Issues
The Rising Wage Tide
Oregon helps lead the way on raising minimum
California’s recent decision to rocket its minimum wage from $8 an hour to $10 an hour in 2016 makes Oregon’s scheduled 15-cent increase in 2014 look microscopic by comparison…
Since indexing took effect in 2004, the hourly minimum has steadily climbed by $2.05.
The scheduled 15-cent increase will add about $300 to a full-time worker’s compensation…
The raises that these lowest-paid workers receive result in increased consumer demand. Fast-food businesses that complain about minimum wage increases often fail to mention that their own businesses are among those that reap the greatest benefits.
In Oregon, minimum wage increases have been a welcome boost for the state’s economy…
The Register Guard, September 23, 2013
Gosh, These Guys Are Really Smart!
Did you know that here in Eugene we have geniuses who know exactly what people should be paid and what employers should do with their money?
Thinking that paying workers more money results in more money injected into the economy rests on the premise that this money came out of nowhere and that if it hadn’t been plucked out of thin air by employers it wouldn’t have existed.
No – that money is taken from the pockets of owners or shareholders and given to employees.
What do these RG economic giants think would have been done with the money had employers kept it? Burned it?
Anyone with an ounce of economic smarts knows that the money might have been spent on opening a new restaurant (and hiring more people). Or on a new grill (and hiring cooks to grill more burgers). Maybe it would have gone to hiring another reporter.
Here’s the real killer – and it’s at the core of Liberalism (Sorry. We meant “Progressivism”). The editors think they’re so smart that they can decide for everyone the most efficient allocation of financial resources.
Note to RG: Thinking that experts can plan and direct the economy is the mentality that brought Eastern Europe and Cuba to economic ruin.
Gun control wasn’t the only issue in recall election
The Sept. 10 recall of a pair of state senators who spearheaded passage of stricter gun regulations in Colorado earlier this year is being widely interpreted as a win for gun rights and a defeat for gun control. Dudley Brown, executive director of Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, declared the election a “plebiscite on guns,” adding, “Unless you are in New York City or downtown Chicago, the message is: You are going to pay a steep price for voting for gun control.”
Maybe. Or maybe not.
Viewing the Colorado recall as a proxy vote on national gun control legislation could be a stretch…
The Register Guard editorial, Sept. 21, 2013
Lane Solutions Replies and Leave Your Comments…
Really?
One thing you know: When they say it’s not about the money – It’s about the money. When they say it’s not about the sex, it’s sure as shootin’ about the sex. And when they say it’s not about gun control – well, you get the picture.
So – What was it about? Take your pick from the RG menu: Was it about: 1) Confusion due to the lack of mail-in ballots? 2) Legalizing pot? 3) 5th & 14th Amendment guarantees of due process? 4) Instate tuition for illegal immigrants?
Heck, maybe it was really about Pres. McKinley’s assassination, Hurricane Katrina, or life on Mars!
The RG also reported that noted gun control advocate New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg contributed $350,000 toward beating the recall and the NRA supported the recall to the tune of $361,000. Ever seen the NRA toss $361,000 after tuition or marijuana issues? We didn’t think so.
In the words of the The Register Guard, the recall was “…of a pair of state senators who spearheaded passage of stricter gun regulations in Colorado…” Could that possibly be what it was about?
So, what was the recall about? To paraphrase that great philosopher Groucho Marx, “Who ya gonna believe, readers – The Register Guard, or your lyin’ eyes?”
Want a Highrise Next to Your Home? No? How About a Pig Farm?
Do you think it is a good idea to give the Department of Housing and Urban Development unchecked power to put an apartment building in your neighborhood? HUD has proposed a new rule that could do just that.
In July, HUD published its long-awaited proposal on “Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing” in the Federal Register. It is a sweeping set of land-use regulations that has attracted little national attention. The agency wants the power to dismantle local zoning so communities have what it considers the right mix of economic, racial and ethnic diversity. A finding of discriminatory behavior, or allegations of discrimination, would no longer be necessary. HUD will supply “nationally uniform data” of what it thinks 1,200 communities should look like…
HUD and Westchester are battling over local zoning that arose from a 2009 settlement (signed by my predecessor) to build 750 affordable-housing units in 31 mostly white communities. Westchester is well ahead of schedule in meeting these obligations. Almost 400 units have financing and 124 are already occupied. But HUD isn’t satisfied because it wants to control local zoning and remake communities.
