Bill Text: OR HJR12 | 2013 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Proposing amendment to Oregon Constitution relating to state finance.

Spectrum: Committee Bill

Status: (Failed) 2013-07-08 - In committee upon adjournment. [HJR12 Detail]

Download: Oregon-2013-HJR12-Introduced.html

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     77th OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2013 Regular Session

NOTE:  Matter within  { +  braces and plus signs + } in an
amended section is new. Matter within  { -  braces and minus
signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within
 { +  braces and plus signs + } .

 LC 1238

                    House Joint Resolution 12

Introduced and printed pursuant to House Rule 12.00. Presession
  filed (at the request of House Interim Committee on Revenue)

                             SUMMARY

The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the
measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject to
consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor's
brief statement of the essential features of the measure as
introduced.

  Proposes amendment to Oregon Constitution establishing Oregon
Rainy Day Fund. Sets conditions for appropriation of moneys in
fund.
  Transfers excess personal income tax revenues to fund.
Suspends transfer to fund if amount in fund equals at least 15
percent of amount of General Fund revenues collected during prior
biennium. If transfer to fund is suspended, returns excess
personal income tax revenues to personal income taxpayers.
  Refers proposed amendment to people for their approval or
rejection at next regular general election.

                        JOINT RESOLUTION
Be It Resolved by the Legislative Assembly of the State of
  Oregon:
  PARAGRAPH 1. The Constitution of the State of Oregon is amended
by creating new sections 14a and 16 to be added to and made a
part of Article IX, and by amending section 14, Article IX, and
section 4, Article X-A, such sections to read:
   { +  SECTION 16. + }  { + (1) The Oregon Rainy Day Fund is
established as an account in the General Fund. The Legislative
Assembly may establish subaccounts within the Oregon Rainy Day
Fund.
  (2) The Legislative Assembly may appropriate moneys from the
Oregon Rainy Day Fund only if the appropriation is approved by
three-fifths of the members serving in each house of the
Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Assembly finds one of
the following:
  (a) That the last quarterly economic and revenue forecast for a
biennium indicates that moneys available to the General Fund for
the next biennium will be at least three percent less than
appropriations from the General Fund for the current biennium;
  (b) That there has been a decline for two or more consecutive
quarters in the last 12 months in seasonally adjusted nonfarm
payroll employment;
  (c) That a quarterly economic and revenue forecast projects
that revenues in the General Fund in the current biennium will be
at least two percent below what the revenues were projected to be
in the revenue forecast on which the legislatively adopted budget
for the current biennium was based; or

  (d) That the Governor has declared that an emergency exists
related to an earthquake, a tsunami or another natural disaster
or an act of war.
  (3) Once each month, in the manner provided by law, a state
agency designated by law shall calculate the amount of General
Fund interest that is attributable to moneys in the Oregon Rainy
Day Fund. The amount calculated under this subsection shall be
transferred to the Oregon Rainy Day Fund. The Legislative
Assembly by law may attribute interest on moneys in a subaccount
in the Oregon Rainy Day Fund to the subaccount.
  (4) If the moneys in the Oregon Rainy Day Fund just prior to
the time of a transfer to the Oregon Rainy Day Fund scheduled
under subsection (4) of section 14 of this Article equal at least
15 percent of the amount of General Fund revenues collected
during the prior biennium, moneys that would otherwise be
transferred to the Oregon Rainy Day Fund under subsection (4) of
section 14 of this Article shall be returned to personal income
taxpayers.
  (5) If the moneys in the Oregon Rainy Day Fund just prior to
the time of a transfer to the Oregon Rainy Day Fund scheduled
under subsection (4) of section 14 of this Article do not equal
at least 15 percent of the amount of General Fund revenues
collected during the prior biennium, the transfer to the Oregon
Rainy Day Fund shall be made regardless of whether that transfer
increases the amount in the Oregon Rainy Day Fund to at least 15
percent of the amount of General Fund revenues collected during
the prior biennium.
  (6) As used in this section, 'legislatively adopted budget '
means the budget enacted by the Legislative Assembly during an
odd-numbered year regular session. + }
   { +  Sec. 14. + } (1) As soon as is practicable after
adjournment sine die of an odd-numbered year regular session of
the Legislative Assembly, the Governor shall cause an estimate to
be prepared of revenues that will be received by the General Fund
for the biennium beginning July 1. The estimated revenues from
corporate income and excise taxes shall be separately stated from
the estimated revenues from other General Fund sources.
  (2) As soon as is practicable after the end of the biennium,
the Governor shall cause actual collections of revenues received
by the General Fund for that biennium to be determined. The
revenues received from corporate income and excise taxes shall be
determined separately from the revenues received from other
General Fund sources.
  (3) If the revenues received by the General Fund from corporate
income and excise taxes during the biennium exceed the amount
estimated to be received from corporate income and excise taxes
for the biennium, by two percent or more, the total amount of the
excess shall be retained in the General Fund and used to provide
additional funding for public education, kindergarten through
twelfth grade.
  (4)   { - If - }   { + Except as provided in subsection (4) of
section 16 of this Article, if + } the revenues received from
General Fund revenue sources, exclusive of those described in
subsection (3) of this section, during the biennium exceed the
amount estimated to be received from such sources for the
biennium, by two percent or more, the total amount of the excess
shall be   { - returned to personal income taxpayers. - }
 { + transferred to the Oregon Rainy Day Fund established by
section 16 of this Article or any subaccount in the Oregon Rainy
Day Fund. + }
  (5) The Legislative Assembly may enact laws:
  (a) Establishing a tax credit, refund payment or other
mechanism by which the excess revenues are returned to taxpayers,
and establishing administrative procedures connected therewith.

