74th OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2007 Regular Session
NOTE: Matter within { + braces and plus signs + } in an
amended section is new. Matter within { - braces and minus
signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within
{ + braces and plus signs + } .
LC 1921
House Bill 2535
Sponsored by Representative DINGFELDER, Senator MORRISETTE
SUMMARY
The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the
measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject to
consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor's
brief statement of the essential features of the measure as
introduced.
Imposes malt beverage cost recovery fee on malt beverages.
Establishes Alcohol Impact Remediation Fund. Continuously
appropriates moneys in fund to Department of Human Services.
Distributes moneys to cities and counties for alcohol and drug
abuse and mental health preventive, early intervention and
treatment services, public health services, law enforcement
purposes related to mental health and addiction activities,
drug-free housing efforts and drug court program funding.
Applies to malt beverage cost recovery fee reporting periods
beginning on or after effective date of Act.
Takes effect on 91st day following adjournment sine die.
A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to malt beverage cost recovery fees; creating new
provisions; amending ORS 471.805; appropriating money;
prescribing an effective date; and providing for revenue
raising that requires approval by a three-fifths majority.
Whereas Oregon has one of the lowest taxes on malt beverages in
the nation; and
Whereas Oregon's current wholesale malt beverage tax has not
been raised for 30 years; and
Whereas Oregon collects only $1 of alcohol tax for every
estimated $39 of alcohol-related health care costs; and
Whereas underage drinking cost the citizens of Oregon an
estimated $724 million in 2005; and
Whereas alcohol abuse and alcoholism cost each Oregonian an
estimated $683 annually; and
Whereas Oregon eighth graders' use of alcohol is an estimated
80.5 percent higher than the national average; and
Whereas underage drinkers consumed an estimated 15.3 percent of
all alcohol sold in Oregon in 2005, totaling an estimated $278
million in sales and estimated profits of $135 million to the
alcohol industry; and
Whereas increasing alcohol taxes has been shown to reduce
underage drinking; and
Whereas the Governor's Task Group on Underage Drinking in
Oregon concluded that 'raising the price of alcohol would do more
to combat youth use of alcohol than any other strategy'; and
Whereas the report of the Institute of Medicine and the
National Research Council on reducing underage drinking
specifically recommended that 'Congress and state legislatures
should raise excise taxes to reduce underage consumption and to
raise additional revenues for this purpose'; and
Whereas top priority should be given to raising malt beverage
taxes and indexing those taxes to the Consumer Price Index so
that the taxes keep pace with inflation without the necessity of
further legislative action; and
Whereas four out of five Oregonians polled are in favor of
increasing an alcohol tax; now, therefore,
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. { + Section 2 of this 2007 Act is added to and made
a part of ORS chapter 473. + }
SECTION 2. { + (1) In addition to and not in lieu of any
charge imposed under ORS 473.030 or other law, in order to
recover a portion of the government costs incurred as a result of
the consumption of malt beverages, a manufacturer or an importing
distributor of malt beverages shall be subject to a malt beverage
cost recovery fee of $32 per barrel of 31 gallons of malt
beverage.
(2) A manufacturer of malt beverages that annually produces
less than 125,000 barrels of malt beverages subject to the tax in
ORS 473.030 (1) is exempt from the malt beverage cost recovery
fee described in subsection (1) of this section. An importing
distributor of malt beverages from manufacturers that annually
produce less than 125,000 barrels of malt beverages subject to
the tax in ORS 473.030 (1) is exempt from the malt beverage cost
recovery fee described in subsection (1) of this section on the
products of those manufacturers.
(3) The malt beverage cost recovery fee shall be applied
proportionally to quantities in containers of different capacity
than the quantity specified in this section.
(4) The malt beverage cost recovery fee shall be paid to the
Oregon Liquor Control Commission at the same time that privilege
taxes are paid to the commission.
(5) For all purposes of collection and enforcement, reporting,
claims for refunds, penalties, interest, record keeping,
inspection of records, appeals, confidentiality and disclosure of
information, the malt beverage cost recovery fee shall be
considered to be a privilege tax imposed under ORS 473.030. + }
SECTION 3. ORS 471.805 is amended to read:
471.805. (1) Except as otherwise provided in ORS 471.810 (2),
all money collected by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission under
this chapter and ORS chapter 473 and privilege taxes shall be
remitted to the State Treasurer who shall credit it to a suspense
account of the commission. Whenever the commission determines
that moneys have been received by it in excess of the amount
legally due and payable to the commission or that it has received
money to which it has no legal interest, or that any license fee
or deposit is properly refundable, the commission is authorized
and directed to refund such money by check drawn upon the State
Treasurer and charged to the suspense account of the commission.
After withholding refundable license fees and such sum, not to
exceed $250,000, as it considers necessary as a revolving fund
for a working cash balance for the purpose of paying travel
expenses, advances, other miscellaneous bills and extraordinary
items which are payable in cash immediately upon presentation,
the commission shall direct the State Treasurer to transfer the
money remaining in the suspense account { - to - } { + as
follows:
(a) Amounts collected under section 2 of this 2007 Act shall be
transferred to the Alcohol Impact Remediation Fund created under
section 4 of this 2007 Act; and
(b) The balance of the suspense account following the transfer
of funds under paragraph (a) of this subsection shall be
transferred to + } the Oregon Liquor Control Commission Account
in the General Fund. Moneys in the Oregon Liquor Control
Commission Account are continuously appropriated to the
commission to be distributed and used as required or allowed by
law.
(2) All necessary expenditures of the commission incurred in
carrying out the purposes required of the commission by law,
including the salaries of its employees, purchases made by the
commission and such sums necessary to reimburse the $250,000
revolving fund, shall be audited and paid from the Oregon Liquor
Control Commission Account in the General Fund, upon warrants
drawn by the Oregon Department of Administrative Services,
pursuant to claims duly approved by the commission.
