Friday, January 20, 2012
ARE TAX BREAKS KEEPING OREGON IN THE RED?
Steve Robinson believes that the main cause of ongoing Oregon budget deficits is a steady increase in tax breaks. In this program, he will show us the math. He has analyzed data from the state’s Tax Expenditure Report in combination with Oregon Department of Revenue and IRS reports. His conclusion is clear: if we eliminated loopholes and “incentives,” we would not be adjusting expenditures downward in what many believe are essential public services. In a state where discretionary spending is funded primarily by income tax and the lottery, at what point does the motivating power of a tax break turn into an overall handicap? Steve Robinson has some ideas about that and recommendations for change.
Steve earned a BA in economics from Williams College and an MBA in finance from Stanford Business School. After moving to Eugene in 1978, he worked as a financial and general manager, primarily in home health care and wood products, and was elected to three terms on the Eugene School Board. He joined the statewide public sector in 1996, working at the Oregon Progress Board, Department of Transportation, and SAIF Corporation, mainly in research and performance measurement. After retiring from SAIF, he spent a year with the Oregon Center for Public Policy before deciding it was time to focus back on his home town of Eugene, where he founded Decision Metrics, a public policy consulting firm.
He is a member of the Human Services Coalition of Oregon. During legislative sessions he lobbies on behalf of the coalition on budget and revenue issues.
Jack Roberts, executive director of the Lane Metro Partnership, will ask the first question. Jack graduated from Sheldon and went on to earn a BA and a law degree from UO. His masters degree is in tax law. He has served as a Lane County Commissioner and a state labor commissioner.
