Yep…..you read it right. It's not a beer tax but a "Recovery Fee" for beer sold in Oregon. OK…..

Some of the highlights:

• Imposes a $32 per barrel tax on beer.

• Takes Oregon from 45th in beer taxes to 1st.

• Only applies when the producer makes over 125,000 barrels per year.
• Full Sail and Deshutes each make over 150,000.

• Tax will adjust for inflation.

• Will cost a "dime a drink"... drink beer and pay 10 cents for the tax.
• Most likely will violate the Commerce Clause because of the 125,000 cut-off.

Where The Money Goes

The money raised will be about $80 million per year and with inflation adjustments will rise about 3% per year. Around 40% will go to the State for Alcohol and Drug programs and policing. The remaining 60% will go to local taxing entities in 7.7% increments. Some to cities, some to counties, some for drug abuse, some for housing and so on.

Now I am not totally against a beer tax, it has been very low because Oregon was a "Producer State" when Henry's was pumping out large amounts of beer. And probably needs to be raised to pay for some of the drain it puts on State programs.

But the size and scope of this tax is absolute insanity. Most of this tax is going to be used for things that have nothing to do with beer. Drugs and Drug Court? Mental Health? Why should a beer drinker have to pay for all this?

Lots of talk recently about affordable housing. Much of which centers around Seaside, where people living in some of the apartments are being kicked out for condo development.

On a side-note, I've always been confused as to what the difference is between Condos and Apartments. Isn't a Condo just a bigger Apartment?

Anyway back to the issue at hand. Several Seaside citizens approached the Council and voiced their concerns, to which the Mayor replied:

"We don't know what to do, but we're looking to see what we can do…..."

Those damn Transplants!

In order to address this issue we need to first look at why housing is becoming just a dream in the distance for many locals. The biggest reason is because people want to move here and the supply of housing just isn't big enough. Even though our area offers jobs that are at, or only slightly above minimum wage, our local economy is doing very well at the moment. And our quality of life is much higher than average. (Just try to drive around Seattle at 5pm and you know what I mean…)

The opposite of this is Longview Washington, which looks like any industrial town in America. With a plethora of big-box, industrial parks and tract style development, with you guessed it; lots of affordable housing.
The Median income per household in Longview is $35,171.

Astoria is at $33,011 and Seaside is at $31,074.

Even though the employment rate of all 3 towns is nearly identical, folks who live in Longview make more money and have cheaper housing.

Is that what we want….to be like Longview? Ah…No!

Another reason why housing seems so high is what we consider a "home" these days. Years ago 5 or 6 people lived in one house (Gasp!) today the average population of one house is under 3. Over the last 6 years Astoria has 500 more houses…but as everyone has noticed the population is dropping. I don't know what the numbers are for Seaside, but I would guess their numbers would even be worse than Astoria's.

If someone were to get cynical about all this whole situation, they would tell anyone who complains about affordable housing and low-paying jobs, to move 50 miles up the river.

But this answer is politically impossible, so now we will move on to what local Governments can do to make housing more affordable, hopefully without turning this area into another Longview/Kelso.

• Expand building sites for housing.

• Fast track, reduce red tape and offer "carrots" for developers interested in building affordable homes.

• Tax Breaks.

• Generate development Districts. (Example PDC)

• Change zoning to allow tighter development.

• Rent controls.

If you read between the lines, 5 out of the 6 involve more development. If you are one that wants to halt development because you like the area to stay as it is, 5 items are off the table.
The only one left is rent controls, if you don't agree with that either, then you and affordable housing are not compatible.

Next is a quick overview of the 6 major ways that local Governments can bring the cost of housing down…...

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Expand Building Sites

Many towns that have issues with the cost of housing are making a move to sell public lands to developers. The developers then must build houses and apartments that sell and rent for a lower rate.

The City of Woodinville Washington did this through an ordinance that said all surplus publicly owned land must be used for low cost housing. They sold off a large building plot that now has 170 homes on it.

Fast Track

One of the barriers in the way of affordable housing is the length of time it takes to get through all the permits and red tape. Sometimes it can take years to get from the planning stage to the building stage. As they say time is money and if a local Government really wants to address housing they must make it easier for those developers who want to build affordable housing.

Tax Breaks

This one is pretty self-explanatory in any situation. If a town wants a developer to build something they offer tax breaks.

New Tax District

Many cities create special tax districts that specifically address housing for low income families. One of the more notorious ones is the Portland Development Commission. They are arguably the most corrupt Government agency in Oregon. Development Taxing Districts are not all like this, but the Portland one has created many doubts that this will actually work.

Change Zoning

Another way for local Governments to address the housing issue is to change the zoning or offer Inclusive Zoning.
Some call it "SMART" development, but basically you change zoning to allow more people to live in a smaller space. This brings the costs down to develop the property.

Rent controls

This is a very touchy subject among city dwellers and I doubt this is even possible here. I will just discuss it briefly. In many large cities there are rent controls in place which are a "ceiling" to the price of rent in a particular area. These were first implemented during WWII and when Nixon was in the White House.
For a good overview check out Wiki.

Even though this is a Seaside issue at the moment, I'm sure it will be an issue in Astoria very shortly.

So what should we do?

I have been putting this off for a while, but I really want to get something off my chest and out in the open.

I think I have a problem with a drug.

The day before yesterday I ran out, the stash box was empty. So after work yesterday I had to go find some. I'm not really picky on how high the quality is or how much it costs, anything will do. In fact sometimes I fiend for different tastes and strengths just to break up the monotony of the previous stuff I bought. Most of what I buy is imported, but not all. If I just got a big fat paycheck sometimes my I buy a related product that is much different, but has the same chemical makeup.

But being the cheap guy I am generally I like to buy bigger amounts and do most of it at home. If I buy it in small amounts it ends up costing $3 or $4 per use. If I buy in bulk it is below a dollar per use.
This is actually the reason I think I am addicted, because if you buy anything in bulk you are telling yourself you are going to be using for a long period of time, you have no desire to quit, so why not save some money?

I know the dangers of this drug, it increases heart-rate and may make it beat irregular. Many other people have much bigger problems when taking the drug such as feeling restless, nervous and some even experience panic attacks. To this, I make up my own list on it's positives and how "un-dangerous" it really is.

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First it increases my alertness and improves my thinking skills, if only for an hour or so after I take it. Second, overdoses are so rare that they are not even kept on record. Third, the only people who have died from taking it have been from accidents. And people die from accidents all the time, how can you prove it was the fault of the drug?

And this drug has helped many people medically including me, in the areas of headaches and migraines. And it does not suppress appetite, or tear up the stomach like some pain pills do.

But enough of that, back to my story. So I head down to the local seller who happens to have a wide variety for sale. I hone in on the 2 stash boxes in front of me and look them over. I open them up to see all kinds of little baggies. One has 18 baggies and one has 20. And according to the seller they are the same price! The one with 20 baggies happens to be "On Sale" at the moment. A few minutes later out comes my hard-earned money and then back to the car for the drive back home. I make sure I have my seatbelt on and drive the speed limit as I pass the police station a few short blocks from my sellers place, I think to myself "I finally got it, after being dry for almost 24 hours!".

Oh yeah, I bet you are wondering what I bought on my little journey.

But first let me ask you….

Am I addicted?