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Legislative Priorities
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Following is an overview of our legislative agenda. You can download the complete 2007 OBA Legislative Agenda (pdf, 852KB).
- Creation of a rainy day fund equal to 10% of the state general fund budget.
- Suspension of the corporate kicker.
- Increase the corporate minimum tax (C-corporations only).
- Increase the beer and wine tax.
- Support the Oregon Innovation Council’s stimulus package.
- Creation of investment tax credits.
EDUCATION
- Fund Pre-K/Head Start program to serve 100% of the eligible students.
- Fund K-12 public education in Oregon at Quality Education Model levels.
- Increase community colleges budget by 20%.
- Invest in community colleges through Community College Construction Bonds.
- Provide adequate and stable funding for Oregon University System, fund enrollment growth, enhance faculty salaries, reduce student/faculty ratios, maintain facilities.
- Support for the Shared Responsibility Financial Aid Model.
- Support for improved education management: efficiencies.
- Support investments in extended-day kindergarten program.
ENVIRONMENT & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
- Supports for the Governor’s Bio-Fuels package.
- Establish a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) for electricity.
- Modernize the Pollution Control Tax Credit (PCTC).
- Support for budget increases for DEQ and Public Health Division.
- Support for E-Waste legislation.
- Modernize bottle bill.
- Support for long-term solution to Oregon’s land use protections.
GOOD GOVERNMENT
- Support for elections reform: open primaries, elimination of double majority requirement, use of campaign contributions.
- Support for lobbying and ethics reforms: more frequent reporting requirements, increase fines for ethics violations, ban or strictly limit lobbyist-paid travel and gifts, increased funding for watchdog agency.
- Support for reforms in legislative rules.
- Increase judicial salaries.
HEALTH POLICY
- Support for all serious proposals based on sound business principles that results in universal access to basic health care for humanitarian and public policy reasons.
- Expand Oregon Health Plan Standard to at least 100% of Federal Poverty Level.
- Increase payments to providers who serve OHP.
- Provide preventative service to uninsured children.
- Fund DHS immunization program.
- Provide OHP health services to uninsured pregnant women.
- Increase cigarette tax to fund OHP preventative health plan services.
- Expand the state’s bulk purchase pool–the Oregon Prescription Drug Program -to include private employers.
TRANSPORTATION
- Support for Connect Oregon 2 to provide $100 million in additional lottery-backed bonds for investment in non-highway transportation infrastructure.
- Funding for 139 new state police patrol positions.
- Permanent funding for state police from general fund.
- Increase fuel tax by 5¢ per gallon, phased in over 5 years at 1¢ per year, to fund system improvements.
- Index fuel tax to construction cost indices.
- Require Road User Fee Task Force to develop revenue collection design that ensures sufficient revenue.
Download the complete 2007 OBA Legislative Agenda (pdf, 852KB).