Item 4: Ordinance on Tax on Motor Fuel

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that the State had decided to require that ethanol be combined with gasoline and this would result in a 30 percent reduction of emissions. He said this was good for the State. He believed that the State would choose to pursue a statewide remedy for transportation funding for the same reason. He underscored his belief that a local gas tax only hurt local dealers. Aaron Johnson , 2672 Canterbury Street, remarked that the City Council had an important decision before it: to vote with the electors or to vote against them with “blatant disregard to those who” elected them to office. He said it was up to the council to stand up and vote on behalf the people of the City. He averred that the people needed the council’s help to stop the “unfair tax burden.” He acknowledged that the roads were in a state of disrepair and that the 2 cent gas tax might sound like a good idea. He believed, however, that it would cause problems “on further issues.” He felt that a statewide fee would cause all Oregonians to shoulder the burden equally. He thought a local tax would continue to hurt the tax base. He questioned how the City could hope to repair the “decaying downtown” if people stopped coming to Eugene for the goods and services available there. He believed continuing “down this road” would hurt the people of Eugene. He predicted the coming recession would add to the strain. He related that he had 24 employees when the tax began and he now had 16. He added that several of the former employees were now on government assistance while they pursued other employment. He asserted that the City was forcing small station owners to sign long contracts with “big oil,” thus removing competition and causing prices to rise unchecked. He commented that one owner had closed his stations and “walked away.” th Howard Bonnett , 1835 East 28 Avenue, suggested an alternative political strategy: extend the tax for three more years in order to see if the State would pursue another mode of funding. He said in the mean time the gas tax would provide another $3 million more for the roads that need work. He invited anyone who drove elsewhere to buy cheaper gasoline to consider how much the drive to purchase it costs. Mayor Piercy closed the public hearing and opened the floor for councilor comments. Councilor Ortiz commented that she did not look at the City of Eugene selling less gasoline as necessarily a bad thing. She would surmise that people were living within their footprint. She felt that spending money locally in one’s own community was a good thing. She had supported the gas tax in the past because she heard the frustration of staff regarding not being able to address deteriorating roads and she heard feedback from constituents regarding the roads. Councilor Pryor thought the vote in November was something the council should pay attention to. He was uncertain as to how he would vote on it at this point. He recalled that he had debated the last gas tax with Mr. Romain and he believed Mr. Romain was sincere when he said he would work to pass a statewide gas tax. He indicated his willingness to work with Mr. Romain and others on such a tax. He had some concern that continuing the 2 cent tax would result in a situation where the council could find it voted down as the proposed tax on the November ballot had been voted. He also found it difficult to walk away from $1.4 million, which he believed was desperately needed. He wanted to have community support for the larger elements of the transportation package the committee had worked on. He was concerned that the gas tax could negatively impact a bond measure. He agreed that street repairs should not be a “sidebar issue” when talking about the budget. Councilor Bettman thanked everyone who testified. She said she did not “read” the election as the voters rescinding the existing gas tax. She acknowledged that some would disagree with an action to extend the gas tax and that those people would have a right to place it on the ballot. She appreciated hearing that people were willing to “step up to the plate” to help at the state level “if [the council] did what they wanted.” She commented that the bond would not provide enough money to fund the backlog of street repairs. She asked if it would be possible to modify the ordinance so that the sunset date could be