– Robert F. Astorino, The Wall Street Journal
Lane Solutions Replies
So – HUD knows exactly what 1,200 communities should like. And Westchester County, NY, should look just like the other 1,199. And if it doesn’t, HUD, in its bureaucratic wisdom, will withhold $17 million that it had promised to the County to build new sidewalks, playgrounds, and other good stuff in poor communities.
What’s that you say? Westchester is already the fourth most diverse county in New York in terms of Blacks and Hispanics? HUD’s federal monitor found no evidence of exclusionary zoning based on race or ethnicity? HUD doesn’t know what its new rule will cost or if it will work? Why does it matter to Lane County what happens in New York?
It matters because if the Feds can “…dismantle local zoning rules” in Westchester they can do it (and more) in Eugene. Or Creswell.
It matters because if you take money from Washington it can tell you what to do with it. And it can take money from you.
It matters because the Feds think they’re smarter than you. This is rule #1 of Liberalism (oops, we meant “Progressivism”). So they can tell you who should be able to build what next to your house.
Oh, and did we mention that complying with HUD’s new rules will cost Westchester between $3 and $9 million? What could it cost in Eugene?
Build It and They Will Pedal
$580,000 Bike Boondoggle Coming Soon?
A draft study is encouraging public agencies and area businesses to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to boost the number of bike racks and lockers in the Eugene-Springfield area to help support and increase two-wheeled ridership over the next decade and beyond.
The Regional Bike Parking Study, set to be finalized later this month after three years of work, concludes that such facilities are needed in the two cities’ downtowns, at transit stations and at more than a dozen shopping centers, major employers and civic venues…
The government-funded $100,000 study reaches those conclusions even as its data, while limited, showed the existing supply of bike parking exceeding the use in some of the studied areas…
The study estimates it would cost nearly $342,000 for materials and labor to add recommended bike parking spaces to 100 blocks in downtown Eugene and Springfield…
The study estimated it would cost about $238,000 to install 30 new and retrofitted bike lockers at some LTD transit stations, as well as secure cages at the stations in downtown Eugene and the Amazon neighborhood…
The study also examined the bike parking needs at 14 “activity centers,” such as the Hult Center, Oakway Center, Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend and the Royal Caribbean office in Springfield, but didn’t provide cost estimates.
Even though the study recommended adding more bike parking spots at these centers, the data appeared to indicate the supply exceeds demand. The study counted 509 spots at the 14 locations, but recommended nearly doubling that number — even though only 55 spots were being used at the time of the survey…
Maffei (who lead the study) said the inventory was taken on Oct. 16 and 17, and there wasn’t enough money to perform more than a single count in a given study area…
Duncan Rhodes, a member of the Greater Eugene Area Riders Cycling Club, or GEARs, who served on the committee, said quite a few local spots could use more bike parking.
“Until you build something, you will never know if it will be used or not,” he said…
– Christian Hill, The Register Guard
Lane Solutions Responds –
“A $100,000 study recommends spending $580,000 to add thousands of spots” (Register Guard print edition).
Several elements of this study jumped out at us, nearly causing us to bang our helmeted heads on the potted pavement as we toppled off our sustainable, green, locally produced bikes.
First, they figured need for additional bike facilities by counting actual bike rack use just once. Think it might vary by time of day and month?
Then there’s the fallacy of adding hundreds of bike racks at five “activity centers” when “supply exceeds demand.” Failing to estimate costs for this only makes it worse.
Third, at six locations they counted 44 of 355 bike racks being used and concluded that we need 727 additional racks.
It’s a perfect example of government imposing its social engineering fantasies on citizens and wasting buckets of bucks turning them into an unwelcome reality.
Here, local wizards, lashing themselves to the mast of urban density and “green” transportation, decided that even if current racks aren’t being used, what we need is more. So they tossed $100,000 after their obsession and may throw another $580,000 into the same sump hole.
