Issues
California Court Strikes Down Teacher Tenure
– Townhall.com
Five teacher hiring and firing laws bit the dust in California this week. In a major blow to teachers unions, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Rolf M. Treu’s ruling struck down teacher tenure, while freeing districts from spending hundreds of thousands to fire teachers and from having to fire newly-hired teachers first during layoffs…
…The data could not be clearer that the union-controlled public education monopoly disproportionately harms black and Latino students. But legal pushback on the issue puts the Democratic Party in a tight spot. Party leaders can continue ignoring or thwarting reform efforts… Or, they can jump on board the fight for equality, and alienate the teachers unions…
In his ruling Judge Treu described the evidence that California’s teacher hiring and firing laws harm poor and minority students “compelling.”
…Harvard Prof. Raj Chetty testified as well, showing research that a student with a grossly ineffective teacher for even one year loses $50,000 in lifetime earnings compared to a student assigned to an average teacher…
Our Response & Your Comments
While most teachers are dedicated and hardworking, as in any profession there are some who should be ushered out of it. This is why tenure matters.
According to Oregon Revised Statute 342.805(3), a teacher ends his/her probationary period and, in effect, earns tenure after three years providing that he/she “has been retained for the next succeeding school year.”
How hard is it to fire a tenured but incompetent teacher? According to a formerly highly placed Eugene official, very, very hard. In fact, a recent removal took one and one half years. According to Harvard Prof. Chetty (above), that means that for every class of just 20 kids with an incompetent teacher, those kids lose a total of $1,500,000 in lifetime income.
Maybe Eugene’s lucky. According to a former administrator in Salem Keizer Public Schools it takes two years to fire an incompetent teacher there. That’s a whopping $2,000,000 in total lifetime income lost to every class of 20 kids with a bad teacher.
We all know (or at least we’ve been told) that schools never have enough money. The next time they want more, maybe we should tell them to find a way to stop victimizing kids with bad teachers. Then we’ll talk about more money!
Paid sick-time proposal getting thorough look
– Guest Opinion in the Eugene Register Guard by City Councilor Claire Syrett, June 9, 2014
Last year it came to my and Councilor Alan Zelenka’s attention that more than 25,000 employees in Eugene’s private sector are working without access to a single paid sick day from work…
Our response was to co-sponsor a City Council work session to consider an ordinance to create protected earned paid sick time for all workers in Eugene…
Our Response & Your Comments
Your Lane Solutions editors carefully read the proposed paid sick leave ordinance being considered by the Eugene City Council. During a troubled sleep that night they each had the same dream.
In their dream they witnessed an Unnamed City Councilor (“UCC”) from Eugene facing Bob Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company, which owns ESPN.
UCC: Bob, you sent Kirk Herbstreit to Eugene to host “College Football Gameday.” You know – you have to keep track of his hours spent here and calculate the sick time he’s accrued.
Mr. Iger: What? We have a contract with Kirk that specifies his paid time off if he’s sick!
UCC: That contract doesn’t work here! You either accrue Kirk’s paid sick time and that of every other Disney employee here and track their hours in Eugene or we’ll haul your *** into court – right here in “TrackTown USA!” Chew on that, Mr. Bigshot!
Mr. Iger: Well, Councilor, since you put it that way you can say goodbye to “College Football Gameday” – or for that matter any ESPN broadcast – ever coming to Eugene again! And by the way, Disney has a lot more lawyers than the City of Eugene. So if you really want to litigate the issue, get ready to write some very big checks.
UCC (to him/herself): Gee, I wish I’d thought of that.
Your editors quickly awoke in a very cold sweat, dreading the consequences of the Eugene Sick Pay Ordinance.
http://registerguard.com/rg/opinion/31689147-78/sick-paid-eugene-working-council.html.csp?sp-tk=FB17DA4A9B3EE692C2E744576BA5D8BAB59C8824C80D09827AEBE700EBA22300EFF64
Government to “Help” Kids in Debt?
– CNN Money, June 8, 2014
President Obama will announce on Monday an expansion of a program that helps student loan borrowers manage their debt, a White House official said.
