Stepping-up to the plate: Sen. Ron Wyden shares his objectives

By Mary Owen

Tax reform and health care were key issues drawing comments from Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) at last month’s Aumsville Town Hall meeting.

Approximately 100 citizens came to hear Wyden’s answers to questions such as that asked by one audience member, “Why does Congress get excellent health care and we don’t?”

“You’re way too logical and sensible, ma’am,” he said, smiling at the woman who posed the question. “That’s a no-brainer.”

Wyden told those gathered that one way Oregon could promote equality was to get a federal waiver from some of the national reforms passed under President Barack Obama and for Oregon to develop its own approach to health care.

“There shouldn’t be one set of choices for the people of this country and another set for their elected officials,” he said.

Wyden has introduced the Healthy American Act, a groundbreaking proposal to provide cost-effective, high quality, private health coverage for every American regardless of where they work or live. Drawing bipartisan interest, the plan would provide health benefits equal to those that members of Congress now enjoy, Wyden said.

A significant move away from national health reform would be for Oregon to not embrace the individual mandate that would penalize those who refuse to purchase insurance coverage.

Wyden believes Oregonians have demonstrated that a one-size fits all approach from Washington is not
the best approach for the Northwest, he said in a recent letter on the matter.

“The Healthy Americans Act also modernizes the employer-employee relationship by putting the worker in the driver’s seat,” he said.

Employees can choose to keep health insurance plans employers provide as well as have guaranteed portability of the plan if they move from job to job, even if laid off, leaves voluntarily or develops a serious illness.

Another high-interest issue Wyden and Republican Chairman of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measure, Pat Tiberi, are working on together is tax reform.

“I want to make sure if you have $5 in your pocket that there are incentives in place for you to get ahead,” Wyden said.

Wyden believes in clearing out tax breaks for special interest groups and put that money toward incentives for all Americans, something that Congress has not pursued in decades.

“The tax code has tripled in size just in the last 10 years,” he said. “Both Democrats and Republicans should be able to work together to overhaul the federal tax code similar to what President Reagan achieved with a divided House and Senate in 1986.”

Both parties need to “step up to the plate,” he said.

“We are prepared to roll up our sleeves and work together on serious tax reform this year,” he told those gathered.

Lower taxes combined with higher education should lead to success for the average American, he added.

“The income gap between those who have the highest salaries and those who have the smallest salaries has increased,” he said. “The education gap also has grown as fast. Education is the key to getting ahead.”

Wyden has initiated the Bipartisan Tax Fairness and Simplification Act of 2010 that offers major tax relief for America’s middle class by “making the 1.4-million work U.S. income tax code simpler, flatter and fairer,” according to his web information.

Thirdly, Wyden touched on the South Korea Free Trade Act, stating, “I want to make trade a winner for every nook and cranny of this state.”

Other issues addressed included:

Enacting a Disclosure Act that will require all organizations making political expenditures to make public their donors and appear on camera to stand by their ads.

“I don’t think any powerful interest group should be able to run television commercials without accountability and full disclosure to the people,” Wyden said.

Striking a balance between sustainable forests and bolstering the economy by overhauling federal forest practices in Oregon through the Oregon Eastside Forests Restoration, Old Growth Protection and Jobs Act.

Assisting in identifying mental health instability in gun owners to prevent further incidents such as the recent shootings in Tucson, Ariz.

“All groups knew this individual was extremely unstable and yet none of the institutions felt it was their role to step in and require this person to be singled out. Too many unstable people fall between the cracks,” Wyden said.