Comcast will pay Oregon local governments $155 million to resolve a decade long legal fight under terms of a legal settlement announced Monday.
Additionally, Comcast will drop its bid to take advantage of a tax break for internet service providers. It will pay more property taxes in future years as a result of Monday's deal.
Even so, the settlement allows Comcast to pay $45 million less in back taxes than the state believed the company owed. Local governments embraced the deal anyway because it ends uncertainty over when or whether Oregon counties, cities and school districts would have access to the money.
Gov. Kate Brown said she hopes the governments will use the windfall to help pay down their pension obligations, and the mayors of Portland, Beaverton and Eugene all said they will support that request.
The cable TV company's fight with Oregon tax collectors dates to 2009, when the state changed its methodology for assessing Comcast's telecommunications equipment. It's a wonky topic that ultimately had a major impact on local government finances.
Faced with higher taxes under the new methodology, Comcast sued. The case went through years of appeals before the Oregon Supreme Court ruled against Comcast in 2014.
The company didn't pay up, though, continuing to contest aspects of the Oregon tax law.
The Oregon Department of Revenue estimated Comcast's tax liability before the settlement at $200 million.
So Monday's $155 million agreement leaves millions of dollars on the table that Oregon might have wrung from Comcast in court. Still, Wendy Johnson from the League of Oregon Cities said her members are pleased with the deal because it resolves years of uncertainty and lost revenue.
"It's an end to what could go on for many more years," she said. "We're happy to see an ending and have transparency and clarity going forward."
The League is also behind the governor's proposal to put the money toward Oregon Public Employees Retirement System obligations, Johnson said.
"PERS and property taxes are our two largest priorities," she said.
Even as Comcast fought over its past property taxes, the company had been seeking new property tax breaks originally intended to lure Google Fiber to the Portland area.
