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Timber Severance Tax

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Oregon has only a modest tax on harvested timber that just supports the industry. Unlike Washington state, Oregon doesn’t tax the value of trees when cut to compensate counties for reduced property taxes while the timber was growing.

Read about it: Timber Tax Citizen concept

… and more: How to Protect Our Water

Here are some questions to get you thinking.

What is the best severance tax design and use?

  • What percentage should be returned to the counties as property tax?
  • Who should be taxed? And what rate?
  • Revenue to protect watershed/drinking water
  • Best mechanism to incentivize better forest management?
  • Which forest management characteristics are most important for drinking water, fish protection and fire hazards?
  • Is fire protection an important use of this revenue? What aspects-fire resistant building materials, defensible space or fire suppression?

A rural community coalition has already designed their own tax bill.

Let’s discuss the details of their plan as laid out in the handouts attached or linked here and see what you would like to see accomplished!

Strategy: How will we make a tax severance plan happen?

  • What organizations do we need onboard?
  • Are county commissioners supportive?
  • Do we have the votes for a 3/5th majority?
  • The industrial timber industry is a powerful lobby, what would you say to counter their opposition?

Want to get involved? Contact Catherine Thomasson or Jody Wiser with the Tax Fairness Oregon 503-819-1170

 

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Election 2020 Recap (so far)

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The voting is over, and the nail-biting continues. The Trump campaign and the Republican Party will certainly petition to have the votes recounted in certain states like Wisconsin and Michigan, so the results of the presidential election may yet be weeks away. Stay tuned to find out if there are things Democrats in Oregon can do to support our fellow Democrats in those states where recounts may happen. You can peruse this pamphlet for ideas of what to expect in the coming weeks and what you can do about it:  Hold-The-Line_-A-Guide-to-Defending-Democracy.pdf

Nearer to home, The Josephine County Democratic Party has helped send Senator Merkley and Congressman DeFazio back to Washington to continue their great work for us, and we have made our next redistricting secure by electing Shemia Fagan to the office of the Secretary of State. We also helped return State Treasurer Tobias Read and Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum to their offices with our votes. Thank you Alex Spenser, for making a good run of it in Congressional District 2.

Although none of the Democratic candidates running for the state legislative seats that cover Josephine County won, we must remember that they had uphill battles in districts that lean two-thirds conservative. The fact that we had excellent candidates running in these positions is important because Republicans too often run unopposed here, and our candidates were instrumental in sharing alternative solutions with the public about pressing issues in Josephine County and southern Oregon. Hats off to Jerry Allen, Mary Middleton, Kat Stone, Calla Felicity, and Jerry Morgan for being willing to step up and make our voices heard.

Locally, we will have several new city council members in Grants Pass, including Vanessa Ogier, Brian DeLaGrange, and Robert Pell, plus a new mayor, Sara Bristol. The new perspectives and energy they will bring to the council are much needed and welcomed. Here, here for transparency!

We want to give a great big thank you to our many volunteers. They have given their time and energy to staff our office, watch the ballot processing and the ballot box sites, write letters and postcards, phone bank and text, and do the behind-the-scenes technological work necessary that made all of our voter outreach possible. During this election season, our volunteers attempted to contact every Democrat in Josephine County. Our Neighborhood Leader Program contacted 3392 Democrats here with calls, texts, or letters, and we attempted to contact all of the rest of the Democrats in the county with postcards, phone calls, or texts to encourage them to vote. As of this writing, the Democratic Party turnout in Josephine County stands at 85.4%.

Lastly, we want to give a big thank you to all the donors who supported us financially. You paid for our voter drive and kept our office doors open; without your help none of this would have been possible. We’re humbled by your generosity.

 

 

 

 

Only 8 Days left until Nov. 3!

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There are only 8 days left until Election Day!

It is no longer safe to mail your ballot and expect it to arrive before the deadline.

You will need to take your ballot to one of the following
Official Ballot Drop Box locations:

County Clerk’s Office – 500 NW 6th Street Room 170, Grants Pass

Josephine County Courthouse   – 500 NW 6th Street, Grants Pass (Corner of 6th/C)

Washington Federal Bank – 290 Union Avenue, Grants Pass (Front parking lot)

Josephine Community Library – 200 NW C Street, Grants Pass (Rear Parking Lot, Enter from C Street)

Cave Junction City Building -222 West Lister Street, Cave Junction

Umpqua Bank – 3600 Merlin Road, Merlin   (Corner of Monument Dr./Merlin Rd)

 Hidden Valley Market – 7200 Williams Highway, Murphy

If you have questions or need additional information, call 541-450-1749

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Team DeFazio Virtual Phonebank 10/19/2020

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Team DeFazio Virtual Phonebank

  • Monday, October 19, 2020
  • 12:00 PM 7:30 PM

    Join Team DeFazio for a phonebank to help re-elect our Congressman! Sign up here.

    Before your shift, you will be emailed all the information you will need to have a successful phone bank, including a how-to video, scripts, and more. The campaign also has a community Zoom room that is always staffed by someone from Team DeFazio in the event a volunteer has questions or wants to hang out while making calls.

    Shifts are:
    12-2 p.m.
    2:30-4 p.m.
    5-7:30 p.m.

    Please contact Chelsea at Chelsea@DeFazioforCongress.org, or 541-357-7768, with any questions.

    Josephine Democrats are Getting Out The Vote!

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    The ballots haven’t even gone out, but regardless of the final outcome of this election, the results of our Get Out The Vote outreach and our Neighborhood Leader Program (NLP) has been a great success. The communications we are receiving from our outreach and the large number of visitors we have had at our office, is demonstrating that there is a lot of support for our Democratic candidates.

    With our GOTV and NLP outreach, we have reached over 11,000 registered Josephine County Democrats.

    One neighbor brought her NL (Neighborhood Leader) a loaf of fresh zucchini bread as a thank you after she received a personalized note and voter guide.

    Another neighbor cried on the phone with her NL, when she learned she wasn’t a lone Democrat on her block.

    And yet another, reached out and asked for assistance completing his ballot after receiving one of our postcards because he was having trouble reading now, and wanted to make sure his BLUE ballot was counted.

    This is what community is. Connecting. Helping each other. Working together for positive change.

    Ballots are being mailed out tomorrow. There are just 22 days until November 3, 2020. When you receive it, complete it right away, and deliver it directly to the County Clerk, or your nearest Drop Box. You can find the nearest drop box at jocovote.com/dropbox.

    When you wake up on the morning of election day, will you be able to say to yourself, “Well, whatever happens, I know that I did all I could do”? Rachel Maddow

    If you haven’t helped with our efforts, it is not too late. You can still join us in connecting with fellow Democrats, and help us Get Out The Vote. This election is one that will define the future of our country. Local races can be won by a single vote. Don’t sit this election out.

    To join in our Get Out The Vote campaign or to assist some of our local candidates, email our coordinator at outreach@josephinedemocrats.org or call 541-450-1749.

     

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