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STOP THE GOVERNOR’S PRE-K POWER PLAY
The Willamette Week article “Kotek Says Preschool for All Tax Imperiling Oregon Tax Base” [wweek.com, June 18] presents a flawed narrative about the Preschool for All program and its funding.
Governor Kotek’s claims of declining high-income tax filers are contradicted by independent data: the number of households in Multnomah County with incomes over $500,000 tripled from 2019 to 2023, reaching 7,683. Census data shows high-income households ($200k+) increased from 31,536 in 2019 to 51,183 in 2023. The alleged decline was based on incomplete data and the perceived drop in high-income revenue was due to temporary macroeconomic factors, not a mass exodus.
These letters reveal an appalling attempt to pressure Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson to suspend the voter-approved PFA tax collection. This power play by Portland’s business elite undermines democratic will. Far from imperiling our tax base, the county economist confirms that tax rates need to increase for PFA to reach complete universality, not decrease.
PFA is a vital community investment, aligning with the unimpeachable goal of supporting children. The program intentionally serves a diverse population: in 2024–25, 71% of families had low incomes, 30% of children spoke a language other than English at home, and 65% of enrolled children identify as Black, Indigenous, or children of color. The notion of halting this program to appease a few wealthy individuals who might leave is selfish, unconscionable, and based on misconstrued data. We must uphold our moral obligation to children and support PFA’s continued success.
Gene Johnson
Northeast Portland
WHO YOU CALLING RICH?
The big issue I see with many recent “wealth taxes” in Portland is the baseline income [“Kotek Says Preschool for All Tax Imperiling Oregon Tax Base,” wweek.com, June 18]. It is hard to see how making $125,000 makes someone wealthy in an expensive West Coast city where the average crap shack is now $550,000. Wealth taxes in other localities usually kick in at exponentially higher levels of income
Shawn Alvey
Portland
Commenting on wweek.com
MAKE TAXES LESS PAINFUL TO PAY
I have always been happy to pay the PFA tax. Child care is effing expensive and impossible to find, and it’s the right long-term investment in the community. I know many lower-income folks who would have to move away just to find affordable child care who opted to STAY in Portland because they got the PFA lottery! Measure those statistics, too!
The only thing I dislike is how annoying it is to pay the tax. The requirement to prepay quarterly, the fines associated with not prepaying, the inability for my employer to get the deductions right, and the tax payment website are what makes this annoying. Make taxes less painful to pay!
Jeremy Kun
Portland
Commenting on wweek.com
PORTLAND TREES DON’T DESERVE DOGE
As a local architect and advocate for tree preservation, I was dismayed to see City Council pass Zimmerman’s amendment to uproot Urban Forestry’s Permitting and Regulations team and move it to the beleaguered bureau of Permitting and Development. This amendment improperly uses the budget adoption process to defund a policy that Zimmerman simply dislikes. Portland’s government can and should be better than a local version of Elon Musk’s DOGE.
By moving Urban Forestry’s Permitting and Regulation team over to PP&D, Zimmerman is ensuring the demise of the Tree Code’s enforcement without having to get his hands dirty. That’s because PP&D is facing a budget crisis, and the Urban Forestry staff arriving at the bureau will be the first to get the axe when layoffs begin. If council wants to make changes to Title 11, it should amend the City Code rather than use the budget process to disguise policy change. This is counter to the democratic process because it doesn’t allow the voters their say in the matter.
The Permitting and Regulation team of Urban Forestry enforces the city’s Tree Code evenhandedly, just as a building inspector enforces the Building Code. There is no favoritism and no leeway; the code is the code. If the public has an issue with the Tree Code, then council should amend it via the proper processes. Zimmerman’s amendment is nothing more than a local knockoff of DOGE, and Mayor Wilson should remove it from the city’s final budget.
Matt Nicholson
Portland
Letters to the editor must include the author’s street address and phone number for verification. Letters must be 250 or fewer words. Submit to:
P.O. Box 10770
Portland, OR 97296
Email: amesh@wweek.com