Oh, well, “Until you build something, you will never know if it will be used or not.”
Golden Fleece Award – Issue #46
This week we award what’s really a “Golden Lamb” Award – Because the money you earned and your “Public Servants” in Salem wasted wasn’t that much. If it weren’t your money it’d be worth a laugh.
In case you were about to shed a tear for the Beaver State’s cheese industry, don’t bother, because the Oregon Cheese Guild has scored a cool $50,000 to produce videos featuring cheese farmers, cheese experts and cheese history. We hope they’re not too “cheesy” (sorry).
Remember that old ad “Is your dog getting enough cheese?” Maybe they could blow some more bucks by running their video on pay TV’s The Dog Channel!
A Grateful State of Oregon Thanks You!
Washington Candidate Wants $15/Hr. Minimum Wage
Those in Oregon who are tired of hearing about how much better Washington’s business climate is have reason to watch the November election results in Seattle.
Several of the candidates are at least talking about the possibility of raising the minimum wage in the city, even though Washington already has the highest rate in the nation. And at least one City Council candidate — Socialist Kshama Sawant, who finished second in the May primary to qualify for the November ballot — is campaigning hard for a $15-an-hour minimum wage.
– The Oregonian Editorial Board, August 25, 2013
Lane Solutions Responds
We say “Go for it! Why not $30/hr? Do we hear $40?”
We applaud our neighbors to the north’s attaempt to give Oregon a more competitive business environment! And if you’re joining us, keep it a secret that labor is, like anything else anyone buys, a commodity subject to a basic economic principle: lower the price – demand increases. Raise it – demand goes down.
Keep it between us that when the minimum wage goes up a McDonalds that could only afford the cheapest, least experienced labor (teenagers) can now afford to fire them and hire experienced workers.
If you keep these secrets, our buddies up north will keep their big, dark secret about why they really like minimum wage hikes. No, it’s not love of the “Little Guy.” It’s because a lot of union wage contracts are hitched to minimum wages. Raise them and union workers get automatic salary bumps.
Here’s what Socialist Sawant will never, ever tell you: When Washington, D.C. passed a minimum wage law in 1938, hotels immediately fired dozens of (probably black) maids and other low skilled laborers.
Now that we think about the consequences for the real “Little Guys,” your humble editors will be governed by their better angels, face north and scream “Stop! Do you really know what you’re doing?”
When Compassion and Moral Hazard Collide
What Happens When You Try to Help and Just Make the Problem Worse?
People defecating on the public Park Blocks in downtown Eugene, the site of the popular Saturday Market, has led the city to indefinitely cordon off two areas.
During the past week, several piles of human feces were found on a lawn and a landscaped area on the east Park Block, at Eighth Avenue and Oak Street, said Jeff Perry, the city’s facilities director.
People also had urinated there, creating potential health hazards, he said.
The Register Guard, August 24, 2013
Compassion’s an admirable human emotion – it tells us to respond to suffering and help when we can.
But compassion is still an emotion, like anger or sorrow. Left unchecked it runs away with us, making us do things that actually bring on harm.
Moral hazard occurs when our attempts to do good create incentives that encourage people to engage in destructive behavior.
Could we be witnessing moral hazard as a result of knee jerk compassion as we try to give transients a place to sleep in Eugene? Are we encouraging destructive behavior? We think it’s worth considering.
By designating a “safe” camping ground downtown we’ve made it easy for transients to (you guessed it) camp downtown. This will result in more campers because it’s convenient and safe. Making it easier to leave home and camp will inevitably draw in those who sort of wanted to camp but didn’t know where.
The result? More people who have to use a bathroom, resulting in a health hazard to Saturday Market vendors and customers.
We’re not taking sides here. But we are asking Eugene and Lane County officials to consider the probable results of what they see as compassion.
We’re Shocked! Shocked!
Accounting Error Causes 16.2 Million Shortfall to Implement Oregon Healthcare Exchange…Before it Even Starts—Expect Millions More in Shortfall Before it is Done
State officials organizing a new health insurance exchange are planning to ask for more federal grant funding to plug a projected $16.2 million shortfall.
