SALEM, OR — This morning, July 31, 2025 the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce held the Cherriots Employer Paid Transit Tax Forum and had it open to all Salem Chamber and Keizer Chamber members. 135 people showed up, mostly local business owners, and expressed their concern over this new payroll tax set to be implemented on January 1st, 2026. The Cherriots board expressed that their initial plan is to implement the tax to businesses at a rate of 0.007%per dollar that an employee gets paid. This tax will create a 58% increase of the general funds for Cherriots who are already sitting on $154.7 million dollars, with $57.3 million dollars sitting in their general funds, and $10 million dollars in reserves as included in their 2025-2026 budget. (found on page 37 of their adopted 2025-2026 budget)
Business owners expressed their concerns about a compounding tax rate, while the Cherriots board expressed their need to expand services to serve their constituents. Bill Ricke, Owner of Bark Boys, a local Salem business said: “I think an important piece of this that has been forgotten, is that in the end this will hurt the riders as the goods and services businesses provide will be increased to cover the added tax burden.”
One part of the conversation not touched on much is the opportunity costs involved in this tax. Rich Duncan, owner of Rich Duncan Construction “In the times we are in now, I would vote for faster police response over more frequent buses.” The concern is that voters haven’t been given the opportunity to choose where these tax dollars are going. Instead of us being able to direct our tax dollars towards our Police Department or other vital services, we are forced to pay this tax without having a voice in the matter. When taxes and fees are increased, business expansion and hiring are decreased. This results in a reduced or stagnant tax base which ultimately affects municipal revenue paying for public safety services…