City of Seattle v. Department of Revenue

Relying on an 1885 federal district court decision, the majority holds that a bill that caused a tax to be imposed on plaintiffs’ property was not a “bil[l] for raising revenue” within the meaning of Article IV, section 18, of the Oregon Constitution.1 It follows, the majority concludes, that Article IV, section 18, did not require that bill to originate *738in the House of Representatives. In my view, the persuasive value of the 1885 federal decision on which the majority bases its holding is doubtful. Moreover, even if the district court’s decision were correct as applied to a levy-based tax…