Why the Oregon Rebate Applies to Everybody, Not Just People in Poverty

The proponents of the measure offer several explanations in this video.

Portlanders enjoy a day in the park. (Chris Nesseth)
By Nigel Jaquiss

On Sept. 12, representatives of the campaigns supporting and opposing Measure 118 stopped by WW’s office to seek our endorsement.

Measure 118, also called the Oregon Rebate, would impose a new 3% gross receipts tax (a tax on sales, not profits) on corporations with Oregon sales of more than $25 million in a year. The money the tax would raise—about $7 billion a year, according to state estimates—would then be paid to every Oregonian, regardless of age or income. It would be the largest experiment in “universal basic income” anywhere in the world.

In the clip below, the proponents of the measure, chief petitioner Antonio Gisbert (center) and Stacy Rutland (to Gisbert’s left) explain why a measure that is aimed at alleviating poverty will send $1,600 checks to all Oregonians, even those who don’t need the money. An opponent of the measure, Angela Wilhelms, CEO of Oregon Business & Industry, sits to Gisbert’s right.

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