Gov. Ted Kulongoski is taking a page out of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s book to find answers to Oregon’s economic crisis.
During a speech Friday at the City Club of Portland where Kulongoski publicly reacted to the legislative budget, the governor announced he intends to create 12,000 minimum-wage jobs for summer.
Also, as one of many cost-cutting measures to make up for the state’s budget loss, Kulongoski said he will integrate the state’s student financial aid agency, the Oregon Student Assistance Commission, into the Oregon University System.
The summer jobs will be part of the state’s Emergency Jobs Program. Kulongoski said most of the hiring will be done by cities, counties, non-profits and companies running community-service projects and will benefit the state.
“This is about more than helping out-of work Oregonians put bread on the table,” he said. “This is also about restoring ride and dignity to the human spirit.”
The Oregon Food Bank will provide up to 1,000 of the jobs, and other community organizations will hire individuals to clear trails, repair campsites and restore forests across the state.
Oregon faces a 12.1-percent unemployment rate, and 82,000 Oregonians are actively looking for jobs. The jobs in the program will pay $8.40 an hour, but Rem Nivens, a spokesman from the governor’s office, said the pay is enough to get people off the ground.
“I am assuming for people who don’t have jobs, minimum wage is better than nothing,” he said.
Kulongoski urged legislators to swiftly take action because many of the new jobs in the Emergency Jobs Program can only be completed during the summer.
“I want the legislature to step up and be my partner,” he said. “Together, we can put thousands of Oregonians back to work. Delay is not an option.”
The Legislative Fiscal Office also announced the revenue forecast Friday afternoon, and said Oregon has $4 billion less today than it had in June 2007.
“State government cannot provide the same level of services in the new biennium that we are providing in the current biennium,” Kulongoski said. “A budget of $13 billion down from over $17 billion isn’t just about a new number. It is a new reality that will require changing a lot of what we want to do in order to protect what we absolutely must do.”
House leader Bruce Hanna (R-Roseburg) and Senate leader Ted Ferrioli (R-John Day) were concerned that the state’s economic and revenue forecast was the product of Democrats’ overspending.
“Today’s revenue forecast underscores the depth of Oregon’s economic recession,” Hanna said. “So far the Democratic leadership’s only response to this crisis is higher taxes, more wasteful spending and more debt for our children and grandchildren.”
Kulongoski said he understands the state must make cuts during financial hardship and announced that he would like to see the legislature suspend a wide variety of agencies including the Board of Occupational Therapy, the Board of Massage Therapists, the Consumer Advisory Council, the Commission for the Blind, the Board of Licensed Dietitians and the Advocacy Commission.
Kulongoski acknowledged the state’s $900-million Rainy Day Fund and Education Stabilization Fund, but argued that it would be a mistake to use all the funds at this time.
“Let me illustrate my point with a simple comparison. Suppose a two-income family has $5,000 in the bank, and they know that one of them will lose their job in the next two to three months,” he said. “Would you recommend they spend all of their family reserves now? The answer is obvious. The state is in the same position.”
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Governor intends to create jobs
Daily Emerald
May 17, 2009
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