Oregon Ballot Measure 48, State Government Spending Limits (2006)

Oregon Ballot Measure 48 was on the November 7, 2006 ballot in Oregon as an initiated constitutional amendment, where it was defeated.

If Measure 48 had been approved, it would have limited the amount of money that the state of Oregon could spend by limiting future increases in state government spending based on a formula of inflation plus population growth. It was a variant of the Colorado Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) that passed in Colorado in 1992.

Measure 48 would have inserted into the state's constitution a provision that would take the current year's budget and control, from that point forward, increases in spending by the government. It would not have decreased the amount of money budgeted, but would have limited the amount by which state government spending could have been increased the following year, and every year thereafter, according to a formula that takes into account the increase in population and the inflation rate.

Supporters of the measure were outspent by about $2 million. Supporters spent $1.3 million, including on the petition drive to put the measure on the ballot, and opponents of the measure spent $3.3 million to defeat it.

Election results

Measure 48
Result		Votes	Percentage
d No		923,629	70.86%
Yes		379,971	29.14%

Support

Supporters

Ballot Measure 48 was referred to as the Rainy Day Amendment by supporters such as the Taxpayer Association of Oregon, the Oregon Republican Party and Americans for Limited Government.. Various libertarian and conservative organizations supported the measure, and claimed that it would help put Oregon politicians on a budget, similar to that which Oregon families have in their own homes. In order to be placed on the ballot, Measure 48 supporters collected over 109,000 signatures of Oregon voters, which were approved in the summer prior to the election.

Individual supporters included Don McIntire and Paul Farago.

Donors

$1,342,379 was donated to the campaign in favor of a "yes" vote on Ballot Measure 48.

Donors of $25,000 and over were:

Donor	Amount
Americans for Limited Government	$632,672
Club for Growth	$300,000
National Taxpayers Union	$107,684
Taxpayers Association of Oregon	$94,023
Restore Oregon's Term Limits	$48,780
John D. Bryan	$25,500

Opposition

Opponents

Unions, the Oregon Democratic Party, taxpayer-funded lobbying organizations such as the Oregon School Boards Association and chambers of commerce opposed the measure, claiming that it would take funding away from various state-run programs. Opponents cited studies that claimed that state revenue would fall in terms of billions of dollars.

The Oregon Education Association was the largest donor to efforts to defeat the measure, donating approximately $723,000 to the opposition campaign.

Donors

$4,285,495 was donated to the campaign in favor of a "no" vote on Ballot Measure 48.

Donors of $50,000 and over were:

Donor	Amount
Oregon Education Association	$814,031
AARP	$399,712
Oregon City Federation of Teachers	$277,480
SEIU Local 503	$250,000
AARP Oregon	$230,402
AFSCME Council 75	$204,513
Oregon School Employees Association	$201,000
SEIU	$158,902
Oregon Public Employees Local 503	$107,730
Oregon AFL-CIO	$92,202
Our Oregon	$77,203
AFL-CIO	$50,000
Oregon Nurses United	$50,000
Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde	$50,000
Nike	$50,000

Press reactions

Editorial boards throughout the state wrote unfavorably about Measure 48, citing examples from the TABOR in Colorado. For example, an editorial in the Oregonian wrote that Measure 48 "would steadily weaken Oregon and its public services."

See also

• List of Oregon ballot measures
• Oregon 2006 ballot measures
• 2006 ballot measures
• Procedures for qualifying an initiative in Oregon
• Laws governing the initiative process in Oregon
• Oregon State Senate
• Oregon House of Representatives

External links

Suggest a link

• 2006 Oregon Ballot Measures Election Results
• 2006 Voter Guide
• 2006 Ballot Measures Details