The official said Obama will expand the criteria for an alternative repayment program, which caps monthly payments for certain federal student loans at 10% of a borrower’s discretionary income.
The changes would allow an additional 5 million borrowers to qualify and will be available beginning in December 2015, the official said
The alternative payment programs…include forgiveness programs for on-time payments and public-sector employees. Teachers can have their balance canceled after ten years, for example. Low-income borrowers can have their balance canceled after 20 or 25 years of on-time payments…
Our Response & Your Comments
Today, 60% of Oregon college graduates are faced with an average $26,639 in student debt. Now Pres. Obama’s going to “help” them. Will he? We doubt it. But we believe that the student loan fiasco is a perfect example of The Government Four Step Program:
Step 1: The Government seizes on a problem (rising college tuition) and labels it a “crisis.”
Step 2: Politicians, usually at election time, promise to solve the problem. In the case of college tuition, by loaning kids money to pay it.
Step 3: They make the problem worse by subsidizing it. In this case, by flooding colleges with money to pay tuition that rockets up in price to absorb the extra money. It’s like trying to cure an alcoholic by giving him free Jack Daniels.
Step 4: The worse the problem gets, the harder government encourages people to do what caused the problem in the first place. In our example, they encourage kids to borrow more by making it easier to repay the loans.
President Obama, on behalf of Oregon students we plead “Don’t ‘help’ so much.”
Link to article: http://money.cnn.com/2014/06/08/pf/college/obama-student-loans/
Rep. Peter DeFazio: Replace federal gas tax with per-barrel tax on oil companies
– Jeff Mapes, Oregonlive.com, June 12, 2014
Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio on Wednesday unveiled his latest proposal for ending the long deadlock over federal transportation spending: replacing the 18.4-cent-per-gallon federal gas tax with a per-barrel levy on the oil companies…
A key part of his proposal is that the per-barrel oil tax, which would be initially set at $6.75, would increase every year to account for inflation and improvements in vehicle mileage. He would also raise the diesel fee, used primarily by truckers, by an equivalent amount…
Our Response & Your Comments
Attaboy, Pete – You sure do know how to raise taxes. Here’s how it’s done:
- Pick a target that people already dislike – “Big, evil, dirty Oil;”
- Tell Oregonians they won’t pay any more gas tax;
- Make sure the tax on oil goes up every year by indexing it to inflation, vehicle miles, the cost of ice cream bars and anything else you throw in;
- When the price of gas goes up, blame “Big, evil, dirty Oil;”
- When the price of food goes up because truckers are paying more for diesel every year, accuse “Big Food” of being “greedy;”
- Tell everybody you’ve cut their taxes and get re-elected.
Let’s hear it for Pete! His Momma didn’t raise no dummies!
Felons say they’re unfairly locked out of job market
– Ashland Mail Tribune, June 2, 2014
Editors’ note: Lane Solution is not taking sides on this issue. Rather we are calling attention to the inevitable unintended consequences of governmental social engineering.
…Convicted felons in Jackson County and around the country face an uphill battle trying to land a job…
“I think if given the opportunity, most felons could prove themselves as more than capable to work anywhere,” said 24-year-old [convicted felon] Keith Farnsworth…
It’s one of the first questions on most job applications: Have you ever been convicted of a crime?..
In Oregon, Multnomah County and the city of Eugene have agreed to put off asking whether applicants have a criminal conviction until later in the interview process.
There are a dozen other states with laws requiring employers to “ban the box,” [Maurice] Emsellem [a program director at National Employment Law Project] said…
…” ‘Ban the box’ is not saying you cannot conduct a background check. It’s saying that employers have to take the question off the application and ask it later in the process.”…
Our Response and Your Comments
Allow us to gaze into our crystal ball and make a few predictions – all based on government’s tainted history of past attempts at applying “compassion” to the pursuit of “fairness” and “level playing fields.”
- Oregon will eventually “ban the box.”
- The “deadly duo” of lobbyists and lawyers will carve out a few dozen exceptions to ensure that rapists won’t be considered for jobs at women’s gyms and embezzlers won’t be interviewed for cashier positions.
