Policy for the People

Feb 13 2025 54 ep. 27 mins 17

Policy for the People Podcast artwork

Welcome to Policy for the People, a show that explores the public policies that can lift up all Oregonians. This show is a collaboration between KMUZ radio (kmuz.org) and the Oregon Center for Public Policy (ocpp.org).

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Two things that are making tax filing easy and free for Oregonians

Feb 13 2025 28 mins

For some Oregonians, the complexity and cost involved in tax filing is a barrier to doing their taxes. Oregonians who would be due a tax refund, who would get money back by filing a tax return, don't receive those dollars because they're unable to navigate the complicated process of preparing and filing a tax return. In this episode of Policy for the People, we discuss two initiati

Age discrimination in the workplace is a big problem Oregon needs to deal with

Jan 09 2025 26 mins

Oregon’s workforce is getting older, as more and more Oregonians continue to work into their later years of life. But many older workers run up against age discrimination. Age discrimination in the workplace is prevalent in Oregon and nationally, according to research by AARP. In this episode of Policy for the People, we explore the issue of age discrimination in the workplace. O

Guaranteed income is an idea whose time has come

Dec 12 2024 29 mins

For families struggling to pay the bills, for parents juggling multiple jobs to try to keep things afloat, small amounts of cash can make the difference between making it or not, between having some breathing space or being suffocated by the daily grind. Simply giving cash to families in need is very effective at improving economic and mental well-being. That’s a key takeaway fro

The crisis facing the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries

Nov 14 2024 29 mins

“The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) is facing an unprecedented crisis that threatens worker protections and civil rights enforcement in the state,” according to the Bureau itself. In this episode of Policy for the People, we speak with Oregon Labor Commissioner Christina Stephenson about the funding crisis that BOLI faces, and what that means for the economic well

Measure 116 would change who sets salaries for state elected officials

Oct 17 2024 26 mins

How Oregon sets the salary of state legislators and other elected officials could soon change. If enacted by voters, Measure 116 on the November ballot would take away from the Oregon legislature the responsibility for deciding how much lawmakers, the Governor, and other state elected officials get paid, and give that task to an independent salary commission. In this episode of Pol

No taxes on tips is a bad idea. And where does tipping come from anyway?

Oct 10 2024 28 mins

Echoing statements from both presidential candidates, one Oregon State Senator recently put forward the idea of exempting tips from Oregon income taxes. But is exempting tips from taxes a good idea? In this episode of Policy for the People, we explore the idea of no taxes on tips. Daniel Hauser, Deputy Director of the Oregon Center for Public Policy, explains that exempting tips fr

What Measure 118 gets right and what it doesn't

Sep 12 2024 28 mins

Measure 118 will be one of the most closely watched measures on the November ballot. Known as “The Oregon Rebate,” the measure would make it so that each year, every resident of Oregon gets a rebate from the state. To pay for these rebates, the measure would institute one of the biggest changes to Oregon’s tax system in decades. In this episode of Policy for the People, we ta

Rewind: Tax extreme wealth to save our democracy

Aug 08 2024 28 mins

Last month saw yet another record in terms of the fortunes held by the nation's superrich. In July 2024, the roughly 800 billionaires in the U.S. were collectively worth about $6 trillion, the highest amount ever. In light of this, it seemed like a good time to replay a prior episode of Policy for the People examining the need to tax extreme wealth. In August of last year, Bob Lord

Parts of the massive Trump tax cuts are expiring, providing an opportunity to change course

Jul 11 2024 28 mins

Next year, 2025, is setting up to be a pivotal year when it comes to how our nation raises the money needed to pay for public services — things like health, housing, the nation’s safety net, and more. The reason for this dates back to 2017. That year, Congress enacted the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, better known as the Trump tax cuts. This tax package contained massive changes to ou

Direct File is a big step toward simple and free tax filing

Jun 13 2024 28 mins

Recently, the IRS announced that its Direct File program is expanding. This is a big deal. Filing a tax return is complicated. It’s costly. This is a bad situation for everyone, especially families struggling to get by on low wages. The complexity and cost of filing taxes deters many low-income workers from claiming the tax credits for which they are eligible, undermining some of