2008 Oregon Ballot Measure 56

Oregon Ballot Measure 56 or House Joint Resolution 15 (HJR 15) is a legislatively referred constitutional amendment that enacted law which provides that property tax elections decided at May and November elections will be decided by a majority of voters who are voting in the relevant election.[2] It repealed the double majority requirement passed by the voters in the 1990s via Measures 47 and 50, which requires that, for non-general elections, all bond measures can pass only when a majority of registered voters turn out.

Measure 56
Amends Constitution: Provides That May And November Property Tax Elections Are Decided By Majority Of Voters Voting.
Results
Choice
Votes %
Yes 959,118 56.60%
No 735,500 43.40%
Total votes 1,694,618 100.00%
Registered voters/turnout 85.7%
Results by county

Yes

  50%-60%
  60%-70%

No

  50%-60%
Source: Oregon Secretary of State[1]

The measure appeared on the November 4, 2008 general election ballot in Oregon and was passed with 56.6% of the vote.

Vote tallies by county:

County Yes Votes No Votes Total
Baker 45.60 3,794 54.40 4,527 8,321
Benton 60.15 25,825 39.85 17,106 42,931
Clackamas 54.54 96,605 45.46 80,525 177,130
Clatsop 58.96 10,122 41.04 7,046 17,168
Columbia 50.52 11,861 49.48 11,619 23,480
Coos 50.46 14,896 49.54 14,623 29,519
Crook 46.37 4,543 53.63 5,254 9,797
Curry 48.23 5,552 51.77 5,960 11,512
Deschutes 52.25 38,769 47.75 35,428 74,197
Douglas 47.76 23,696 52.24 25,919 49,615
Gilliam 54.20 568 45.80 480 1,048
Grant 45.14 1,645 54.86 1,999 3,644
Harney 48.81 1,688 51.19 1,770 3,458
Hood River 58.06 5,259 41.94 3,799 9,058
Jackson 52.82 49,843 47.18 44,527 94,370
Jefferson 49.51 3,899 50.49 3,976 7,875
Josephine 47.36 18,627 52.64 20,704 39,331
Klamath 46.49 12,908 53.51 14,856 27,764
Lake 43.80 1,518 56.20 1,948 3,466
Lane 60.35 102,750 39.65 67,504 170,254
Lincoln 55.46 12,523 44.54 10,058 22,581
Linn 47.05 22,976 52.95 25,858 48,834
Malheur 42.75 4,222 57.25 5,655 9,877
Marion 52.82 60,894 47.18 54,402 115,296
Morrow 52.49 2,045 47.51 1,851 3,896
Multnomah 68.26 228,199 31.74 106,114 334,313
Polk 52.68 17,739 47.32 15,935 33,674
Sherman 48.71 471 51.29 496 967
Tillamook 52.38 6,606 47.62 6,006 12,612
Umatilla 51.88 12,461 48.12 11,560 24,021
Union 50.17 5,943 49.83 5,902 11,845
Wallowa 48.46 1,995 51.54 2,122 4,117
Wasco 54.85 5,860 45.15 4,824 10,684
Washington 55.95 120,957 44.05 95,240 216,197
Wheeler 43.38 334 56.62 436 770
Yamhill 52.51 21,525 47.49 19,471 40,996

Supporters

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Measure 56 was supported by the Voting Matters Coalition, which included the League of Women Voters of Oregon, Human Services Coalition of Oregon, Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon, Basic Rights Oregon, Coalition for a Livable Future, Elders in Action, and Oregon PTA.

Official Voters' Pamphlet arguments in favor can be found at the Oregon Secretary of State's November 4, 2008 Voters' Pamphlet of Measures.