- Felons will advance in the hiring process only to have their hopes dashed after the second or third interview.
- Companies will be sued for doing simple Internet background checks and tossing felonious applicants out without interviewing them.
- When the lobbying, lawyering and evading are all done, companies that are open to hiring felons will still hire felons and those opposed still will not.
In the long, sordid and failed history of governmental social engineering, thus has it been and thus always shall it be.
Link to article: http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140601/NEWS/406010318&cid=mostclicked
From Rags to Riches to Rags
– Mark R. Frank, New York Times, April 18, 2014
…Since the early 1970s, the gap between the top and bottom of the income distribution has expanded significantly…the only group to have experienced real economic gains during this period has been those in the top 20 percent, with gains heavily concentrated in the top 10, 5 and — most famously — 1 percent…
The picture drawn of the 1 percent has been that of a static population, just as the 99 percent is often portrayed as unchanging…
But is it the case that the top 1 percent of the income distribution are the same people year in and year out? Or, for that matter, what about the top 5, 10 and 20 percent?…
Our Response & Your Comments
We step outside our Beaver State to consider on issue that’s as alive in Lane County, Oregon as Lane County, Kansas and points east.
You can’t swing a dead cat without hitting some politician waving the bloody shirt of the evils of “Income Inequality.” It’s usually politicians trying to get votes from people who think they’re always getting the short end of the stick.
These politicos are trying to tell us “If you’re rich you stay rich. If you’re poor you’re doomed to poverty.” True? No. Coming out of school we typically start with low paying jobs. Then our incomes increase. Sometimes we lose our jobs and they move down. Then they move up again as we get new jobs and more experience. When we retire we earn less and move down the income ladder.
A majority of Americans spend at least part of their lives among the richest 10%. And a majority will live at or near poverty temporarily.
The point is that few Americans stay either very rich or very poor. The bigger point: America is still very much the land of opportunity.
Governors’ Group, including Kitzhaber, seeking new extension of tax credits for wind farms
– Ted Sickenger, The Oregonian, March 31, 2014
A group of governors including Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber wrote to congressional leaders Monday urging them to approve a multi-year extension of the federal production tax credit for wind farms as soon as possible…
… The cost of wind energy has come down, and the federal tax credit is a crucial piece in making the projects competitive with other resources, particularly with low natural gas prices. Supporters say it helps level the playing field between wind and fossil fuels, and is a critical piece of the financing package for most wind farms…
Our Response & Your Comments
The pentium processor, Java language, DVDs, Viagra.
These are but a few of the products that came on the market since the Federal Government started shelling out tax breaks for wind farms in 1992. What do they have in common? Simple – between then and now they entered the consumer market, achieved wide and enthused acceptance and, best of all, made their owners zillions of bucks.
Then there’s wind power. In the same 22 years since 1992 the Feds, who are always so great at picking winners (Solyndra, anyone?) have doled out around $24 Billion in tax subsidies for an industry that still creates only 4% of U.S. electricity – not to mention driving up electricity costs for some and carving up PETA-knows how many bald eagles.
Hey, Guv Kitz – Isn’t it about time the wind power industry stands on its own? Or do we have to wait another 22 years and blow another $24 Billion of our bucks for you geniuses to figure out that wind power just ain’t ready for prime time?
Link: www.oregonlive.com/…/governors_group_incl..
Eugene senator to discuss wage gap
A report detailing the differences between poor and wealthy Oregonians is set to be released by Sen. Chris Edwards, D-Eugene, during a forum at the Eugene Public Library 6 p.m. Monday (Jan. 27).
Edwards authored a bill that passed during the 2013 Legislative Session calling for the Pay Inequality in Oregon study. According to a press release, Edwards plans to talk about ways to solve the “wage gap”…
Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian and Oregon Council on Civil Rights Chair Sunny Petit are slated to join Edward.
Salem Statesman Journal
January 23, 2014
Our Response & Your Comments
Here are some questions we’d like to pose to Sen. Edwards:
When the Census Bureau measures income it excludes payments such as Medicare, Medicaid, nutrition assistance, and the Earned Income Tax Credit (that’s where the Govt. gives money to people who don’t pay taxes). What would the “wage gap” be if those were included?
