Gov. Kate Brown speaks at an event in Portland on June 28, 2016. Brown said she is not ready to take a stance on a controversial corporate tax measure on this fall's ballot.
Conrad Wilson / OPB
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown said Tuesday that she will be taking a stance on a ballot measure that would raise taxes on businesses, but she's not yet ready to do so.
The initiative, currently referred to as IP-28, has qualified for the November ballot. It would raise taxes on businesses with sales that exceed $25 million dollars, generating a projected $3 billion dollars per year in tax revenue.
“I will be making a decision," Brown said following an event in downtown Portland. "The bottom line is as governor I believe it’s important that I consider all of Oregon, all of Oregon’s businesses and the people throughout the state. I think that it’s more important that I get the decision right than have it be done quickly."
Brown said she’s meeting with businesses and service providers as she tries to determine whether or not she’ll support the tax measure.
Many in the business community oppose the ballot measure, arguing it will harm Oregon’s economy. Public employee unions, the measure’s biggest supporters, said the state needs additional funds.
On that point, Brown agreed.
“We are facing a revenue shortfall in the next biennium roughly in the neighborhood of $1.4 billion," Brown said.
Former Gov. John Kitzhaber has been critical of the measure as well as Brown’s neutral stance on the tax measure.
