Poll: Seven in Ten Oregonians Believe State Government has Enough Money

Poll also finds ‘wasteful spending’ as most serious problem in state government.

Salem-News.com

(SALEM) - House Republicans Monday released a Jan. 23rd Moore Information poll showing a strong majority of Oregonians remain strongly opposed to raising taxes.

The poll was released as the Oregon Legislature considers tax increases, mostly on small businesses.

In the statewide survey of 500 Oregonians, 68 percent of respondents said they believed “state government has the money it needs, it just needs to spend it more wisely,” while only 28 percent believed state government “needs to raise taxes to fund additional programs.”

“The Moore poll should send a strong message to those at the Capitol who think it’s OK to raise taxes and spend money at unsustainable levels,” said House Republican Leader Wayne Scott (R-Canby).

“Oregonians are not convinced that state government is spending its money wisely, andpursuing tax increases will not restore the Legislature’s credibility.

Oregonians will remember those who stood their ground for responsible government, and those who supported tax increases out of political expediency.”

House and Senate Democrats are advancing their proposals to divert the corporate kicker; both proposals would raise taxes on thousands of small businesses.

The House Democratic proposal, HB 2707, enacts a one-time suspension of the corporate kicker and would require 40 votes in the House of Representatives.

The Senate Democratic proposal would ask voters to enact a permanent repeal at a May special election, at the cost of over $1 million to taxpayers.

The Moore poll also found that 31 percent of respondents said they believed “wasteful spending is the most serious problem” in state government today.

Coincidently, 19 percent said they believe “elected officials who don’t listen to voters” was the most serious problem in government.

“The Legislature should remember that Oregonians rejected tax increases during special elections in 2003 and 2004,” Rep. Scott said. “Republicans and Democrats in the Legislature must be careful not to repeat this history.”