No-new-taxes plan up for vote.Byline: DAVID David, in the Bible David, d. c.970 B.C., king of ancient Israel (c.1010–970 B.C.), successor of Saul. The Book of First Samuel introduces him as the youngest of eight sons who is anointed king by Samuel to replace Saul, who had been deemed a failure. STEVES The Register-Guard SALEM - The Senate expected to vote today on a no-new-taxes plan to balance the state budget by cutting deeper and borrowing more extensively than a House-passed package would. Despite the apparent lack of a 16-vote majority needed to approve the plan in the 30-member Senate, President Gene Derfler said he wanted a vote to determine once and for all whether it could pass - and if not, to find some other way to get the Senate moving on a solution to the $860 million budget gap. "We'll vote up or down and we'll take things from there," Derfler, R-Salem, said. At least two of the Senate's 16 majority Republicans - Verne Duncan Verne Duncan (born April 6 1934) is an American politician from the U.S. state of Oregon. As an educator and moderate Republican, he has become outspoken in protest of policies of his own party he views as extreme. of Milwaukie and Lenn Hannon of Ashland - said they planned to vote against the proposal. That means that even if the remaining 14 Republicans and conservative Democratic Sen. Mae Yih Mae Yih (Traditional Chinese: 葉鄧稚鳳, born May 24,1928) is a retired Chinese American politician who was the first Asian American woman to serve in the Oregon legislature. of Albany vote for the package, it would fail on a 15-15 tie. The plan requires no tax increases, unlike the package approved June 15 by the House, which phased in a voter-passed tax-relief measure due to take effect this year and asked voters to boost the cigarette tax by 75 cents a pack. Like the House version, the proposal headed to the Senate floor would impose no additional cuts to public schools beyond the $112 million cut approved in March. To protect schools and avoid taxes, the plan requires $148 million in spending reductions, which would come on top of $450 million in cuts approved earlier this year. Proposed cuts would eliminate one of two Eugene-to-Portland passenger trains, freeze salaries for state employees in the management ranks and provide no funding for new social-services caseloads. And it borrows $115 million from the Common School Fund, a constitutionally dedicated inventory of public lands and other assets other assets Assets of relatively small value. For financial reporting purposes, firms frequently combine small assets into a single category rather than listing each item separately. used to accumulate interest to offset educational costs. Although Democrats and Republicans have clashed over questions of taxes, cuts and borrowing, both sides said they were looking forward to today's scheduled vote - for different reasons. "I'm encouraged by the fact that we have shown we can balance the budget" without raising taxes or adding to school cuts, Sen. Ted Ferrioli Ted Ferrioli (born February 15 1951) is an American politician, currently serving as an Oregon state senator. He represents Senate District 30, which encompasses Baker, Gilliam, Grant, Harney, Jefferson, Malheur, Sherman, Wasco, Wheeler, and portions of Clackamas, Deschutes, and , R-John Day, said. "People outside this building should know that." Sen. Tony Corcoran, D-Cottage Grove, predicted that the plan would get only 13 votes on the Senate floor. "It's put up or shut up time," he said. "They've been saying they can get the votes for this level of cuts, let's see Let's See was a Canadian television series broadcast on CBC Television between September 6, 1952 to July 4, 1953. The segment, which had a running time of 15 minutes, was a puppet show with a character named Uncle Chichimus (voice of John Conway), which presented each if they can." Corcoran conceded con·cede v. con·ced·ed, con·ced·ing, con·cedes v.tr. 1. To acknowledge, often reluctantly, as being true, just, or proper; admit. See Synonyms at acknowledge. 2. that if the package fails, it doesn't necessarily clear the way for a solution; it takes an 18-vote supermajority Supermajority A corporate amendment in a company's charter requiring a large majority (anywhere from 67%-90%) of shareholders to approve important changes, such as a merger. to approve a tax-raising measure in the Senate. Last week, an attempt in the Senate to increase the cigarette tax fell short on a 17-13 vote. "It's going to be hard for us to get to 18 on taxes," he said. "But it's ironic that it's going to be easier than it is for them to get 16 votes for more cuts." Also Monday, Gov. John Kitzhaber John Albert Kitzhaber (born March 5 1947 in Colfax, Washington) is a physician, member of the Democratic Party and former two term Governor of Oregon. He graduated from South Eugene High School in 1965, Dartmouth College in 1969, and then Oregon Health & Science University with a broke what has amounted to a self-imposed public silence on the Legislature's work since the special session got under way June 12. He held a news conference before departing de·part v. de·part·ed, de·part·ing, de·parts v.intr. 1. To go away; leave. 