  (b) Allowing the excess revenues to be reduced by
administrative costs associated with returning the excess
revenues.
  (c) Permitting a taxpayer's share of the excess revenues not to
be returned to the taxpayer if the taxpayer's share is less than
a de minimis amount identified by the Legislative Assembly.
  (d) Permitting a taxpayer's share of excess revenues to be
offset by any liability of the taxpayer for which the state is
authorized to undertake collection efforts.
  (6)(a) Prior to the close of a biennium for which an estimate
described in subsection (1) of this section has been made, the
Legislative Assembly, by a two-thirds majority vote of all
members elected to each   { - House - }  { +  house + }, may
enact legislation declaring an emergency and increasing the
amount of the estimate prepared pursuant to subsection (1) of
this section.
  (b) The prohibition against declaring an emergency in an act
regulating taxation or exemption in section 1a  { - , Article IX
of this Constitution, - }  { +  of this Article + } does not
apply to legislation enacted pursuant to this subsection.
  (7) This section does not apply:
  (a) If, for a biennium or any portion of a biennium, a state
tax is not imposed on or measured by the income of individuals.
  (b) To revenues derived from any minimum tax imposed on
corporations for the privilege of carrying on or doing business
in this state that is imposed as a fixed amount and that is
nonapportioned (except for changes of accounting periods).
  (c) To biennia beginning before July 1, 2001.
   { +  SECTION 14a. + }  { + (1) Section 16 of this Article, the
amendment to section 14 of this Article and the amendment to
section 4, Article X-A of this Constitution, by House Joint
Resolution 12 (2013) apply to biennia beginning on or after July
1, 2013.
  (2) This section is repealed on June 30, 2017. + }
   { +  Sec. 4. + } (1) If the Governor declares that a
catastrophic disaster has occurred:
  (a) The Legislative Assembly may enact laws authorizing the use
of revenue described in section 3a, Article IX of this
Constitution, for purposes other than those described in that
section.
  (b) The Legislative Assembly may, by a vote of the number of
members of each house that constitutes a quorum under subsection
(2) of section 3 of this Article, appropriate moneys that would
otherwise be returned to taxpayers under section   { - 14 - }
 { +  16 + }, Article IX of this Constitution, to state agencies
for the purpose of responding to the catastrophic disaster.
  (c) Notwithstanding section 7, Article XI of this Constitution,
the Legislative Assembly may lend the credit of the state or
create debts or liabilities in an amount the Legislative Assembly
considers necessary to provide an adequate response to the
catastrophic disaster.
  (d) The provisions of section 15, Article XI of this
Constitution, do not apply to any law that is approved by
three-fifths of the members of each house who are able to attend
a session described in subsection (3) of section 3 of this
Article.
  (e) The Legislative Assembly may take action described in
subsection (6) of section 15, Article XI of this Constitution,
upon approval by three-fifths of the members of each house who
are able to attend a session described in subsection (3) of
section 3 of this Article.
  (f) Notwithstanding section 4, Article XV of this Constitution,
the Legislative Assembly may allocate proceeds from the State
Lottery for any purpose and in any ratio the Legislative Assembly
determines necessary to provide an adequate response to the
catastrophic disaster.
  (2) Nothing in this section overrides or otherwise affects the
provisions of section 15b, Article V of this Constitution.

  PARAGRAPH 2.  { + The amendment proposed by this resolution
shall be submitted to the people for their approval or rejection
at the next regular general election held throughout this
state. + }
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