Salem voters to decide fate of city payroll tax

The city of Salem is facing a massive budget shortfall. To help close it, the City Council recently approved a tax on anyone working in Salem who earns above the minimum wage. City officials claim the tax is needed to maintain and expand emergency services, including hiring more police officers, firefighters and sustaining homeless services. Oregon Business & Industry successfully petitioned to put the issue before Salem voters in a special election this November. Virginia Stapleton is president of the Salem City Council and co-founder of the Committee to Save Salem, which supports the ballot measure. Preston Mann is the political affairs director of Oregon Business & Industry which has raised more than $180,000 to defeat the measure. They join us to share opposing perspectives on the tax which has been extensively covered by the Salem Reporter, including an Oct. 11 town hall it moderated with Stapleton and Mann.