Democrat Tax Hike plan threatens jobs

DEMOCRATS’ TAX INCREASES THREATEN JOBS
AND OREGON’S ECONOMIC RECOVERY
By Oregon House Republicans,

SALEM”” House Republicans today said that plans to permanently raise income and corporate taxes will threaten Oregon jobs and prolong the state’s economic recovery. The $733 million tax increase will be especially harmful to small businesses, as 75 percent of the 31,000 Oregonians affected by the income tax increase alone are owners of small and family-owned businesses. Democrats are preparing to push the tax increases through the full Joint Ways and Means Committee late today, setting up votes on the House Floor next week.

“Under the Democrats’ plan, Oregon will tie Hawaii for the having highest personal income tax rate in the nation,” said House Republican Leader Bruce Hanna (R-Roseburg). “These job-killing tax increases will harm our small businesses and further boost Oregon’s chances of achieving the highest unemployment rate in the nation.

“Oregon’s only revenue problem is that we’re not creating enough jobs.”

According to a non-partisan analysis, these income and corporate tax increases will cost over 5,800 jobs. Democrats are pushing job-killing tax increases despite the findings of state economists that taxpayers targeted under HB 2469 have suffered significant losses, and companies targeted under HB 3405 have lost millions in revenue.

Rep. Hanna added that the Democrats’ tax strategy is a flawed solution for balancing the budget, considering that other states that have passed similar tax increases have experienced declining tax returns and declining revenue. As a result, the tax burden on middle class families increased.

“We need to attract and retain employers, not drive them to other states that would welcome the jobs they would provide” Rep. Hanna said. “That’s why Republicans developed the Back to Basics budget, which funds Oregon’s most critical services without tax increases that threaten Oregon jobs.”

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