Letter: A gift

Published 12:15 am Saturday, October 19, 2024

Measure 118 and its $1,600 tax rebate are a gift to the citizens of Oregon.

Don’t be fooled by the lies and propaganda that Measure 118 will harm small businesses. Measure 118 increases the corporate minimum tax to 3% on annual sales above $25 million, so it is a tax that large corporations will pay and not small businesses.

The majority of small businesses in Oregon don’t make anywhere near $25 million in annual sales. The average small business in America makes under $1.3 million in sales annually. A business with $26 million in annual sales will only pay the 3% tax on $1 million, with the first $25 million exempt.

The hysteria that this tax will harm mom-and-pop’s shops is laughable. Measure 118 also lifts the current cap of a $100,000 minimum tax limit on sales above $100 million. All sales above $25 million will be taxed at 3%. One hundred thousand equals one tenth of 1% of $100 million, while 3% of $100 million equals $3 million.

The effort by big money interests to defeat Measure 118 reflects the corporate greed that is responsible for growing economic inequality across Oregon and America. It is time for large corporations to pay their fair share in taxes.

The tax rebate will help Oregonians struggling with the unsustainable cost of living. The $1,600 Oregon tax rebate will help the working class and poor deal with the high cost of rent, utilities, food and gas. Vote “yes: on Measure 118.

MARK ROLOFSON

Gearhart