On July 29, a broad, bipartisan coalition representing hundreds of large and small businesses, consumers, taxpayers and leading organizations from across Oregon, including the Bend Chamber, announced its formal opposition to a costly ballot proposal to create a $6.8 Billion tax on sales in Oregon.
Initiative Petition 17 (IP 17) was qualified for the November 2024 ballot by the Oregon Secretary of State Elections Division on Wednesday, July 24. IP 17 will receive a ballot measure number once the Division completes all of its petition validation processes, likely in early August.
The backers of this enormous tax on sales, who funded the signature-gathering effort that led to certification, are California-based advocates for so-called “universal basic income” programs.
If passed by Oregon voters, IP 17 would impose a 3% tax on a corporation’s annual gross sales over $25 million. The measure is essentially a gross receipts tax: It taxes sales, not profits, and businesses would be forced to pay regardless of whether they were making a large profit, small profit, or were losing money.
