Oregon Legislation Would End Mortgage Interest Deduction for Second Homes

"Three proposed bills in the Oregon Legislature aim to address housing affordability across the state," reports Whitney M. Woodworth.

The non-traditional approach of these bills, however, will be sure to raise some eyebrows. "Two seek to increase homeownership by providing grants for low-income households and creating a task force to address racial disparities," according to Woodworth. "The other would seriously alter a tax deduction used by hundred of thousands of Oregon homeowners." That third bill would use the additional revenue generated by the end of the subsidy to fund the state's Home Ownership Assistance Accounts, the General Housing Account, and the Emergency Housing Account.

According to Woodworth's account of a recent public hearing held by the Oregon House Committee on Human Services and Housing, the public has already responded to bill that would reform the state's mortgage interest deduction. Perhaps surprisingly, Woodworth says that most at Thursday's meeting favored the change, while only three attendees voiced opposition.