Policy for the People

Is there a way for Oregon to ensure that everyone in our state has access to affordable, quality health care? And can it be done at a lower cost compared to our current, complicated system of health care? There is, according to a group of experts, policymakers, and community members who spent about two years looking into these questions. Created by the Oregon legislature, the Task Force on Univers...

The strengthening of the federal Child Tax Credit in 2021 caused child poverty to plummet. Unfortunately, those changes were temporary. And now, millions of kids across the country are falling back into poverty, due to congressional action. In this episode of Policy for the People, Oregon Senator Ron Wyden talks about his efforts to bring back the enhanced Child Tax Credit before the year ends — b...

In addition to violence and discrimination, the transgender community faces a challenge that few others do: the fact that the federal government collects almost no data about the trans community. The absence of reliable data about the realities experienced by the transgender community makes it harder for the community to fight for justice. In the absence of government-collected data about the tran...

Wealth inequality is at mind-boggling levels. A new report by the Oregon Center for Public Policy (OCPP) shows how much of Oregon’s wealth is in the hands of a few billionaires. OCPP Policy Analyst Tyler Mac Innis explains just how extreme wealth inequality is in Oregon and the factors driving inequality.  But how does Oregon compare to the rest of the country? Carl Davis, Research Director at the...

In recent years, some lawmakers have failed to show up for work as a tactic to derail legislation. We speak with Tan Perkins, campaign manager for Measure 113 , about the harm that legislative walkouts inflicts on Oregonians, and how the measure would deter walkouts. In the second segment of the show, Audrey Mechling of the Oregon Center for Public Policy explains the good, the bad, and the ugly i...

In an earlier era, a vibrant labor movement nurtured a broad middle class. But half-a-century ago, under severe attack from corporations, the fortunes of organized labor began to turn for the worse. Right now, though, we are seeing hopeful signs of a revival of union power, explains Mark Brenner, an economist and co-director of the Labor Education and Research Center (LERC) at the University of Or...

Intuit, the maker of TurboTax, has used all kinds of tricks to keep our tax system complicated and expensive. Most Americans pay the price, especially those who can least afford it. But there is legislation in Congress that would fix the problem, creating a truly free and simple tax filing system for most folks. Guests: Janet Bauer of The Oregon Center for Public Policy and Susan Harley of Public...

The U.S. Supreme Court decision ending of the constitutional right to abortion threatens economic harm to many. In our first segment of this episode, we discuss the economic impact of the court's ruling with Asha Banerjee, an Economic Analyst with the Economic Policy Institute . Did you know one in four minimum wage workers in Oregon are parents?  In our second segment, OCPP Policy Analyst Ty...

A few weeks ago, we learned that a $3 billion "kicker" rebate could be on its way. As usual, the rich would get huge checks, while the lowest-income Oregonians -- those who could really use some extra money to pay the bills -- would get chump change. In this episode, we hear from Mark McMullen, head of the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis , about the state of Oregon's economy and...

Oregon's biggest housing program, the mortgage interest deduction, does nothing to ease the state's long-running housing crisis. That's because this billion-dollar housing subsidy mainly benefits well-off homeowners. This is only one of the many flaws of the mortgage interest deduction, according to a recent audit by the Oregon Secretary of State's Office. In this episode of Po...

Large scale experiments carried out during the pandemic have given a boost to an old idea: addressing poverty and economic insecurity by giving people cash with no strings attached.  In this episode, we speak with State Representative Andrea Valderrama (HD 47) about the legislature's recent decision to send a one-time payment of $600 to low-paid workers in Oregon. Also, OCPP Director of Polic...

On Women's History Month, Policy for the People explores the gender biases in the tax code and reforms that can advance gender justice. We discuss these issues with Amy Matsui, Director of Income Security and Senior Counsel at the National Women’s Law Center . Support the show

With guests Andrea Paluso of Family Forward Oregon and Mary King, economics professor emeritus at Portland State University, we examine Oregon’s child care crisis – the challenges it poses for families, child care workers, and the economy. And we discuss the kinds of policy changes that can set things right. Support the show

Despite often performing work considered essential to the nation's critical infrastructure, undocumented workers live under the constant fear of deportation. In this episode of Policy for the People, Janet Bauer of the Oregon Center for Public Policy and Isa Peña of Innovation Law Lab discuss how deportation wreaks havoc on families and weakens Oregon's economy, as well as what the state...

In this special episode of Policy for the People, we share a recording of a presentation by the Oregon Center for Public Policy titled "The Racist Roots of Oregon's Tax System."  Listen to OCPP communications director Juan Carlos Ordóñez discuss how Oregon's tax system entrenches and even deepens racial inequality.  Support the show

One of the biggest tax havens in the world — one of the main places where the superrich go to stash their money and avoid taxes — is the U.S. This is largely due to the fact that a number of U.S. states have transformed themselves into tax havens. In this episode of Policy for the People, we talk to Kalena Thomhave, a researcher with the Program on Inequality and the Common Good at the Institute f...

In this episode, we discuss the Build Back Better legislation before Congress. Samantha Jacoby of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and OCPP's Alejandro Queral explain what this transformational legislation would mean for the nation and Oregon. Support the show

In this episode of Policy for the People, we explore the problem of poor quality jobs — jobs that pay too little to adequately support a family and that often come with few if any benefits. OCPP Senior Policy Analyst Janet Bauer explains the dimensions of the problem and what Oregon can do to address it. You can dive deeper into the issue by reading our report Poor Quality Jobs Predominate in Stro...

The latest data confirms the wide disparities by income that existed on the eve of the pandemic. In this show, OCPP Executive Director Alejandro Queral discusses the latest figures on inequality, why economic inequality harms Oregonians, and what kinds of policies changes are needed to shrink inequality. Support the show

Undocumented workers in Oregon are more likely than not to perform work considered essential during the pandemic, yet they were left out of federal emergency assistance that other workers received. In this episode, Martha Sonato of PCUN, Oregon's farmworker union, and OCPP's Janet Bauer discuss the economic challenges faced by Oregon's undocumented workers. Support the show

In the latest episode of Policy for the People, we discuss what the state economists are saying about the economy and tax collections. Support the show

While it may seem obvious, providing rent assistance to those unable to afford the rent is the best way to keep people stably housed. Support the show

This episode of Policy for the People examines the American Rescue Plan Act, enacted by Congress in March 2021. As OCPP Senior Policy Analyst Janet Bauer explains, the plan potentially signals a change in direction toward an economy that aims for shared prosperity Support the show

Although Oregon tax policy is no longer explicitly racist, it continues to entrench and even deepen racial disparities. Support the show

Wage theft is widespread and pervasive. Part of the reason for that is because greedy employers face no real downside to stealing the wages of their employees. Support the show