Portland, Ore. – Former Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber said voters should wait until Oregon reforms how it funds schools and vote against Measure 97.
Kitzhaber announced he would vote against the ballot measure that would increase state spending by nearly a third, or $6 billion every two years.
Gov. Kate Brown supports the measure, which would tax around 1,000 businesses that sell over $25 million annually in Oregon.
In a series of posts on Kitzhaber’s Facebook page, he reiterated that voters should turn down the measure until the Oregon Legislature makes changes that will ensure the money reduces class sized and improves school’s performance.
Furthermore, Kitzhaber said as long as the state must use the bulk of its general fund to invest in schools-rather than relying on property taxes, as many states do, the state will suffer from poor academic results.
