Policy for the People

In celebration of May Day, International Workers Day, we are issuing this special episode of Policy for the People examining the state of the labor movement. Our guest is Don McIntosh, editor of the Northwest Labor Press, who has been reporting about the labor movement for over two decades. Don discusses the present state of the labor movement, what the Trump Administration means for organized labor, and the policy changes that would remove the barriers that workers face when seeking to form a union.

Right now, the Republican controlled Congress is speeding down a path that would raise costs for food and health care for millions of families by taking away Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits. It would do so in order to help pay for massive tax cuts primarily benefiting the most well-off, including millionaires and billionaires.In this episode of Policy for the People, we speak with Oregon Senator Ron Wyden about what the budget blueprint currently being discussed in Congress means for Oregonians and the nation. We also speak with Steve Wamhoff, Federal Policy Director at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, about his recent report titled: Federal Tax Policy: What Should It Accomplish? In it he argues that our federal government needs to raise more revenue, not less, and do so in a progressive way. In other words, we need to go in the opposite direction from the current plan in Congress.

The revival of an old idea is offering hope for improving pay and working conditions in entire industries all at once. That policy is often referred to as Workforce Standards Boards.In this episode of Policy for the People, Ira Cuello-Martinez of PCUN, Oregon’s Farmworker Union, discusses the tough working conditions that farmworkers in Oregon endure, and why the creation of a Workforce Standards Board for farmworkers – something currently under discussion in Salem – could be a real game changer.Then, David Madland of the Center for American Progress explains the benefits of Workforce Standards Boards and why there’s been a resurgence of interest in this policy.

For some Oregonians, the complexity and cost involved in tax filing is a barrier to doing their taxes. Oregonians who would be due a tax refund, who would get money back by filing a tax return, don't receive those dollars because they're unable to navigate the complicated process of preparing and filing a tax return.In this episode of Policy for the People, we discuss two initiatives that are making tax filing easy and free. The first is Direct File. This online tool created by the IRS is now available to eligible Oregonians, explains Tyler Mac Innis of the Oregon Center for Public Policy.The second thing is Oregon's Tax Infrastructure Grant program, a network of organizations that rely on trained volunteers to help low- and moderate-income Oregonians prepare and file their taxes. Riley Eldredge of MFS CASH Oregon, one of the organizations that are part of this network, discusses how free tax assistance can make a big difference in the lives of Oregonians, and why Oregon's Tax Infrastructure Grant program has a huge return on investment. 

Oregon’s workforce is getting older, as more and more Oregonians continue to work into their later years of life. But many older workers run up against age discrimination. Age discrimination in the workplace is prevalent in Oregon and nationally, according to research by AARP. In this episode of Policy for the People, we explore the issue of age discrimination in the workplace. Our guest is Andrea Meyer, Director of Government Relations at AARP Oregon. We discuss how pervasive the problem of age discrimination in the workplace is, its consequences, and what Oregon can do to address the problem.

For families struggling to pay the bills, for parents juggling multiple jobs to try to keep things afloat, small amounts of cash can make the difference between making it or not, between having some breathing space or being suffocated by the daily grind. Simply giving cash to families in need is very effective at improving economic and mental well-being.That’s a key takeaway from the many experiments with cash programs – guaranteed income – that have been playing out all across the country (and here in Oregon) over the past few years.In this episode of Policy for the People, we explore the policy known as guaranteed income, an idea whose time has come. First, we speak with Shafeka Hashash, Associate Director of Guaranteed Income at the Economic Security Project, about the experiments with guaranteed income that we’ve been seeing in communities across the country, and what they teach us. Then we take a look at a guaranteed income pilot program right here in Oregon. We speak with Brandi Tuck of Path Home, who says that cash programs have the power to lift families out of poverty for good.

“The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) is facing an unprecedented crisis that threatens worker protections and civil rights enforcement in the state,” according to the Bureau itself.  In this episode of Policy for the People, we speak with Oregon Labor Commissioner Christina Stephenson about the funding crisis that BOLI faces, and what that means for the economic well-being of working Oregonians.We also speak with Jake Barnes of the Workplace Justice Lab at Rutgers University. He is the co-author of a recent report estimating the extent to which workers get paid less than the legally required minimum wage.

How Oregon sets the salary of state legislators and other elected officials could soon change.  If enacted by voters, Measure 116 on the November ballot would take away from the Oregon legislature the responsibility for deciding how much lawmakers, the Governor, and other state elected officials get paid, and give that task to an independent salary commission. In this episode of Policy for the People, we speak with two supporters of Measure 116. Isabela Villarreal is Policy and Communications Manager for Next Up Action Fund. Robin Ye is Political and Strategy Director at East County Rising.

Echoing statements from both presidential candidates, one Oregon State Senator recently put forward the idea of exempting tips from Oregon income taxes. But is exempting tips from taxes a good idea?  In this episode of Policy for the People, we explore the idea of no taxes on tips. Daniel Hauser, Deputy Director of the Oregon Center for Public Policy, explains that exempting tips from taxes would do little to improve the economic security of struggling workers, while making our tax system less fair.We also examine the origins of the practice of tipping. Nina Mast of the Economic Policy Institute discusses how tipping is a legacy of our nation’s deeply racist past, and what that means for workers today. 

Measure 118 will be one of the most closely watched measures on the November ballot.  Known as “The Oregon Rebate,” the measure would make it so that each year, every resident of Oregon gets a rebate from the state. To pay for these rebates, the measure would institute one of the biggest changes to Oregon’s tax system in decades.In this episode of Policy for the People, we take a deep dive into Measure 118. Daniel Hauser, OCPP's Deputy Director, discusses what Measure 118 gets right, and what it doesn’t.