Oregon’s spending: 11th highest in the nation

By Dr. Eric Fruits, Econinternational

Eric Fruits was invited by Oregon’s Revenue Restructuring Task Force to compare Oregon’s state and local government expenditures with other states. In his presentation, Dr. Fruits reported that:

Oregon’s per capita state and local expenditures almost doubled between the 1998-99 fiscal year and the 2004-05 fiscal year.  The most recent data from the Census shows expenditures of $8,060 per person.
Oregon has the 11th highest state and local expenditures in the U.S. as a share of personal income.
Oregon’s state and local expenditures are $2.8 billion higher than statistically predicted by its income and demographics.  That amounts to $776 per person.
Oregon’s public employee pension system and insurance payments contribute to the higher spending.  Oregon’s spending on these items accounts for 12.5 percent of total state and local expenditures.  The average among all states is 8.3 percent.  Oregon’s spending on these items would be approximately $1 billion lower if it was “in line” with other states.
The most recent study, co-authored with Randall Pozdena and published by Cascade Policy Institute, is a follow-up to earlier studies published in 2002 and 2004.

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