Unemployment tax relief bill gets warm reception
Some business groups want state lawmakers to go further on a hammered-out compromise.
Oregon businesses, business lobbyists and lawmakers from both parties blessed a bill that would let some businesses defer part of their unemployment payroll taxes and pay a little less to a reduced state trust fund in future years.
House Bill 3389, which the House Rules Committee heard Thursday, April 1, also would set the payroll tax rates for the next three years (2022 to 2024) at 2020 levels, which were determined before the coronavirus pandemic resulted in a sharp economic downturn a year ago.
The closure and curtailment orders affected the 10 Washington County and two Clackamas County shops in The Barbers chain owned by Kimberly Spiegelberg. Her payroll tax rate was a relatively low 1.3%, given the high turnover in the industry, but jumped to 2.1% after the pandemic induced layoffs.