Oregon tax rebate

The Oregon tax rebate, commonly referred to as the kicker, is a rebate calculated for both individual and corporate taxpayers in the U.S. state of Oregon when a revenue surplus exists at the end of each biennium, which occurs in odd years. The Oregon Constitution mandates that the rebate be issued when the calculated revenue for a given biennium exceeds the forecast revenue by at least two percent, which is then reflected in returns for odd tax years. Taxpayers will therefore typically file and receive any potential refund reflecting a kicker in even calendar years. The law was first enacted by ballot measure in 1980, and was entered into the Oregon Constitution with the enactment of Ballot Measure 86 in 2000.

The Oregon Department of Revenue distributes the rebate to individuals in what is known to Oregonians as a kicker credit. The kicker credit either increases the amount of a taxpayer's refund or decreases the amount of tax they owe.

If the corporate kicker is triggered, the excess is returned to the state general fund to provide additional funding to K–12 schools. This is the result of the passage of 2012's Ballot Measure 85. Prior to that time, the rebate was distributed to the corporations.