Policy for the People

Intuit, the maker of TurboTax, has used all kinds of tricks to keep our tax system complicated and expensive. Most Americans pay the price, especially those who can least afford it. But there is legislation in Congress that would fix the problem, creating a truly free and simple tax filing system for most folks. Guests: Janet Bauer of The Oregon Center for Public Policy and Susan Harley of Public Citizen.Support the show

The U.S. Supreme Court decision ending of the constitutional right to abortion threatens economic harm to many. In our first segment of this episode, we discuss the economic impact of the court's ruling with Asha Banerjee, an Economic Analyst with the Economic Policy Institute.Did you know one in four minimum wage workers in Oregon are parents?  In our second segment, OCPP Policy Analyst Tyler Mac Innis discusses the increase in Oregon's minimum wage that just went into effect, and how far our minimum wage remains from being a living wage.Support the show

A few weeks ago, we learned that a $3 billion "kicker" rebate could be on its way. As usual, the rich would get huge checks, while the lowest-income Oregonians -- those who could really use some extra money to pay the bills -- would get chump change. In this episode, we hear from Mark McMullen, head of the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis, about the state of Oregon's economy and the prospects of a new kicker. We also hear from Daniel Hauser, the Oregon Center for Public Policy's Director of Strategic Policy Projects, on what's wrong with the kicker and how to reform it to serve the interests of all Oregonians.Support the show

Oregon's biggest housing program, the mortgage interest deduction, does nothing to ease the state's long-running housing crisis. That's because this billion-dollar housing subsidy mainly benefits well-off homeowners. This is only one of the many flaws of the mortgage interest deduction, according to a recent audit by the Oregon Secretary of State's Office. In this episode of Policy for the People, we talk with Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan and Audits Director Kip Memmott about what the audit revealed.Read the audit Without Legislative Action the Mortgage Interest Deduction Will Remain Regressive and Inequitable. Support the show

Large scale experiments carried out during the pandemic have given a boost to an old idea: addressing poverty and economic insecurity by giving people cash with no strings attached.  In this episode, we speak with State Representative Andrea Valderrama (HD 47) about the legislature's recent decision to send a one-time payment of $600 to low-paid workers in Oregon. Also, OCPP Director of Policy Research Janet Bauer discusses the growing body of evidence showing that guaranteed income and other cash policies are effective at addressing economic insecurity.Support the show

On Women's History Month, Policy for the People explores the gender biases in the tax code and reforms that can advance gender justice. We discuss these issues with Amy Matsui, Director of Income Security and Senior Counsel at the National Women’s Law Center.Support the show

With guests Andrea Paluso of Family Forward Oregon and Mary King, economics professor emeritus at Portland State University, we examine Oregon’s child care crisis – the challenges it poses for families, child care workers, and the economy. And we discuss the kinds of policy changes that can set things right.Support the show

Despite often performing work considered essential to the nation's critical infrastructure, undocumented workers live under the constant fear of deportation. In this episode of Policy for the People, Janet Bauer of the Oregon Center for Public Policy and Isa Peña of Innovation Law Lab discuss how deportation wreaks havoc on families and weakens Oregon's economy, as well as what the state can do to reduce the harm.Learn more: read the report Deportation harms Oregon's economy and upends family security.Support the show

In this special episode of Policy for the People, we share a recording of a presentation by the Oregon Center for Public Policy titled "The Racist Roots of Oregon's Tax System."  Listen to OCPP communications director Juan Carlos Ordóñez discuss how Oregon's tax system entrenches and even deepens racial inequality. Support the show

One of the biggest tax havens in the world — one of the main places where the superrich go to stash their money and avoid taxes — is the U.S. This is largely due to the fact that a number of U.S. states have transformed themselves into tax havens. In this episode of Policy for the People, we talk to Kalena Thomhave, a researcher with the Program on Inequality and the Common Good at the Institute for Policy Studies, about the rise of domestic tax havens and how they make the already severe problem of vast wealth inequality even worse.Support the show