The Oregon Secretary of State announced on July 24 that Initiative #17, which would increase the corporate tax rate and dedicate additional revenue to citizen rebates, had qualified for the ballot. The campaign submitted 165,426 signatures on July 3 of which 122,276 were found to be valid. The required number of signatures to qualify an initiated state statute for the 2024 ballot was 117,173 (6% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election).
The initiative would establish an additional 3% tax on corporate sales above $25 million beginning in 2025. The additional revenue from the tax would be equally distributed to residents, including dependents or wards, who have resided in the state for at least 200 days during the eligibility year. The rebate would not be considered taxable income and would not be used to determine eligibility for state public assistance, and the initiative would require the state Department of Revenue to reimburse individuals for any reduced federal benefits due to the rebate. If the rebate per individual is less than $25 in any given year or an individual declines a rebate, the funds would be used to provide services for senior citizens, health care, and public education.
The initiative is endorsed by Oregon Working Families, Pacific Green Party, Oregon Progressive Party, Teamsters Local 206, Economic Justice Action Group, and the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW).
Antonio Gisbert, the chief petitioner of the initiative, said, “Poverty in Oregon would go way down. The Oregon Rebate is estimated to reduce child poverty by about 26%. That’s a huge change, right? Like you, like if a family of four gets 3,000 bucks—boom, lump sum—that’s money that family can use to make the situation better. Why should we have poverty when we have so much wealth around us?”
Jared Walczak of the Tax Foundation opposes the initiative. He said, “Proponents of IP-17 want to use the revenue from the tax increase to fund an annual rebate check, which they estimate at $750 per person on the assumption that the tax will raise at least $3 billion in additional revenue. That might sound good. But if it raises the cost of goods, drives jobs and economic activity out of state, and puts Oregon-based businesses at a massive disadvantage with their out-of-state competitors, it’s likely to be an awful deal for Oregonians.”
Currently, the state levies a 7.6% corporate income tax on Oregon C corporations and a 0.57% gross receipts tax.
The only other state that offers a similar rebate is Alaska, which also offers direct cash transfer payments funded by oil extraction taxes. Eligible residents must reside in Alaska for a full year. The average payment in its 42-year history is $1,200.
Initiative #17 is the first initiative to qualify this cycle in Oregon. One other initiative is pending signature verification. Initiative #35 would require cannabis businesses to submit to the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission a signed labor peace agreement between the business and a labor organization with its licensure or renewal application. The signature verification deadline in Oregon is Aug. 5.
Oregon voters will also decide on three legislative referrals that would authorize the state legislature to impeach elected state executives; establish the Independent Public Service Compensation Commission to determine certain public officials’ salaries; and enact the use of ranked-choice voting for certain federal and state offices.
Between 2010 and 2022, an average of 63 citizen initiatives were filed for each election cycle with an average of four certified for the ballot. This cycle 55 initiatives were filed.
Additional reading: Oregon 2024 ballot measures