gas tax
Posted inOpinion

With a Referendum on ODOT Funding, Oregon Is Damned If We Do…or Don’t

A vote in May gets the matter settled sooner, but has the potential to erode voter trust
by The Source Editorial Board

Over the past several weeks we have heard arguments both for and against the notion of putting a citizen-led repeal of new gas taxes on the May ballot, rather than a November one. Proponents said it gets the question of future funding for the Oregon Department of Transportation answered sooner. Opponents said it subverted the […]

Posted inOpinion

A Gas Tax Repeal Could Be Looming, But Oregonians Will Feel the Effects Right Away

Next year, voters may get a chance to weigh in on funding for ODOT. But the current repeal petition will put the brakes on road maintenance far sooner.
by The Source Editorial Board

From the flurry of activity that has been happening around the proposed gas tax referendum, it’s clear that many Oregonians have strong feelings about the issue of raising fees on car registrations and raising the state gas tax by 6 cents. Partisan historians are calling the effort “unprecedented.” Some are going out of their way […]

Posted inOpinion

When it comes to paying for transportation infrastructure, locals may be paying twice

The Source Staff

In Central Oregon, housing and transportation infrastructure represent two of the region’s biggest challenges. With explosive growth in recent decades, people know the housing shortage can drive up rents and make buying more difficult. They also know that certain roads are “avoid at all costs” during certain times of the day, due to congestion. A […]

Posted inOpinion

The gas tax wouldn’t have killed you.

That lack of sidewalk, though? It might.
The Source Staff

If there’s one thing people like to complain/lament/rage about in Central Oregon (besides tourists and newcomers), it’s traffic and roads. It’s such a salient issue here, that we’ve devoted an entire issue of the Source to this important topic this week. If you want to know where the City of Bend and other entities are […]

Posted inOpinion

Endorsement: Yes on Measure 9-105

Motor vehicle fuel tax
The Source Staff

Ballots were mailed on Wednesday for the City of Bend Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax, Measure 9-105, a five cents-per-gallon tax on gasoline that would be dedicated to road repairs and improvements in Bend. A city fuel tax is not a new concept in Oregon, where state and federal funding for roads has stayed stagnant for […]

Posted inOpinion

Letters 12/23-12/30

The Source Staff

IN REPLY TO “LETTER: REFUGEES CONTRIBUTE TO CLIMATE CRISIS” (DEC. 16) Um, Climate Change is a global event, not limited to the U.S.A. While it’s true that limiting population (globally) would be good for the climate, it’s practically irrelevant where refugees settle. Not totally irrelevant, since we in the U.S.A. have the highest per capita […]

Posted inOpinion

Letters 8/26-9/2

The Source Staff

IN REPLY TO “SAVE PILOT BUTTE SUPPORTER” (8/21) Is it time for rent control in Bend? As a renter, I am seriously questioning that this might be a necessary evil. The proposed multifamily units are anything but affordable, and though I have seen quotes of rental increases this last year of 1.5 to 2.5 percent […]

Posted inNews

City and County consider marijuana regulations

Avatar photo Erin Rook

Following last week’s public hearings, the Deschutes County Commission has decided not to opt out of allowing marijuana-related businesses in the unincorporated county, and will instead discuss regulatory options further at its September meeting. While an opt out could re-emerge, commissioners say they hope to find a middle ground between the needs of the growing […]

Posted inOpinion

Post-Haste Makes Waste

The Source Staff

A good idea is not necessarily inevitable; especially an idea—like the gas tax—which needs finesse to gather support. How that idea comes about matters immensely. That is Politics 101. But it is also apparently a basic tenet that the majority of Bend City Council decided to hopscotch past and, in the process, may have poisoned […]

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