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Tuesday, July 02, 2013
Shadow Days
The end of this year's Oregon Legislature is near at hand. So far the two bills critical to PERS members, retirees, and seniors seem to lack the necessary support to make it to a final vote. HB 2456 is a revenue vote on a package of tax increases that can't seem to get the required 18 votes in the Senate to pass. Without that outcome, SB 857 doesn't move. To keep it from passing without the packaged revenue bill, the Senate Ds shipped it back to the Senate Revenue and Finance Committee, where it originated, and there it remains with no scheduled action. It just may die there. If these bills fail, there will be no cut to inactive benefits, no additional cuts to the retiree COLA, no phase out of senior medical deduction, and a host of other noxious tax increases.
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5 comments:
Now I see that the Senate will be meeting and voting again on July 6th. I guess nothing is for-sure-dead until they gavel in sine die. I'd love to see these poorly written and wicked laws die on the table. I have my fingers crossed and I'm emailing my senator and representative -- again!
peg
Die, please just sine die. ["sine die" Latin meaning "without day"-- gee, I hope that means that they will not still meet anytime in 2013at night, in the dark with fangs extended and alot of hissing and thirst for retirees' allotted money.]
How about the "out-of-state" benefit rip off? Does that one get flushed too?
I wanted to update you on the OPRI response to an issue in one of your earlier posts. An OPRI representative called me on Tuesday (7-2-13) asked me to send money to the OPRI PAC. He explained that 100% of the money would go to the litigation process. I sent an email to OPRI asking if they thought it was legal and Dick Reinhard replied: "It is legal, but I believe the caller overstated the case. It will not entirely be used to fight SB 822 and other PERS laws in the courts. It will be used for political contributions and to defray legal and other costs, should that be necessary."
Unfortunately, David Reinhard still does not understand the distinction between the OPR-PAC, which supports lobbying expenses and business management of OPRI by Paccounsel, which employs David Reinhard. Donations to the PAC are eligible for an Oregon Income Tax credit, up to $100 For couples and $50 for an individual. However, it has been my understanding that PAC donations are only eligible for the tax credit as long as they are used for lobbying and day-to-day business expenses, but NOT for legal expenses. That is why OPRI has a completely separate legal defense fund, which relies on donations that are not tax deductible and not eligible for the income tax credit.
While I am pleased that OPRI has taken an active legal interest in both pieces of the SB 822 case, and is participating in and contributing to the PERS Coalitions litigation, I wish that their callers would grasp the very significant difference between the PAC and the legal defense fund. I am not happy with the lobbying firm OPRI uses - and haven't been for a long time - and I don't donate to the PAC any longer, I have happily and generously supported the legal defense fund on several occasions. It seems to me that since OPRI is in money-raising mode,it would be most efficient if the callers asked members, retirees, whoever is called, for donations to each fund while the caller is on the phone. Of course OPRI has never been much interested in my opinion.
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