I am writing on behalf of the many voices in Astoria who strongly oppose the Vacant Home Excise Tax. We feel it is an unfair tax, targeting a specific group of people who happen to own a second home in Astoria for a variety of reasons. This isn’t a “tax the rich” proposal, it’s a … More Vacant Home Tax hits retirees and middle class – Lorelei Gurule
YOUR PRINCIPAL RESIDENCE IS ASTORIA FOR OVER 183 DAYS. YOU’RE EXEMPT FROM THE VACANCY TAX!? MAYBE. Every property owner is required to fill out a declaration every year declaring that you’ve been in your home for more tan 183 days. If the ‘judge’ decides they don’t believe your answer, the burden of proof is on you. If … More Why is the proposed Astoria Vacancy tax bad for Astoria? ……and other Oregonians?
ANDY KIPP (candidate for Astoria City Council) AND THE ASTORIA HOUSING ALLIANCE Andy Kipp is president of the Astoria Housing Alliance, chief petitioner for the Vacancy Tax and the central financial supporter of Astoria Housing for All. AHA describes itself as an Oregon nonprofit operating under Section 501(c)(4)—a form of organization permitted to engage substantially … More Local Politicians and their alliances
Government overreach retroactively dictating how & when to use your private property. Large Legal Bills This can be expected to be tied up in expensive and lengthy litigation, as has occurred in every place this has been tried. Astoria and its citizens need money for infrastructure, low income housing construction, school lunches, senior housing. Let’s … More True Facts – Vacant Home Tax
PART 1 OF 5: IS ASTORIA OREGON’S TEST CASE? Let’s take a deeper look at where Astoria’s proposed Vacancy Tax came from, who is behind it, and why our small town of approximately 10,000 residents is being asked to become Oregon’s first testing groundfor this kind of tax. This ordinance did not appear out of … More “OREGON’S TEST CASE” WHY ASTORIA? — INSIDE THE VACANCY TAX –
PART 3 OF 5: WHERE IS THE ACTUAL ASTORIA DATA? There is no verified count of taxable homes. No Astoria-specific evidence proving the claimed crisis. No reliable estimate of what the program would cost—or how much money would remain. No clear plan showing what the tax would fund. Yet Astoria voters are being asked to … More INSIDE THE VACANCY TAX (Measure 4-247)
Updated to make this post public. I am not a member of those local rants and raves pages, and so can’t post there. So, I hoping by making this public it will garner more discussion of these issues. So, in between baking cake layers I decided to take some time to review the “Vacant Home … More Mary Ann Murk, Facebook August 28 2026
PART 2 OF 5: THE POLITICAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL CONNECTIONS Part 1 documented the Working Families Party’s political strategy: win local offices, build what Oregon WFP calls “governing power on local city councils and county commissions,” and advance aligned policies from the local level upward. Now pull that thread into Astoria. Because this is no longer … More Political and Organizational Connections
VOTE NO VACANT HOME TAX 