Legislature asks for cuts, despite soaring revenue

SALEM, Ore. (AP) – Legislative leaders in Oregon released a conservative budget framework Thursday that includes program cuts, despite projections the state will take in historic levels of revenue.

Co-chairs of the Joint Committee on Ways and Means released their budget ideas. The plan calls for an approximate 5 percent reduction across all services except education and healthcare.

The plan also wants an increase in the state’s rainy day fund to prepare for a possible financial downturn in the next couple of years.

The state is forecasted to bring in $20.6 billion in revenue, which is higher than initial predictions. But even that increase won’t be enough to fully fund all state services or Oregon’s spiraling pension debt.

The budget framework is meant to be a reference point for drafting agency budgets by the end of June.

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News release from the Joint Ways and Means Committee:

Joint Committee on Ways and Means announces Balanced Budget Plan

SALEM – The co-chairs for the Joint Committee on Ways and Means on Thursday released their Balanced Budget Plan for the 2019-21 biennium.

The three co-chairs balanced the budget with existing resources, while working to manage spending in a way that reduces budget deficits in future biennia. They prioritized continuing to deliver essential services to Oregonians and setting the state up for stability in the event of future economic downturns.

“This budget shows what is feasible given existing resources,” Sen. Betsy Johnson (D-Scappoose) said. “Economic forecasts suggest an impending economic downturn in the coming years, which further validates why we must be judicious when it comes to future spending.”

The Balanced Budget Plan proposes an approximate 5 percent reduction target of General Fund expenditures statewide, while avoiding reductions to the State School Fund and the Oregon Health Plan. The budget includes an additional $100 million for the State School Fund, the major funding source for K-12 operations, above its current service level. The budget also allocates an additional 1 percent to manage future structural budgetary issues, including pension obligations.

“Oregon needs to keep its focus on long-term budget stability,” Rep. Dan Rayfield (D-Corvallis) said. “This budget shows we must proceed cautiously while continuing to find ways to fund Oregonians’ most essential priorities.”

In February, the Legislature passed House Bill 2010, a six-year funding package for the Oregon Health Plan. The funding package is expected to bring in $379 million for the 2019-21 biennium and is assumed in the budget.

“Oregonians have been emphatic in their support for fully funding the Oregon Health Plan,” Sen. Elizabeth Steiner Hayward (D-Beaverton) said. “Prioritizing the Oregon Health Plan and K-12 education funding – two critical needs for this state – were guiding principles throughout this process.”

The Joint Committee on Ways and Means will start its community hearing tour on Saturday in Coos Bay at 1 p.m. Oregonians will be able to testify before the committee and present their thoughts on how the Legislature should allocate its budget for the 2019-21 biennium.

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News release from the Oregon House Republican Office:

Budget framework fails to address fundamental issues

House Republicans urge adoption of Secretary of State audit findings to shore-up budget holes

SALEM, Ore. – House Republican Leader Rep. Carl Wilson (R-Grants Pass) issued the following statement regarding the Joint Committee on Ways and Means Co-Chair budget framework:

“This budget proposal makes clear the futility of attempting to fund our education system without addressing the PERS crisis. The late Secretary of State Dennis Richardson provided a roadmap to balancing the budget without raising taxes. I urge the supermajority to incorporate the Secretary’s recommendations into the budget process.”

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News release from the Oregon Education Association:

OEA calls on educators to take action, legislature to pass revenue

This afternoon, President of the Oregon Education Association John Larson called on educators around the state to take action on May 8th to push the legislature to invest in Oregon schools from early childhood through higher education. K-12 schools need $10.7 billion and community colleges need $787 million in funding to fully support students, in contrast to the cuts budget recommended by the legislature today.

“We can choose to lower our class sizes. We can choose to hire counselors and nurses and mental health professionals. We can choose to restore programs like art and music. We can choose to prioritize schools.” said Larson. “The choice to truly invest in our schools has been in front of us before and we have not met the challenge. But this year is different because we will make it different. I ask educators, parents, and public school families around the state to stand up and stand together for students on May 8th. Thirty years of disinvestment have put our schools into crisis, and today is the breaking point for educators around the state.”

“Today, I stand in representation of the incredible educators who are tired of putting their bodies over the gaping holes that are impossible to fill, but we show up anyway. Today, I stand up for every student who shows up everyday trusting that we will do right by them. The kids who live in the margins. The kids who persist in spite of a system designed for them to fail.” shared fourth grade teacher Nichole Watson, “I stand today and I will be standing with my fellow educators on May 8th taking action in their local school districts and I know each and every person here and who hears this message today will join us.”

Public school parent Cara Haskey said, “I have two daughters in public schools. My 3rd grader is in a class with between 30-32 students. My first grader has 27 students in her class. Teachers can’t even walk through the rooms let alone give individualized attention. Enough is enough!”

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News release from Oregon Manufacturers and Commerce:

OMC Statement on Co-Chairs’ Budget Framework

Salem, Ore. – Oregon Manufacturers and Commerce released the following statement upon reviewing the co-chairs’ budget framework for the 2019-2021 biennium:

“The Legislature has once again found itself in the position of having record tax revenues, yet lacking enough resources to fully fund core state programs. While the focus in Salem thus far has been on tax increases, efforts to reduce the cost of operating our state government have received little attention. More money alone will not lead to better outcomes for Oregonians, particularly when unfunded PERS obligations are increasingly impacting budgets in every community.

“We encourage lawmakers to thoroughly examine both sides of the state’s ledger as they work to adopt a budget that propels Oregon beyond just the same old status quo.”

This statement may be attributed to Preston Mann, spokesperson for Oregon Manufacturers and Commerce.