Sponsored by Ken Helm (D-27th district) and Chris Gorsek (D-25th district)
HB3362 seeks to impose a 4 percent excise tax on all new tire purchases in Oregon for the purpose of rail transit, tire pollution and wildlife crossing. No comments from the sponsors of the bill were posted on this site. However, there is a clearly explained aticle available at Oregon roundup
According to Facstdemocracy.com;
Digest: (Introduced o January 28, 2025),
“This Act creates a tax on tires to pay for rail transit, tire pollution and wildlife crossings.
Imposes an excise tax on retail sales of tires.
Directs the Department of Revenue to transfer tax revenue to specified funds for purposes related to rail transit, tire pollution prevention and mitigation and wildlife passage infrastructure.
Establishes the Tire Pollution and Rail Transit Fund.
Establishes the Wildlife-Vehicle Collision Reduction Fund.
Directs the Department of Transportation to establish a tire pollution prevention and mitigation program.
Takes effect on the 91st day following adjournment sine die.”
It is scheduled for a public hearing this Tuesday, March 4th, at 5 pm
I think it’s a good idea. The only other way to pay for these things is to charge either the maker or retailers. Which would then raise the tires, and we all know, they would raise it more than 4%.
How about we cut out some pork from the Oregon capitol operations? There is already too much waste that could pay for this. Any new taxes should be voted on by the tax paying public citizens.
Nancy, by “raise the tires” I assume you are referring to the price of tires. In case you weren’t aware, no matter what entity the tax is levied against, the tax is almost always pasted on to the consumer, otherwise, what’s the point? Our Oregon Governor is asking working families to pay a 4% increase for their tires. That’s in addition to the transportation tax levied a couple of years ago and the new Oregon Family leave Insurance. Added together the Oregon leadership has added +/- 12% increase in taxes on working families. Our cost of living is now 15% higher than the national average. We need some relief, don’t you think so?
Have we ever considered cutting fat out of budgets and looking for way to lower taxes instead of dreaming up ways to increase and add new taxes to the working class
Don’t do it. It’s just one step closer to state Sales tax on everything. Use the old money wisely and stop Funding pet projects that the majority of oregon voters DONT approve of.
Absolutely not no more taxes
This is more democrate BS. All this equates to is another slush fund for legislature and Governor. As is Oregon’s way this will have no oversight. This bill unfairly impacts trucking, farming and logging operations in especially eastern Oregon.. It is my belief that was the plan from the start. Tina Kotek has obviously gotten caught with her hand in the cookie jar and simply wants to make a new jar. The Portlander who rides his little electric bike or commutes or rides the failed transit system cares not. Those of us who have multiple vehicles and equipment suffer. Republicans it is time to step up.
All those people have to do is drive over the border to another state and buy them there. That’s what I would do.
Why should vehicle use (tires) pay for mass transit? Let mass transit pay its own way. Unfair to areas outside the Willamette valley.
The salem Oregon govt just gave someone who quit a qrt million severance for messing up the budget and you want to pass that back off in the form of a tire tax? Tax the electric cars that ruined the income for the gas tax. Don’t keep taking more from those of us already struggling over gas and groceries… Absolutely insane of a government body.
WHOS THE DEMOCRAT THAT CAME UP WITH THIS, WHY DONT YOU CHARGE A 10.00 FEE ON BICYCLES ,YOU KNOW SHARE THE COST
Also, who are the Republicans and Democrats who passed a law several years ago to charge a state Sales Tax on Bicycles in Oregon, but who didn’t create a Hwy 101 Bikeway or Bike Parking to go with that tax? Oregon’s supposedly against having a Sales Tax (or is it a consumption tax?). So, is that sales tax on bicycles supposed to punish people extra for riding a bicycle? And who’s keeping people who can’t afford cars dependent on cars in Lincoln County? If you live on the north end, like Otis, but need to work a late retail shift or go to night classes in Newport, but don’t drive or own a car, you can’t even get home because the last northbound county bus is 6pm. Who is forcing people to go into debt to buy CARS, much less new tires, by not running a late bus at say 10PM? This article raises a lot of questions about a lot of consumer tax topics, including tire pollution, lack of public transit, and the indignities of using small-footprint transportation. Oh and wildlife passages, whose users can’t pay their fair share even if they wanted to, but will still receive a nice walkway so they won’t be forced to feel unsafe getting where they need to go on foot.