ATTEMPTING NON-INCREMENTAL BUDGET CHANGE IN OREGON - AN EXERCISE IN POLICY SHARING

In 1990 Oregon passed Measure 5, a constitutional property tax limitat ion that threatens massive funding cuts to education and government se rvices. In response, Governor Barbara Roberts undertook an experiment in policy sharing, engaging in a ''conversation'' via closed circuit t elevision with some 10,000 Oregonians about taxes and services before she formulated a tax restructuring plan. The resultant tax proposal ap peared carefully balanced and moderate. It had something to offer each of the state's powerful constituencies but managed, nonetheless, to b alance the budget. A special legislative session was called to decide whether to refer the governor's proposed tax restructuring to a vote o f the people in the wake of Measure 5. At the end of a short, emotiona lly charged session, the legislature voted not to refer the plan to a vote of the people. This paper examines this process in the light of t he literature and examples of other attempts to use citizen participat ion in formulating public policy.