Republican leaders in the Oregon State House called for nixing the idea of tax increases on Wednesday after the economic forecast indicated that the legislature would have $850 million less to work with in the upcoming 2009 session than originally thought.

“Spending in 2007 was unsustainable, and now the Legislature is facing difficult decisions in 2009,” said House Republican Leader Bruce Hanna (R-Roseburg) on a GOP blog post on Oregon Catalyst. “It is time to bring government spending back under control, and to pass measures to keep dollars flowing through our economy and to keep capital within our state.”

House leaders urged Democrats to examine Republican plans for cutting government spending by focusing spending on public safety, education, and healthcare for those most in need. Republicans remained adamantly opposed to any sort of tax increases.

“Rather than finding new ways to extract more money from Oregonians, we will work to put more money back into their pockets and back into the economy,” Hanna said. “The Legislature must create a better environment for businesses that helps them succeed and create jobs.”