Our religious traditions contain the conviction that all persons are created in God’s image and part of God’s plan, and thus are entitled to an equal measure of respect, dignity and concern.
No society can be fully just that does not provide a reasonable opportunity for all persons to pursue their calling, develop their talents and abilities, and have a reasonable opportunity to live out a full and meaningful life. Moreover, no society can be fully just that does not act to care for the poor, the ill, the elderly and the most vulnerable. We believe these foundational principles have implications for what kind of tax system can be considered just and fair.
The current economic recession has shown the instability and unfairness of Oregon’s tax system. In the 2009 Legislative Session, our representatives were faced with a revenue shortfall of over four billion dollars for the next two-year budget cycle or “biennium” (2009-2011).
In balancing the state budget, legislators relied on a mix of spending cuts, prudent use of reserves, and two measures that imposed modest tax increases on corporations doing business in Oregon and on high-income earning taxpayers. Together, these two tax fairness measures would raise $733 million over the next two-year budget period.
Now anti-tax activists and pro-business groups have gathered signatures to refer these two tax increases to voters, who will decide whether to retain the tax increases or force further budget cuts – which would require further declines in government spending on public schools, health and human services, and public safety programs, which together make up 92 percent of our state’s overall budget.
Vote Yes on Measures 66 and 67
Election day is Jan. 26, 2010. Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon has endorsed these two tax measures and urges you to Vote Yes on Measures 66 and 67. We are also asking you, as a religious leader, to sign on to a statement of support for Measures 66 and 67.
Please sign the statement of support for Measures 66 and 67.
Download and print statement.
Sign statement online.
For more information on Measures 66 and 67 go to www.defendoregon.org.
This current debate takes place in the context of a long-term social trend that has seen growing poverty and inequality in American society, fostered in part by the decline of taxation on the wealthy and on corporations. The federal tax cuts enacted in 2001 and 2003 reduced the top bracket income tax rates on high-income taxpayers, reduced the estate tax on accumulated wealth, and reduced capital gains taxes on income from investments — another tax cut that primarily favors the wealthy. Over the past two decades the tax burden has shifted from wealthier individuals and large businesses to working people and small businesses.
In Oregon, the corporate minimum tax is only $10, and has been $10 since 1931, unless voters uphold the decisions of the 2009 Legislature to increase the corporate minimum tax (see information about Measures 66 and 67 above). Consequently, the share of state funds derived from corporate taxes has been steadily declining.
Further, Oregon’s unbalanced tax system causes government revenue, and thus government services, to be unreliable due to over-dependence on the income tax and limitations on the property tax, coupled with the absence of any sales tax.
This system could hardly be more detrimental to those who are poor, elderly or disabled, and who are especially dependent on the government to provide a safety net during hard times, since it is during periods of economic recession that the failings of Oregon’s revenue system are most apparent. Right at the time when the demand for government assistance is increasing, the ability of government to provide assistance undermined by declining income tax receipts, and the poor and vulnerable are hit with a double-dose of economic bad news.
We need to reform the tax system so that it is fair to working Oregonians and small businesses, and it reliably funds important public services.
Tax Justice Resources
Read EMO's article on Tax Reform in Oregon. Download EMO's Tax Reform Bulletin Insert or Tax Reform Study Guide.
Federal Resources:
• Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
• Citizens for Tax Justice
• Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP)
• The Tax Policy Center
• United for a Fair Economy
• Gates, William H. Sr. and Chuck Collins. Wealth and Commonwealth: Why America Should Tax Accumulated Fortunes. Beacon Press, 2002.
• Brunori, David, editor. The Future of State Taxation. Urban Institute Press, 1998.
• Slemrod, Joel and Jon Bakija. Taxing Ourselves: A Citizen’s Guide to the Great Debate over Tax Reform. MIT Press, 2000.
Oregon Resources:
• Oregon Center for Public Policy — Produces studies, reports and analysis on the economic factors and policies that affect low-income Oregonians.
• Citizens for Oregon’s Future — Educates the public on the role taxes play in Oregon through free workshops and materials.
Hamill, Susan Pace. The Least of These: Fair Taxes and the Moral Duty of Christians. (Sweetwater Press: 2003). Contains Law Professor Susan Pace Hamill’s master's thesis in theological studies at Samford University’s Beeson Divinity School. The thesis, entitled “An Argument for Tax Reform Based Judeo-Christian Ethics,” inspired Alabama Governor Bob Riley to propose restructuring the tax structure to help the poor. Despite being a Bible Belt state, Alabama voters resoundingly defeated the proposal in the Fall of 2003.
Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon is sending a letter to the Oregon State Senate in support SB 966 which establishes a Family Leave Insurance program. Family leave insurance makes it possible for low-wage workers to take time when they have a new child or when an elderly parent, child or other family member is ill, and it does so without any significant cost to the state budget or to employers. Family leave insurance simply makes it financially possible for workers to take advantage of the benefits they are already entitled to under the Oregon Family Leave Act. Please sign-on to this letter by sending an e-mail to Kevin Finney at kfinney@emoregon.org. Read the full letter.
Join EMO and other communities of faith in a campaign to unite Oregonians against poverty in our state. Together we will raise our voices and call upon the spirit of compassion and justice within all of us. We will appeal to those we entrust with the power to make economic and policy decisions, asking them to do the most to help the least among us. Unless we confront the root causes and social systems that cause poverty, we can only treat the symptoms.
In order to participate in the campaign, just fill out the registration form, choosing only the events in which you or your congregation/faith community want to participate. Each activity is intentionally designed to highlight one of three ways of addressing poverty: (1) education, (2) prayer/reflection and (3) action. We encourage you and your congregation/faith community to choose one of each.
For more information about the campaign, call EMO at (503) 221-1054.
Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon is committed to relieving hunger in Oregon through advocacy, ministry and collaboration. As a founding member of the Oregon Faith Roundtable Against Hunger, EMO will continue to advocate for policy changes that address the root causes of hunger. Partnering with other religious organizations and service agencies, the roundtable is a resource for developing best practices in ministry, community food security and public policy advocacy. The roundtable is open to any religious organization committed to fighting hunger in Oregon.
Resources:
Facts for Oregon
National Hunger Statistics
Religious Texts on Hunger: Statements on and about Poverty, Hunger, Helping and Charity from The Tanakh
