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Remarks from Karen Minnis -- Speaker, Oregon State House December 6, 2004 -- Leadership Summit 2004 Thank
you. The
most important thing we can do next session is to restore governments’
credibility with our citizens. It’s a long-term project. But we MUST start
now. I
see that as the Legislature’s primary mission this session. Restoring our
credibility means working with what we have. I won’t tell you there’s a
magic way to balance the budget next session without pain – because, there
isn’t. But
we don’t have to talk about a doom and gloom scenario either. Instead of
looking at the budget as inadequate, everyone should be thankful our revenue
is about $1 billion greater than it was two years ago. That’s an increase. I
don’t care how some may try and spin that as a cut – it’s not. I’ll
be working closely with the governor, the senate president and our Ways and
Means members to make sure those increased dollars are spent the best way
possible so that citizens get the greatest return on their investment. That’s
how we start rebuilding our credibility. You can’t do it by asking for more
money. Voters said NO on Measure 28 and they said NO on Measure 30. By those
votes, voters said NO to increasing the income tax, beer and wine taxes, the
corporate minimum tax, the cigarette tax and a host of smaller taxes. We must
respect the will of the voters. Government
must prove to voters that we can work together to build a responsible budget.
If we start the next legislative session by putting out our hat and asking for
higher taxes, we will have learned nothing from the last few years. Instead,
one of my priorities is to change the way we build the budget in Oregon. I’m
especially encouraged by what I’ve heard from my Senate colleagues – and
the governor – about establishing priorities. We suggested this type of
budgeting in the last session, but with the advent of an income tax surcharge,
those budgeting priorities got thrown out the window.
Government
cannot be all things to all people – but if we focus on the essentials:
providing good schools, keeping our communities healthy and safe, and working
to stimulate our economy and create jobs, we CAN build a successful future for
Oregon. Before
we can start on those priorities, we have to end the “spend it all”
mentality at the Capitol. We should limit our spending and save any excess
revenue for when times are hard again, while preserving the kicker. If
we had had such a system in place ten years ago, our budget now would be
slightly higher than it is today and we would have $800 million in reserve. In
addition, we wouldn’t have had to borrow to balance the budget or ask the
voters for tax increases. I’m
pleased to hear the governor propose a savings account or “rainy day fund”
in his budget remarks last week. House Republicans have pushed this idea since
last session, and now with the governor’s support, I’m hopeful we can make
it a reality. Long
term tax reform is worth looking at, but I don’t see that happening this
session. As long as voters think that’s code for increasing taxes, and until
we can establish credibility and prove that we can live within our means,
it’s a premature conversation. Our
efforts would be much better spent by demonstrating fiscal responsibility with
what we have – which is still $1 billion more than we had last session. Another
step toward rebuilding credibility is to take the politics out of school
funding by agreeing to a sustainable school budget and passing it early in the
next session. Too often, funding schools becomes a political bidding war.
That’s not productive. Since
we have a better idea than we did last session what revenue we have to work
with, we should pass a school budget early so school districts can begin
drafting their budgets long before the next school year begins. When
I’ve visited with school administrators, what they tell me they want more
than more money is certainty about what they WILL receive so they can plan for
the next year. That’s only fair. We
can do even more to increase the dollars going directly into classrooms. I’m
impressed with the Oregon Business Plan’s report on education. You have
identified some of the same cost efficiencies that we’ve identified:
reducing the cost of employee benefits and finding efficiencies in school
transportation and payroll systems.
We
plan to pass an Education Accountability Act to better prepare Oregon students
for the challenges of the 21st
Century and ensure that investments equal results in our schools. As
the biggest component of the state’s general fund, we have to find a way to
make our education dollars go further. We’ve tried to enact changes in these
areas before, but change is often feared. With your help, I think we can make
efficiencies that will get more money into classrooms where it counts most. Improving
customer service is a key part of restoring credibility as well. As
leaders in the business community, you understand that you can’t be
successful without providing good customer service. You create satisfied
customers by offering quality products, at fair prices with good follow-up
service. Government
must follow your lead. We need more satisfied customers – tax payers – who
feel they are getting their monies’ worth when they pay taxes. We
need to say “yes” more to citizens and help them in their efforts to start
or expand their businesses. When you’re successful, you hire more people who
pay the taxes that allow government to provide the infrastructure for a
healthy society. This
doesn’t happen in a vacuum. You need an environment that wants you to
succeed. Oregon can do better to create that environment. When
it takes months or years to get a building permit, if you can’t find
industrial-zoned land on which to build, and you’re success is penalized by
the highest capital gains tax in the nation – it’s no wonder that Oregon
isn’t more competitive. We
have to make Oregon a place where businesses WANT to be and where they can
grow. We must attract new industries and nurture small businesses. We must
also nurture our traditional forest and fiber industries, which are the
backbone of our rural economy. Oregon’s
foresters, farmers and fisherman have been responsible stewards of our natural
resources and we should be encouraging their growth. I
am hopeful for the coming years. I am truly inspired by the great turnout
today and by the Oregon Business Plan’s commitment to work with us to make
Oregon a better place. In
my nearly 20 years in Oregon politics, I have never seen businesses so engaged
in the public policy debate as you are today. I’m thankful for that and I
congratulate you on taking the initiative to become more involved. I
especially appreciated the hard work of Jim Zupancic, Peggy Fowler, John
Harker, Scott Langley, and Joseph Otting who helped develop our Economic
Recovery Plan last session and whose work was instrumental in laying the
groundwork for House Bill 2011 – our plan to refocus and re-energize the
OECDD – that passed last session. Your
ideas and your willingness to work with me, the senate president and the
governor is a big help and I hope we’ll be working closely together this
session as well. My door is open, and I expect to you to come talk to me about
making our shared goals a reality. I
am optimistic about next session. We have a great caucus and an aggressive
agenda to get our economy and our state back on track. We must focus on the
future and on making Oregon a better place to do business, and a better place
to work and raise a family. Thank
you again for all your hard work. Back to Highlights from Leadership Summit 2004
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