Oregonians will see largest "kicker" tax rebate in state history in 2020

Oregonians are in line for a big personal income tax credit, in the form of Oregon's unique “kicker” rebate, when they file their taxes in 2020.

That’s because the state has collected far more money over the past two years than was expected, state economists Mark McMullen and Josh Lehner said Wednesday, May 15. Personal income tax collections during the first quarter of the year were the highest on record.

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Oregon’s ‘kicker’ tax rebate could grow to record $1.4 billion

Oregon taxpayers could receive a record-shattering $1.4 billion “kicker” tax rebate next year, state economists told lawmakers during a revenue forecast in Salem on Wednesday morning.

But Democratic leaders immediately suggested that at least some of the windfall be used to help hedge against a future economic downturn and expand government programs rather than be directed back to taxpayers. House Speaker Tina Kotek named paying down the state’s public employee pension debt as one avenue to build a brighter future for Oregon.

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Don’t steal Kicker, loot SAIF for PERS scandal bailout

Your wallet, your business and even non-profits are not safe under Governor Kate Brown’s plan to fix the $26 billion government PERS pension crisis.

Gov. Brown has proposed a rash of new tax hikes which include widespread surcharges on license fees Oregonians have to pay in order to have a job, visit a park or get married. Brown also proposes to steal the current Kicker Tax Refund of over-collected State tax funds. The current Kicker Tax Refund is expected to return an average $336 in refunds to Oregon taxpayers in 2020.

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Opinion: Democrats pick our pocket with kicker heist

By Allen Alley

How would you feel if the IRS said, "We need more money for government stuff so we decided to keep your refund checks?" I imagine you might be upset. Maybe even upset enough to put on a yellow vest and join our French brethren in protest. I bet you might even get a majority of Democrats and Republicans to agree that keeping our IRS refund checks is an awful idea. Yet in Oregon, something similar is happening and they are coming for more.

The “kicker” is one of those unique Oregon things like urban growth boundaries, the bottle bill, vote by mail and open beaches that makes us well… Oregon.

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