Oregon Tax Battle Includes "Intel Present" Vs. "Intel Past"

One of the biggest players in the current battle over two 2009 income tax hikes is the Oregon Business Association. Some members of the moderate business group's board pushed for it to oppose the permanent tax increases that appear headed for referral to the January ballot.

But sources familiar with the internal OBA debate say that Intel, Oregon's largest private sector employer and an OBA member, pushed hard for the group to remain neutral (The OBA ultimately did stay neutral.)

It's interesting then, to see two of the latest contributors to Oregonians Against Job-Killing Taxes, the group that opposes the permanent tax hikes. Those contributors to OAJKT are two men who used to run Intel's Oregon operations: Frank Gill ($4,000) and Keith Thomson ($3,000).

OAJKT, which has raised more than $1.2 million and spent about $900,000, turned in more than twice the number of required signatures to refer each measure. The signatures have not yet been certified. But when that happens, tax proponents will be allowed to file their political action committee and we'll begin tracking the sources of their money.