Spin

Please see the bold text in the following article. If that's not politician speech, I don't know what is.

Portland Mayor Proposes Income Tax To Support Schools


By Kristian Foden-Vencil

PORTLAND, OR 2006-01-27 Portland's Mayor Tom Potter unveiled a new tax Thursday to better fund the five school districts in the Metro area. As Kristian Foden-Vencil reports, the tax is 24 percent smaller than the Multnomah County levy it replaces and would only fund schools, not police or social services.

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Mayor Tom Potter announced the tax to hundreds of parents and kids at a rally inside Benson High School. He wants a five-year, 0.95 percent levy on the income of residents. His proposal would also extend the .04 percent tax on business licenses.

"You know I know there's a lot of people that are tired of paying taxes. But I don't consider this paying taxes, I consider this investing in our children and investing in Portland's future."

A city council vote is expected to put the tax on the May ballot.

Political experts say the Multnomah County Income Tax passed in 2003 largely because schools were facing drastic cuts and supporters promised it would be temporary.

People who fought that tax say this new levy is tantamount to a breach of promise.