The shortfall stemmed from an accounting error that caused state budget and fiscal analysts to misproject when the state would use up funding from a grant to partially launch a computer system for the exchange.
Oregon’s exchange, called Cover Oregon, is an online marketplace where individuals and small business owners can comparison shop for health insurance and apply for financial assistance.
qwong@StatesmanJournal .com
Lane Solutions Responds…
We’re shocked! We just don’t believe it…a government program short $16 Million because of an “accounting error”? Has this ever happened before? Surely not for the Affordable Care Act (AKA “Obamacare”), of which Cover Oregon is a part!
What’s that, Dear Readers? You say that it has? That the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan for “uninsurables” – people with serious illnesses like cancer – has nearly run through a cool $5 Billion and needs big bucks from the states?
That Obamacare itself, originally set to cost $898 Billion over 10 years, is now projected to ring up $1.85 Trillion in costs?
But there’s no need to worry…because the government can always reach into your wallet to make up for its shortfalls, cost overruns or just plain ol’ “accounting errors.”
Golden Fleece Award – Issue #44
This week Lane Solutions’ coveted Golden Fleece Award, presented to a government entity that wastes humongous amounts of your money, goes to Obamacare, which is blowing $20 Million to create and run TV ads educating Oregonians on the wonders of Cover Oregon, the online shopping mart for health insurance, money to pay for it and free pizza and ice cream (just kidding on that last).
To the sounds of mellow folk singers and strumming guitars Oregonians will be introduced to Obamacare, which commands all Americans to buy health insurance by next January 1 or pay a fine.
Soon our dewey Salem based folkers will yield to the Portland hip-hop duo “Lifesaves,” who’ll tout the wonders of Cover Oregon to the younger set.
Yes, readers, it takes a cool $20 million to ”… create a positive vibe associating the (Cover Oregon) brand with Oregon’s cultural identity.” No doubt the crooners and hip-hoppers will be sporting Birkenstocks, crunching vegan granola, and flashing their Oregon Trail cards.
Wow! It’s Free Money! Really?
A new state program to prevent home foreclosures will launch Wednesday in Lane and 32 other Oregon counties. The Home Rescue Program will provide a year’s worth of mortgage payments, up to a total of $20,000, and up to $10,000 in back payments to bring mortgages current, according to Benjamin Pray, spokesman for Oregon Housing and Community Services, Oregon’s housing finance agency.
The program, which aims to provide assistance to about 2,500 homeowners across the state, will begin accepting applications online at noon Wednesday, Pray said. To qualify, applicants must be able to show that their income is at least 10 percent lower than it was in 2011 or 2012, and meet other eligibility requirements.
They do not have to be behind on their mortgage payments to qualify for the program, which is intended to give struggling homeowners some breathing space and allow them to stabilize their finances, he said. – The Eugene Register Guard
Lane Solutions Responds…
It sounds so good – help (to the tune of $20,000) for up to 2,500 Oregonians having trouble paying their mortgages. And it’s Free Money From the Government! What’s not to like?
Plenty. First, there’s the issue of “Moral Hazard.” Some call it “Perverse Incentives.” That means doing something that encourages people to engage in damaging behavior. In this case, taking on mortgages they can’t afford and not setting aside “rainy day” money. Rewarding people who do this simply encourages others to take the same risks.
Then there’s the issue of the “free money.” No, it’s not free – somebody has to pay it. And since the government’s overwhelming source of funds is taxes, that somebody, dear reader, is you.
If you’re like us you’re more than willing to help that neighbor who’s sick, whose house burned down or who fell off his roof. But you’re probably thinking what we’re thinking – “I didn’t buy a house I couldn’t afford or assume a mortgage I couldn’t pay and now I’m having money taken from me to give $20,000 to somebody who’s not even behind on his mortgage?”
Compassion is admirable. And each of us should show it. But we believe in showing it with our own money, not money taken from one person and given to another.
Just like there’s no such thing as a free lunch, there’s no such thing as free money – especially from the government.