Vote YES on 66 & 67, and here is WHY YOU NEED TO!

Williams Institute Releases Report on Ill Effects of Defeating Measures 66 and 67; CAP and OSBC Support Approval


Two legislative tax initiatives on the ballot for Oregon’s Special Election on January 26 have the potential to substantially decrease spending on social services and programs, reports a study from The Williams Institute at UCLA Law School. According to the report drafted by Williams Institute Research Associate Christopher Ramos those most negatively affected by this decrease would be individuals and families in Oregon’s gay, lesbian, bi and trans community, particularly those who are poor, families with children, the elderly, youth in institutionalized settings, and those living with HIV/AIDS.

Oregonians have the opportunity to vote in favor of or against Measures 66 and 67. Measure 66 would increase the marginal tax rate on personal income above $125,000 for individuals, and above $250,000 for couples; Measure 67 would increase the $10 minimum corporate tax, as well as increase marginal tax rates for businesses earning above $250,000. If approved, these increases would assist Oregon in confronting its budget shortfalls by increasing revenues by as much as $730 million. If defeated, the potential budget crisis faced by services and programs that assist the gay, lesbian, bi and trans community could usher in a significant threat to those services and programs.

The report unearths the economic diversity within Oregon’s GLBT population, revealing that 1,200 gay, lesbian, or bi individuals living in the state are doing so in poverty. Surveys of transgender people also show a consistently high rate of unemployment and poverty. The Department of Human Services (DHS) responded to a request from the Oregon Legislative Fiscal Office, listing programs most likely to see budget cuts should the measures be defeated, including Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Community Mental Health Program Contracts, Medicaid Personal Care Program, State Immunization Program, specific Medicaid optional services, and general education and outreach.

The same worrisome cuts appear in the budgets for HIV/AIDS programs. One proposed cut would eliminate $753,000 from the state budget for HIV, STD, and tuberculosis treatment funding. This would result in lack of treatment for some 7,900 STD cases, and approximately 450 individuals would not be notified about STD exposure. Another potential proposed cut would take almost $850,000 away from Oregon’s AIDS Drug Assistance Program, which DHS says may result in waiting lists for people with HIV to get drug assistance.

These are just two of the reasons why Cascade AIDS Project, historically a politically neutral organization, has decided to take a stand and support the approval of Measures 66 and 67. Citing the 75 percent cut of all funding to HIV prevention and testing in California’s legislature, CAP Executive Director Michael Kaplan outlined the terrifying impact in the long-term when decisions are made to balance the budget in the short.

In a press release issued in December, Kaplan explained that while no one wants more taxation, failure to ensure addressing the needs of the most vulnerable today is not a plan for savings, but simply deferment of greater expenses.

It is for these reasons that Cascade AIDS Project is signing on in support of Measures 66 and 67, wrote Kaplan. Should these measures fail, we will be looking at drastic cuts to a broad net of services that our communities and our clients rely on. From health care to education and reproductive health to mental health we cannot allow today’s economic challenges to undermine the health of our citizens, our neighbors, and our families.

The decision to publicly back the approval of increasing taxes on the very organizations and individuals, who support CAP, Kaplan continued, was not an easy decision.

To be clear, this is not about punishing those who do well, be they corporate or individual, as we are quite aware how the generosity of many corporations and individuals throughout the state makes our work possible. This is about guaranteeing that the care of our most vulnerable citizens is not left to the generosity of well-off citizens and corporations alone, but rather that, through public policy, we ensure services exist where needed.

The Oregon Small Business Council has also come out publicly to endorse a yes vote on Measures 66 and 67, citing the importance of preserving essential services and the soft impact the measures have on small business.

These measures are necessary footholds to maintain vital services in tough times, said OSBC Board Chair Mark Kellenbeck of Cascade Management in Grants Pass via press release. Small businesses will be minimally impacted while more dollars spent will remain in Oregon.

Ballots for Oregon’s Special Election will be mailed to registered voters between January 8 and 12. Ballots must be returned to your county elections office by 8 p.m. January 26.