2. To die. 3. today for France to repeat his own ideas for how the Legislature should resolve the shortfall. He said he planned to join wife Sharon and son Logan for the final three days of their monthlong vacation. "We should provide sustainable revenue to support our education system, public safety and important social services social services Noun, pl welfare services provided by local authorities or a state agency for people with particular social needs social services npl → servicios mpl sociales ," he said, "and not simply patch together a short-term solution that's based on borrowing and one-time revenue." Kitzhaber, whose own proposal called for a temporary boost in income taxes, higher cigarette taxes and no additional program cuts, said he had avoided commenting publicly on legislative developments because his views have been well known since February. He stopped short of threatening to veto components of the plan, but said he wouldn't rule out exercising that "executive prerogative An exclusive privilege. The special power or peculiar right possessed by an official by virtue of his or her office. In English Law, a discretionary power that exceeds and is unaffected by any other power; the special preeminence that the monarch has over and above all others, " either. A Senate panel conducted a two-hour public hearing Monday and was scheduled to reconvene reconvene Verb to gather together again after an interval: we reconvene tomorrow Verb 1. reconvene - meet again; "The bill will be considered when the Legislature reconvenes next Fall" this morning to send legislation to the full Senate when it meets at 9 a.m. Several lobbyists said the cuts would cause problems for their constituents. Jacqueline Zimmer Jones, a lobbyist for senior services and co-chairwoman of the Human Services Coalition of Oregon, said she took exception to the assertion that government needed to do more belt-tightening to rebalance the budget. "Tell a child who has a mental health problem to tighten their belt? That doesn't really make sense," she said. Higher education's portion of the cuts package would total $18.2 million. Combined with earlier cuts, the budget would drop by $61 million from the level approved by the 2001 Legislature. Such program reductions would all but guarantee that tuition next year would increase beyond the 3 percent boost already scheduled, Oregon University System The Oregon University System (OUS) consists of seven public, four-year universities in the State of Oregon administered by the Chancellor of the OUS, who serves at the will and pleasure of the Oregon State Board of Higher Education. lobbyist Grattan Kerans Grattan Kerans is an American politician from Oregon. He was a member of the Oregon Legislative Assembly in the House of Representatives from 1974 through 1984, and in the Oregon State Senate from 1986 to 1993. said. And academic offerings and campus services still would have to be curtailed despite surging enrollment because the magnitude of the proposed budget cuts is too great for tuition increases to offset, he said. SENATE PLAN Key elements of the budget-rebalancing package that the Senate is expected to vote on today: Delay a payment to local school districts into the next budget cycle: $200 million. Delay a payment to community colleges into the next budget cycle: $56 million. Refer the creation of a rainy-day fund for education to the ballot and authorize To empower another with the legal right to perform an action. The Constitution authorizes Congress to regulate interstate commerce. authorize v. to officially empower someone to act. (See: authority) use of money for the current budget cycle: $220 million. Reduce state general fund budgets through $59 million in targeted reductions, $79 million in across-the-board cuts and $10 million in canceled state management pay raises: $148 million. Use one-time money from Oregon's share of the national tobacco settlement: $85 million. Spend reserves in state ending balance, emergency fund, light-rail account and the 911 telephone system surplus: $35 million. Borrow and repay with interest from the Common School Fund: $115 million. Total: $859 million. WHAT'S NEXT TODAY: Senate will reconvene at 9 a.m. and the House will meet at 11 a.m. FOLLOW THE ACTION: www.leg.state.or.us SOUND OFF: To leave messages for lawmakers, call (800) 332-2313 |
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