Governing: OR’s Complicated Property Tax Rates Favor Higher-Valued Houses
ELGL is excited to announce a lunch forum in partnership with the League of Oregon Cities. As anyone familiar with Oregon property taxes knows there is a lot of pressure on local governments and confusion for citizens in the current system. The LOC is working actively to change the system and they recently released a study that may help them build momentum to do so. Join us on June 17th at noon for a forum to answer all your questions and explain the study.
The Mixed-Up World of Oregon Property Taxes
Ever since the passage of measures 5 and 50, taxation in Oregon has never been the same (for those unfamiliar check this out: A Brief History of Oregon Property Taxation). These two ballot initiatives lowered property taxes in a way that is hard to notice for those unfamiliar with the laws. This situation puts a lot of pressure on local governments to provide the same amount of services with less money and the League of Oregon Cities has been lobbying for reform.
As a part of this effort the League commissioned a report to study how the property tax system was influencing the housing market. This study, completed by Tom Potiowsky at the Northwest Economic Research Center, found that it is affecting certain neighborhoods in Portland. Check out the full report:
Report: Property Tax System Unfairly Influencing Housing Market
Inequities created by Oregon’s property tax system are significantly influencing the housing market
To delve deeper into the report and examine what it means we will be having a lunch forum on June 17th at noon (PT). Chris Fick from the League of Oregon Cities and Tom Potiowsky from the Northwest Economic Research Center will be speaking. So RSVP and come armed with your toughest questions.
Meet the Speakers
Tom Potiowsky
Connect with Tom: LinkedIn. Connect with Northwest Economic Research: Website.
Tom is the chair of the Economics Department at PSU and was the Co-Director of the Applied Economics Research Group. Tom was appointed as State Economist in 1999 through 2006 and again in 2008 through 2011. He has years of experience taking complicated economic analysis and results, and turning it into a meaningful, understandable presentation for policymakers and stakeholders.
Chris Fick
Connect with Chris: Twitter. Connect with League of Oregon Cities: Website
Chris is a lobbyist for the League of Oregon Cities and specializes in finance, taxation, and economic development. He graduated from the University of Oregon and did Teach for America in Louisiana before getting his Masters Degree in Public Policy at the University of Maryland.
Supplemental Reading
- Governing: Oregon’s Complicated Property Tax Rates Favor Higher-Valued Houses
- Report: Property Tax System Unfairly Influencing Housing Market
- Oregonian: Oregon’s weird property tax laws create winners and losers
- Knope of the Week: Tom Potiowsky
- The Rest of the Story on the Deschutes County Property Tax Fairy
- You’ve Met the Tooth Fairy, Now Meet the Property Tax Fairy
- Josh’s Job Search Meets Chris Fick
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