infrastructure needs. A list of major road improvements � including the planned overhaul of the south freeway interchange on Barnett Road � depend on fee increases, according to public works director Cory Crebbin. Measure 93 also would jeopardize the city�s ability to fund the city�s parks master plan, which includes a 124-acre sports park, officials say. Voters next month will be asked to increase the lodging tax, which would give Medford parks about $275,000 in 2001. The bed tax, however, would be invalid if not approved by the same percentage of voters who approve Measure 93, said finance director Faw. Measure 93 backers say government officials are thinking about what�s best for government, not taxpayers, when they argue against the measure. "They�re looking at it from the government perspective," supporter Miller said, "which is �we want to do all these things that we think are good for you.� " Effect on services, education detailed By Tony Boom ASHLAND � Universities and other state services would suffer funding cuts of 20 to 25 percent if both Measures 8 and 91 pass, university presidents reported Thursday at a press conference held by the Committee for Our Oregon. The presidents, who gathered at a restaurant across from Southern Oregon University, were in town for a State Board of Higher Education meeting and the opening of SOU�s new Center for the Visual Arts. Former SOU President Joseph Cox, now chancellor of the Oregon University System, predicted the impact from the two measures would be double that of Measure 5, a tax reduction measure of the early 1990s. Measure 5�s reductions amounted to 10 and 11 percent, he said. Tuition increased 35 percent in the first year of Measure 5 implementation and nearly 90 percent when the measure was fully phased in, Cox said. "We closed 5,000 Oregonians out of a chance at higher education," he said. Measure 8 would limit state spending to 15 percent of total personal income. Measure 91 would allow deduction of all federal income tax on state returns for individuals and corporations. Currently $3,000 is the maximum deduction for individuals. Oregon now ranks 33rd in the nation in per capita support for education, but if both measures pass, "we will be last," said Oregon State University President Paul Risser. "Access is a key aspect of higher education," said Eastern Oregon University Phil Creighton. "It would be severely damaged if tuition is raised and funds are cut." "Intel and other Oregon high-tech industries still hire 80 percent of their workers from outside Oregon," said Martha Anne Dow, president of Oregon Institute of Technology. "Higher ed is changing through partnerships with education, business and industry, but a 20 percent reduction would mean we can�t meet the goal (to supply more workers)." University of Oregon President Dave Frohnmayer, a Rogue Valley native, characterized 8 and 91 as "unfair, misleading, and a deception of the consumer." Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.