NEWS UPDATE FROM STATE REPRESENTATIVE DAVID GOMBERG: Independence Day News

Dear Neighbors and Friends,

Next week is the 4th of July – Independence Day.

As we all prepare to celebrate with friends and family, I want to take a moment to wish everyone a safe holiday. The 4th is a day to be proud – to celebrate the freedom and spirit of our nation and to recognize the remarkable system of government our Founding Fathers and Mothers created all those years ago.

As an elected official, I greatly value our intricate process of checks and balances and our shared and separate federal, state, and local powers. I thank you for honoring me with the responsibility to represent you as a part of that system in the Oregon legislature.

I’ve often heard that only two things are certain in life – death and taxes. This famous quote originated with Benjamin Franklin in 1789. Over 200 years later, it still rings true. But we don’t often think about the taxes we pay when our time comes to pass.

Revenue from Oregon estate taxes has increased more than sixfold over the past two decades, rising from less than $50 million annually to around $300 million. You can read more here in the Oregonian.

It’s not that more people are dying — though Oregon does have one of the oldest populations of any state. Rather, state economists say, estate tax payments are rising because people dying are more wealthy and the size of their estates is much larger than in past years.

Oregon taxes estates worth more than $1 million. That is a lower threshold than many other jurisdictions. Washington state taxes estates valued at more than $2.2 million and the federal estate tax kicks in at $13.6 million.

Those estate taxes — assessed on wealth and property passed on to heirs — are a relatively small portion of total state revenue. While $300 million in estate taxes is certainly a lot of money, it’s much less than the $8.6 billion in personal income taxes Oregon expects to collect this year.

Oregon’s tax rate on estates rises gradually from 10% for those valued above $1 million to 16% for the portion of an estate valued above $9.5 million.

The $1 million tax threshold hasn’t changed since 2006, and inflation has pushed up incomes and investment valuations since then. I said this differently on the floor of the House last year in a tax debate: “One million dollars isn’t what it used to be!”

For example, Oregon home prices have climbed. That alone pushed more estates above the million-dollar threshold and increased the number of estate tax filings. Another example affects our agricultural community. The latest data from the USDA Census of Agriculture show that the value of Oregon farmland has increased by 23% over a five-year period, compared with just 7% nationally. So the estate tax may land harder on small farmers and mid-income Oregonians with nice houses.

For those reasons and more, I support increasing our estate tax threshold from the current $1 million.

You can learn more about estate taxes and estate planning here. BTW – Oregon does not have an inheritance tax which might affect you if you’re inheriting property or money from someone who lives out of state.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Friday that cities can enforce bans on homeless people sleeping outside, even if they don’t have enough shelter space to accommodate them. The court’s decision found that Grants Pass’ policy penalizing people who sit or sleep on public property did not amount to cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment. But that ruling will have a limited effect across Oregon because of a state law that says cities need to have a plan other than just punishing people experiencing homelessness.

The court case stretches back to 2018. The Oregon statute was passed in 2021 and requires that local rules regulating where homeless individuals can sit, lie or sleep outdoors on public property must be “objectively reasonable” in their “time, place and manner.” So a city can have laws, but they must be “reasonable”. What that means has not been ruled on by the Courts.

The 2021 measure, House Bill 3115, passed in the House 35-23 and in the Senate 18-10. I was one of three House Democrats to vote “no”. In the most simple terms, I thought allowing people to camp on public property was not the answer.

Polls in recent years have consistently shown that Oregon residents consider homelessness the top issue facing the state and region. A federal count of homeless individuals in 2023 found that Oregon had the third highest homelessness rate in the nation and was worst-in-nation for unaccompanied homeless youth. If we have 48 Oregonians without permanent housing for every 10,000 people in the state, think 50 people in Newport, 50 in Lincoln City, and 30 in Philomath. The state’s homeless population increased 23% during the pandemic years from 2020 to 2022 and another 12% from 2022 to 2023.

In 2022, Oregon communities noted that more people lost their housing because of climate events such as extreme wildfires across the state, floods in the coastal areas, and heavy snowstorms in the eastern region of the state. Twenty percent of the kids in our schools are still designated as homeless. Oregon also has one of the highest percentages of veterans experiencing unsheltered homelessness with 56% of the state’s homeless veterans living outside.

I support shelters and assistance for people experiencing homelessness. As I said at a recent town hall, whether we have shelters or not, we are going to have homeless people here. The question is whether they receive help, oversight and support, or whether they simply camp in our parks, woods, or trespass on private property. People with signs on street corners or sleeping in business doorways at night affect public safety, livability, and our recreational economy.

