Governance
LWVOR Advocacy Positions
Constitutional Provisions—The Oregon Constitution should be a basic framework of state government, free of obsolete material and statutory detail. It should
· guarantee basic democratic rights
· provide for a legislative assembly, an executive branch, and a judicial system.
· be revised by constitutional convention, initiative amendment, or legislative amendment.
Privacy and Cybersecurity—This position statement addresses Elections, Information Security, Personal Information Protection, and Electronic Business and Social Media.
Economic Development Revenue Bonds
LWVOR supports the authority to issue Economic Development Revenue Bonds by the state, ports, and cities with more than 300,000 population.
2. In addition to the Economic Development Revenue Bond program, LWVOR supports other state and local economic stimulants
Election Laws—Election procedures and voter information are critical elements to an informed and participating electorate.
Election Methods—LWVOR does not believe that plurality voting is the best method for promoting democratic choice in all circumstances. For single-winner systems, the League supports ranked-choice voting; we do not support range or approval voting. The League of Women Voters of Oregon supports election systems that elect policy-making bodies that proportionally reflect the people they represent.
Emergency Board—An appointed Emergency Board should provide fiscal adjustment between legislative sessions.
Fiscal Policy
Evaluating Taxes—any tax proposal should be evaluated with regard to its effect on the entire tax structure.
Fiscal Responsibility—local government should have primary responsibility for financing non-school local government. Local services mandated by the state should have state funding.
Income Tax—income tax is the most equitable means of providing state revenue. The income tax should be progressive, compatible with federal law and should apply to the broadest possible segment of Oregonians.
Sales Tax—A sales tax should be used with certain restrictions
Property Tax—local property taxes should partially finance local government and local services. Exemptions to the general property tax include:
a. Charitable, educational and benevolent organizations, etc.
b. School District Financing. The major portion of the cost of public schools should be borne by the state, which should use a stable system to provide sufficient funds to give each child an equal, adequate education.
Initiative, Referendum and Recall Position—LWVOR supports constitutional provisions for initiatives, referendum, and recall. The League discourages amending the Oregon Constitution by the initiative process.
Oregon State Courts—The State of Oregon should provide access to its courts
Judges must be free to decide cases based upon the facts of the particular case and the applicable law, independent of the influence of public opinion and political and partisan pressures.
Adequate and stable funding is needed to perform the Department’s core functions and critical services;
The League encourages the development of specialty courts and problem-solving courts.
Open Primaries—LWVOR supports more open primary elections, either through party primary elections or individual candidate-based primary elections.
Redistricting—The Oregon legislative and congressional redistricting system should be efficient, adequately funded, based on well-defined criteria, subject to a reasonable and effective timetable, and have an open and public process.