Newspaper endorsements

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Here is how Oregon's major newspapers have endorsed on the measure:

Newspapers Yes No
The Oregonian Yes
Medford Mail-Tribune Yes
Statesman Journal Yes
Bend Bulletin Yes
Portland Tribune Yes
Eugene Register-Guard Yes
Daily Astorian Yes
East Oregonian Yes
Corvallis Gazette Times Yes
Coos Bay The World Yes
Willamette Week Yes
Yamhill Valley News Register[permanent dead link] Yes
Gresham Outlook Yes

Arguments in favor

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Notable arguments made in support of the measure included:

  • Measure 56 restores the basic democratic principle that elections should be decided by a majority of the voters who take their time to cast a ballot. Giving non-voters as much—or more—power than the people who actually vote is inherently undemocratic and unfair.
  • Under Oregon's Vote By Mail, there are no longer any "sneaker" elections—a ballot arrives in the mailbox of every voter any time there is an election, and when there are property tax proposals on the ballot, they are clearly and boldly marked on the front of the envelope. Voters who don't support a measure simply have to vote no.
  • The "double majority" rule rewards people for not participating, which runs counter the idea of participatory democracy.
  • Oregon has been plagued with budget crises since the passage of Measure 47 in 1996. Since then, the state has been working to reign in spending and work for a balanced budget, but it's come at the severe expense of important programs, such as education. Other options must be on the table and Measure 47 removes those options.
  • Measure 47 is undemocratic and Measure 56 would eliminate that element of our electoral system. Functionally, everyone who chooses not to or cannot vote in a given election, votes NO on the measures that 47 applies to, even if they otherwise would have voted YES. This makes it extremely difficult to get such important measures passed and puts NO campaigns at an unfair advantage. Voter turnout in Oregon is rarely large enough to achieve a supermajority and it is notoriously low in midterm elections where a president is not being voted on. This is unfair and detrimental to our state
  • A further effect of Measure 47 is to ensure that those who cannot vote but are still registered vote NO. If, for example, Registered Voter A dies a month before a scheduled election, his death is not likely to be reflected on the voter roles and he will in effect vote NO from the grave. Or a convicted felon whose voting rights are relinquished may still show up on voter roles and Measure 47 effectively gives that felon the right to vote, but only to vote NO.
  • Measure 56 will restore an important part of democracy in Oregon.

Opponents

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Steve Buckstein of the non-partisan, non-profit Cascade Policy Institute wrote a commentary that says, "Critics of Oregon's so-called 'double majority' rule say it isn't democratic because a simple majority of those voting may not be able to pass a tax measure. But in reality, just 25% of registered voters can raise taxes under 'double-majority.' 'Double majority' is a sensible taxpayer safeguard that should be kept, and even strengthened."

Opposing arguments

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Notable arguments made in opposition to the measure included:

  • Measure 56 would weaken the "double majority" rule (which has stopped numerous tax hikes) that requires 50 percent plus one of registered voters to turn out and 50 percent plus one of the votes in favor of a potential tax hike before it can take effect.
  • Oregonians voted in 1996 and again in 1997 to place the double majority requirement on certain property tax elections into the state Constitution. In 1998 voters rejected an attempt by the legislature to repeal it. Now, the legislature has placed a similar measure on this November's ballot. It will ask Oregonians to reverse a decision we've already made three times before.
  • The double majority rule does not require a supermajority to pass any tax. In fact, the opposite is true. If only fifty percent of registered voters participate in a given election, and if just fifty percent plus one of those voters approve a property tax measure, simple math tells us that a mere 25 percent of all registered voters can impose that tax on all property owners in the jurisdiction. In effect, they can impose that tax on all renters, too, since landlords usually pass taxes on to their tenants in the form of higher rents.
  • Before the rule was in place, taxes could be imposed by a mere 20 percent, or 10 percent, or even a smaller percentage of all registered voters. Now, it takes at least 25 percent of all registered voters to impose certain property taxes in other than a general election.
  • Rather than repeal this sensible taxpayer safeguard, it might be more "democratic" to strengthen it, perhaps by requiring a majority of all registered voters to vote Yes before any tax can be imposed.

Notes

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  1. ^ Bradbury, Bill (4 November 2008). "Official Results – November 4, 2008 General Election" (Website). Elections Division. Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved December 24, 2008.
  2. ^ Official ballot title and status of this initiative
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