Oregon Senate Republicans: finally for raising taxes!

Carla Axtman

I'm guessing that today's Oregon Senate Republicans press release (which is actually just a reprint of this Puget Sound Business Journal article) was not an actual advocacy for tax increases, but consider the content:

Washington’s unemployment rate for June was 8.9 percent, down from May’s jobless rate of 9.2 percent. Private sector employers in retail, health care, hospitality and even construction added jobs last month.

Overall, eight industry sectors added jobs, led by 1,300 in education and health services and 1,000 in construction, according to the monthly unemployment report released Wednesday by the Washington State Employment Security Department.

The state lost 4,900 federal government jobs in June, mostly due to the end of temporary census worker jobs. And state and local governments slashed 3,100 jobs in June, a reflection of a cash-strapped public sector that has struggled as sales tax and property tax revenue has declined during the recession. June’s unemployment rate was the lowest since April 2009.

But the private sector hiring — although relatively small — represented some of the most robust hiring seen since the recession started in early 2008.

Yes, Washington's unemployment is dropping slightly and is better then Oregon's. But other than that, I'm a little stumped at where they're trying to go with this. Washington has higher business taxes in Oregon, even after Measure 67.

Washington certainly has more well-funded services and their legislature meets annually, certainly creating more government than does Oregon.

So...are they saying we need higher taxes? Is this an advocacy for the sales tax? Is the Oregon GOP finally deciding that the politics and policy of austerity are choking our state? Where exactly are they going with this?

By Carla Axtman July 16, 2010