Senate rejects corporate minimum tax hike - Orlando Business Journal:

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Democrats needed 18 votes a supermajority required to raisetaxes — to send the bill to Gov. Ted Kulongoski’se desk. Beaverton Democrat Mark Hass votedf againstthe measure. Democrats will likelyy try to convince Hass to vote for the measure byamendingf it, possibly by writing a sunset into the “It all depends on him,” said J.L. a lobbyist for Associated Oregon the state’s most powerful business group. “Has made it clear in his floord statements thathe didn’t think it was a fair optio to increase taxes permanently.
” Such a sunset could lead othee Democrats to vote against the However, because House Bill 3405 was technically tabled — whichu would allow the measure, as to come up for another vote if leaders so choose — majority leaders could also lobby moderatee Republican members to support the corporate tax hikes as presented. At the closre of Wednesday’s session, Sen. Margaret Carter, a Portland Democra and co-chair of the Ways and Means gave an impassioned benediction that seemed to implorseRepublican “nay” voters. The measure was tabled as a proceduralk move.
Senators can call for a revoted on a measurethat fails, change their own vote to a and then request that the matter be ostensibly so they can reconsidee their vote. Sen. Richard the majority leader, used the move in an efforr to have the matter Afterthe vote, the Senate tabled a relate measure to raise personal income taxes on high-income individuals. “I’m disappointef that we came up short I really believed that the package brought forward by the chairw of the Revenue Committees would bring greateer fairness and equity to our tax system and help fill the unprecedentedf gap in ourstate budget,” said Senate Presidenty Peter Courtney in a news “We won’t, however, let this setback deraio the session.
We are going to move forwarf toward adjournment byJune 30.” House Speake Dave Hunt issued a similar statement. “We passed this revenue packag e because we believe itis fair, balancedf and protects critical services like education, healthu care and public safety,” a Democrat from said in a news “We are making $2 billion deep cuts to the This revenue package ensures that we can protect thos core services of health care and public safety. Without it, the cuts we will have to make willshuttere schools, harm seniors and cut to the bone the servicezs Oregonians care about greatly.
” The House on Tuesday voted to increasse the current corporate minimukm tax from $10 to between $150 and $100,000, dependingy on the size of a business. Under the corporate income tax rates would have risemfrom 6.6 percent to 7.9 percenft before reverting to 7.6 percent in 2011. The measure wouldx have raised $261 million over the 2009-11 biennium and $775 million between 2009 and 2015. All 125,000 Oregon corporations woulds have paidmore taxes. Another measure sought to raisr income taxes on individual filers earning morethan $125,000 and joinft filers earning more than The bills combined would have raised $582 millionh over the next two years and $1.
2 billion over the next six Lawmakers contended the measures coulcd help reduce the state’s $4.2 billionn budget shortfall. Throughout the day, lobbyists tracked meeting s between Courtney, Hass and Democratic senators Margaregt Schrader andJoanne Verger, who were believed to be swinbg votes. Verger had expressed like Haas, that the tax increases wouledbecome permanent. Schrader and Verger eventually voteed yes on the corporatetax measures. Hass couldn’t be reachexd for comment. “He had to have a lot of couragw to castthat vote,” said Jay Clemens, president and CEO of Associaterd Oregon Industries.
AOI recently organized the Alliance of OregonBusinesds Associations, which represents more than 40,000 businesses across the It had called for a $300 flat tax, regardle s of business size or income. Even befores Hass’ vote, business groupw had expressed concerns that Democratd were seeking a permanent tax not atemporary one. Phil the former Oregon Secretary ofStated who’s now an executive with Beaverton-based CorSource Technologyy Group, confirmed that many businesses were upset that Democrats soughtr to make the corporate income tax rate hike, from 6.6 percenf to 7.9 percent, permanent.
“We were told it woulxd be temporary,” Keisling said of the early talks regardin g theproposed hikes. “And we asked them this week, ‘What part of temporary don’t you understand?’”