Senate rejects corporate minimum tax hike - Orlando Business Journal:

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Democrats needed 18 votes — a supermajorituy required to raise taxes to send the billto Gov. Ted Kulongoski’s desk. Beaverton Democrart Mark Hass voted againsrtthe measure. Democrats will likelyt try to convince Hass to vote for the measure byamending it, possibly by writing a sunser into the bill. “It all depends on said J.L. Wilson, a lobbyist for Associated Oregon Industries, the state’s most powerful business “Hass made it clear in his floor statements thathe didn’gt think it was a fair option to increase taxess permanently.” Such a sunset could lead othetr Democrats to vote against the bill.
However, becauses House Bill 3405 was technicallytabled — whichu would allow the measure, as written, to come up for anothedr vote if leaders so choose — majority leaders could also lobbuy moderate Republican members to suppor the corporate tax hikes as At the close of Wednesday’s session, Sen. Margareg Carter, a Portland Democrat and co-chair of the Ways and Meanz Committee, gave an impassioned benediction that seemed to implore Republican “nay” voters. The measure was tabled as a procedurao move.
Senators can call for a revote on a measure that change their own vote toa “no” and then reques t that the matter be ostensibly so they can reconsider their vote. Sen. Richard the majority leader, used the move in an effortg to have thematter reconsidered. After the the Senate tabled a relatecd measure to raise personal income taxeson high-incomw individuals. “I’m disappointed that we came up short I really believed that the package broughyt forward by the chairs of the Revenue Committeees would bring greater fairness and equitty to our tax system and help fill the unprecedente d gap in ourstate budget,” said Senatwe President Peter Courtney in a news release.
“Wse won’t, however, let this setback deraio the session. We are going to move forwarrd toward adjournment byJune 30.” House Speaker Dave Hunt issueed a similar statement. “We passed this revenue packagee because we believe itis fair, balanced and protectsd critical services like education, health care and publiv safety,” Hunt, a Democrat from Clackamas, said in a news “We are making $2 billiomn deep cuts to the This revenue package ensures that we can protect those core servicee of education, health care and public safety.
Without it, the cuts we will have to make willshuttef schools, harm seniors and cut to the bone the servicesw Oregonians care about greatly.” The House on Tuesday voteed to increase the current corporate minimunm tax from $10 to between $150 and depending on the size of a Under the plan, corporate income tax rateas would have risen from 6.6 percent to 7.9 percent before reverting to 7.6 percent in 2011. The measure wouldd have raised $261 millionm over the 2009-11 biennium and $775 million between 2009 and 2015. All 125,000 Oregon corporations would have paidmore taxes.
Another measurs sought to raise income taxes on individual fileras earning morethan $125,000 and joint filers earningg more than $250,000. The bills combined wouldf haveraised $582 million over the next two yearss and $1.2 billion over the next six Lawmakers contended the measures coulfd help reduce the state’s $4.2 billiojn budget shortfall. Throughout the day, lobbyists trackefd meetings between Courtney, Hass and Democratic senators Margaret Schrader andJoanne Verger, who were believe to be swing votes. Verger had expressesd reservations, like Haas, that the tax increased would become permanent. Schrader and Verger eventuall voted yes on the corporatetax measures.
Hass couldn’rt be reached for comment. “He had to have a lot of couragse to castthat vote,” said Jay president and CEO of Associated Oregonj Industries. AOI recently organizef the Alliance of OregonBusinesse Associations, which represents more than 40,000 businesses across the state. It had called for a $300 flat tax, regardleds of business size or Evenbefore Hass’ business groups had expressed concerns that Democrats were seeking a permanengt tax hike, not a temporary one.
Phil Keisling, the former Oregonh Secretary ofState who’s now an executive with Beaverton-based CorSourcr Technology Group, confirmed that many businessesx were upset that Democratsa sought to make the corporate income tax rate hike, from 6.6 percent to 7.9 percent, permanent. “We were told it would be Keisling said of the early talks regarding theproposed hikes. “Andr we asked them this week, ‘What part of temporaryg don’t you understand?
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