Friday, February 25, 2011

This week at the Capitol - Oregon Restaurant & Lodging Association's advocacy team in action

House Bill 3295
ORLA's government affairs team is closely monitoring House Bill 3295, a proposal that allows local governments to close an OLCC establishment for 72 hours if the local officials believe that continued sales or operation is an immediate threat to public safety. ORLA has concerns with this bill and we believe the proposal would make it far too easy to close an establishment.
This will likely be the biggest "battle" in Salem this session for OLCC license holders. Additionally, the Chiefs of Police Association is supporting this bill - which lends a stronger position to the proponents' argument. The bill will be moved to the House Judiciary Committee, and although no action has been scheduled yet, stay tuned!

House Bill 3030
HB 3030, which allows golf course marshals to be exempt from minimum wage law if they are provided free golf, is on its way to the House floor for a vote. Once passed, the bill will move to the Senate for consideration.

Senate Bill 301
Two years ago Congress passed a tax bill giving businesses the ability to use an accelerated schedule for equipment depreciation. However, last legislative session Oregon's lawmakers "disconnected" from the federal tax code - which meant businesses were not allowed to depreciate their equipment on the same schedule for their Oregon state income taxes. Senate Bill 301 clarifies that action for the 2010 tax year, but will "reconnect" Oregon to the federal tax code for the 2011 tax year allowing Oregon businesses to use the same depreciation schedule for both their federal and state returns. SB 301 has passed the Senate and is now under deliberation in the House.

To view other legislation ORLA is actively involved with visit our Government Affairs pages on the website. Industry members are encouraged to get engaged in legislative issues affecting your business by contacting your legislators – click here to access ORLA's legislative action center and let your voice be heard.

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