SECTION 4. { + (1) The Alcohol Impact Remediation Fund is
created, separate and distinct from the General Fund. Interest
earned by the Alcohol Impact Remediation Fund shall be credited
to the + } { + Alcohol Impact Remediation + } { + Fund.
(2) Moneys in the + } { + Alcohol Impact Remediation + }
{ + Fund are continuously appropriated to the Department of
Human Services to be distributed in each calendar quarter as
follows:
(a) 10 percent of the balance in the fund shall be distributed
in equal shares to each local mental health authority for
addiction prevention and treatment.
(b) The remaining balance shall be distributed as follows and
for the following purposes:
(A) 7.7 percent of the remaining balance to the Housing and
Community Services Department for the purpose of establishing,
maintaining and ensuring drug-free housing;
(B) 7.7 percent of the remaining balance to the Judicial
Department for the purpose of funding drug court programs
established under ORS 3.450;
(C) 7.7 percent of the remaining balance to the Department of
Human Services for the purpose of funding mental health and
chemical dependency residential treatment;
(D) 7.7 percent of the remaining balance to counties for law
enforcement purposes that are related to mental health and
addiction activities, including but not limited to community
corrections, physician holds, enforcement of laws relating to
driving while under the influence of intoxicants or enforcement
of laws relating to alcoholic beverage purchaser and sales
requirements;
(E) 7.7 percent of the remaining balance to cities for law
enforcement purposes that are related to mental health and
addiction activities, including but not limited to community
corrections, physician holds, enforcement of laws relating to
driving while under the influence of intoxicants or enforcement
of laws relating to alcoholic beverage purchaser and sales
requirements;
(F) 7.7 percent of the remaining balance to counties for public
health authority programs related to alcohol and drug abuse
prevention and treatment;
(G) 7.7 percent of the remaining balance to a single statewide
entity, to be identified by the Department of Human Services, for
the purpose of alcohol and other drug abuse prevention
activities, including but not limited to underage drinking and
addiction issues related to children and families;
(H) 7.7 percent of the remaining balance to local mental health
authorities for the purpose of alcohol and other drug abuse
prevention activities, including but not limited to underage
drinking and addiction issues related to children and families;
and
(I) 38.4 percent of the remaining balance to local mental
health authorities for the purpose of addiction prevention,
treatment and post-treatment care.
(3)(a) The distributions to each county described in subsection
(2)(b)(D) and (F) of this section shall be in the same proportion
to the total amount distributed under subsection (2)(b)(D) and
(F) of this section as the population of the county bears to the
total state population.
(b) The distribution to each city described in subsection
(2)(b)(E) of this section shall be in the same proportion to the
total amount distributed under subsection (2)(b)(E) of this
section as the population of the city bears to the total
population of all cities in this state.
(c) The distributions to each local mental health authority
described in subsection (2)(b)(H) and (I) of this section shall
be in the same proportion to the total amount distributed under
subsection (2)(b)(H) and (I) of this section as the population of
the county the local mental health authority represents bears to
the total state population. For purposes of this paragraph, a
tribe whose tribal council has elected to provide mental health
services as described in ORS 430.630 (10)(a)(B) shall be
considered a county.
(d) The distributions to the single statewide entity described
in subsection (2)(b)(G) of this section shall be used by the
entity to provide prevention training and technical assistance,
coordinate prevention programs throughout this state and conduct
statewide surveys to collect data to be used for assessing the
effectiveness of prevention programs.
(e)(A) Moneys distributed to a local mental health authority
under subsection (2)(b)(H) of this section may be further
allocated by the authority only with the approval of the local
alcoholism planning committee. Up to 18 percent of the amount
distributed to an authority under subsection (2)(b)(H) of this
section may be used for a county alcohol and drug abuse
prevention coordinator and administrative support for the
coordinator, but only if the local alcoholism planning committee
determines that a coordinator is needed. At least 82 percent of
the amount distributed under subsection (2)(b)(H) of this section
shall be further allocated to community-based alcohol and drug
abuse prevention organizations that have a documented history of
community-based prevention work.
(B) For purposes of this paragraph, 'community-based prevention
work' includes but is not limited to underage drinking
prevention, parent involvement, workplace initiatives, community
mobilization, youth-led prevention, community service initiatives
and public communications and media initiatives that are designed
to educate the general public about preventing underage use of
alcohol or illicit use of drugs.
(4)(a) Except as provided in subsection (3)(e)(A) of this
section, any recipient of funds under this section may not use
more than eight percent of the funds received for administrative
purposes.
(b) If requested by the Department of Human Services, a
recipient of funds under this section shall cause an independent
audit of the expenditure of these funds to be performed to ensure
that the expenditure of the funds is for the purposes designated.
The recipient shall submit a report of the audit to the
department.
(c) The Department of Human Services may not be charged and is
not liable for the costs of an audit described in this
subsection.
(5) As used in this section:
(a) 'Local alcoholism planning committee' means a local
alcoholism planning committee described in ORS 430.342.
(b) 'Local mental health authority' has the meaning given that
term in ORS 430.630 (10)(a). + }
SECTION 5. { + Section 2 of this 2007 Act applies to malt
beverage cost recovery fee reporting periods beginning on or
after the effective date of this 2007 Act. + }
SECTION 6. { + The amendments to ORS 471.805 by section 3 of
this 2007 Act become operative 60 days after the effective date
of this 2007 Act. + }
SECTION 7. { + This 2007 Act takes effect on the 91st day
after the date on which the regular session of the Seventy-fourth
Legislative Assembly adjourns sine die. + }
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