I prefer our cities and counties address these critical issues in a practical, compassionate, and common-sense manner.

I want us to take care of families with children. I want more foster care for kids. I want addiction services and mental health treatment for those who will accept it. I want to provide a transition to stable housing for those who want it. And of course, we need to continue the work to build more of that affordable housing. And finally, I want to punish those who break the law.

An unoccupied homeless camp just off Highway 101 documented by the Lincoln County Leader.

I’m seeing renewed efforts to address the larger homelessness crisis in Oregon.

I hope the Legislature will see this opportunity to consider the tools cities and counties truly need to manage public camping, provide sufficient shelter, and keep our people safe and streets clean.

Here’s some good news for whale lovers on the Oregon coast.

The number of gray whales that migrated south along the Pacific Coast this winter have rebounded sharply to numbers not seen in four years, according to the fisheries unit of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or NOAA.

The increase is large enough and signs of healthy North Pacific gray whales are visible enough that NOAA also announced it had ended its five-year “unusual mortality event” investigation into what may have led to their decline from 2018 through 2023.

Researchers estimate there are 19,260 gray whales along the West Coast — a surprising 33% increase from the 14,530 whales counted during the same period of 2022-23. Last season’s count was the lowest since 1971-72.

Read more here.

And speaking of whales, I was proud to help secure a Gray Whale license place for Oregon. Did you know you can get a tax break for the additional cost of any charitable plate on schedule A of your federal taxes?

Did you get a Facebook request that looks like it came from me recently? If so, please take care. I did NOT send it and seldom interact on Facebook.

It has been an intense weekend!

Friday I was the auctioneer at the Jazz Jam, a concert and fundraiser for the Oregon Coast Jazz Party and Performing Arts Center in Newport.

Saturday morning I spoke at the 50th Anniversary celebration of the Cascade Head Scenic Research Area which now includes the Cascade Head Experimental Forest, the Cascade Head Preserve, and the Cascade Head Marine Reserve and Marine Protected Areas.

I talked about the resilience of our native Tillamook peoples, the vision of those who fifty years ago resolved to secure and protect a special part of Oregon, and of our obligation to preserve this space for future generations. I also spoke to our legislative commitment to extend and better fund our Marine Reserves, and urged the US Forest Serve to re-open access roads that make it easier for people to reach Cascade Head.

I then stopped by Lincoln City Pride. It was a joy to see the new Cultural Center Plaza at full capacity with performance spaces filled, booths lining the sidewalks, meeting rooms all filled with displays, the expanded parking area full, and throngs of joyful people festooned with bright colors, tie-dye, and rainbow attire. “Remember to wash in cold water!” I warned them.

Susie and I wrapped up the day with live music in the Salishan Marketplace. Sunday morning I was back for the Farmer’s Market stocking up on local jams.

Thursday the Fourth will be like a busy weekend all crammed into one very busy day!

We’ll do the La De Da Parade in Yachats, drive back to Newport for the celebratory Newport Symphony Community Concert, do a meet-and-greet with Congresswoman Val Hoyle at Wilds Taphouse at 5:30, and then join friends for fireworks over the bay at dusk.

The Fourth of July is always a great holiday and provides an opportunity to celebrate our nation’s birthday with family and friends. While barbecues and fireworks are a fun way to celebrate, it is important that we stay safe and celebrate legally. Recklessness and the use of illegal fireworks can lead to wildfires, especially during these hot and dry summer months.

Legal fireworks in the State of Oregon include but are not limited to; novelty devices, wheels, flitter sparklers, fountains, smoke devices, and ground spinners. The legal sale of retail fireworks in Oregon is from June 23rd to July 6th. There is no regulation of when those legal fireworks may be used.

If you are purchasing legal fireworks, it is important to remember the following:

Be prepared before lighting fireworks: keep water available by using a garden hose or bucket.
Be safe when lighting fireworks: keep children and pets away from fireworks. Never use fireworks near or on dry grass or vegetation.
Be responsible after lighting fireworks: never relight a dud. Please wait 15 to 20 minutes, then soak spent fireworks in a bucket of water before disposal.
Check local ordinances! And please remember to clean up any refuse.

Oregon law prohibits the possession, use, or sale of any firework that flies into the air, explodes, or travels more than 12 feet horizontally on the ground without a permit issued by the state fire marshal. Fireworks commonly called bottle rockets, Roman candles, and firecrackers are illegal in Oregon without a permit.

Of course, you can always opt for one of our large public firework events. Celebrate Independence Day safely and enjoy the holiday week ahead!