People move up and down the income ladder. A college grad may start by earning $25,000, hit a career peak at $150,000, then retire and live off a part time job, pensions and Social Security. What’s wrong with that?
Could part of the “wage gap” be explained by the fact that a person’s income can move infinitely up but can only go down to $0?
If I’m earning what my skills and experience warrant, what do I care what Bill Gates makes?
Next to Boeing’s wish list, Oregon’s Intel deal is a bargain
It may well be true, as some critics note, that Oregon didn’t get anything new last week for extending the 30-year “tax certainty” originally granted to Nike to Intel as well. Even Intel agreed that the $500 million in new investment in its Hillsboro location, and the 500 jobs attached, were on track to happen anyway…
… as Gov. John Kitzhaber told The Oregonian editorial board, it’s not costing Oregon anything, either. Oregon’s “single sales factor” tax formula, which taxes companies based only on their sales in Oregon rather than their worldwide receipts, has been law here since 1991…
Boeing, although it had received an $8.7 billion tax break pledge from the Washington state legislature to build the 777X airliner there, bridled at the local machinists’ union voting against reopening an eight-year contract in the middle of its term. So the airliner giant announced that it was opening the bidding to other states, and offered a list of incentives that might attract the megaproject to someplace such as Alabama or Missouri…
But the big-money-required auction Boeing has set out to conduct does reflect the style, not to say the desperation, of current state efforts to land a major job project. It’s a process of smokestack-chasing on steroids, and the stakes can rise to dizzying levels – in this case, 30,000-foot levels…
The Oregonian, December 13, 2014
Our Response & Your Comments
Lane Solutions neither endorses nor opposes tax breaks for corporations locating in Oregon. We just want to clarify the issue.
Luring companies to Oregon means buying them with a mixture of incentives – intangible and tangible. Intangibles include skilled workers and a good transportation system. Tangibles are usually tax relief.
The questions are the same as for a person buying a house: “Do I want it?” “What am I willing to give up for it? “What deal can I get before someone pays what the seller is asking?” “What if it’s not what I thought I was buying?”
Governments ask the same questions: “Is this a fit for Oregon?” “How much revenue can we concede and eventually recoup it via taxes?” “Does Alabama want it?” “What if we don’t get the promised jobs?” The last is crucial.
Liquor sales, liquor profits
Privatization proposals raise questions
After voters in Washington state approved an initiative privatizing distilled liquor sales two years ago, it seemed inevitable that Oregonians would soon be presented with a similar proposal. Sure enough, this week the Oregon Grocery Association filed five liquor privatization initiatives, one of which is likely to appear on the ballot next year…
The grocery association’s interest is obvious: It wants a piece of the action. Currently, the Oregon Liquor Control Commission purchases and warehouses virtually all liquor sold in the state, which is then sold through state-chartered liquor stores. The initiatives filed this week would allow stores with more than 10,000 square feet of retail space to sell spirits…
State-chartered liquor stores tend to be small, independently owned businesses. The proposed initiatives would open the liquor market to such giants as Fred Meyer and Safeway, which are backing the proposals…
For consumers, privatization offers the potential advantage of lower prices…
Oregon’s current system has promoted the emergence of a low-volume craft distillery industry, which after privatization would depend on specialty retailers. Privatization would make it more convenient to buy a bottle of Jack Daniels bourbon, but finding a Rogue Valley pear liqueur might be a different story…
The Oregonian, December 18, 2013
Our Response & Your Comments
Lane Solutions neither supports nor opposes this potential ballot measure. But we do have questions which we we’re considering and suggest that you do as well.
- Should Oregon, or any state, be in the liquor business?
- Does Oregon, with its high liquor prices, have fewer problem drinkers than states which have lower liquor prices (e.g. California)?
- Is it the business of government to “protect(ing) small businesses at the expense of big ones?”
- Is it the business of government to protect boutique distillers such as Rogue Valley or should the market decide who survives and who doesn’t?
- How good is government at picking winners and losers?
We welcome your comments on this issue.