Working Families Need Tax Relief
It's Tax Day, and for those of us who are not billionaires or major corporations, we have paid more than our fair share of federal income taxes. In 2017, Trump and the GOP passed tax cuts skewed to the wealthiest Americans and big companies. As a result, the top 400 billionaires pay an average federal income tax rate of just 8%. That’s little more than half the 14.9% average income tax rate paid by all taxpayers. And many don't even pay a penny! President Biden's 2025 budget plan proposes to reverse many of these cuts while providing targeted tax breaks to working families, including expanding the Child Tax Credit (CTC). A temporary expansion of this credit during the pandemic resulted in a historic decrease in child poverty. In a rare bipartisan move, Congress passed a tax bill earlier this year that takes a step in the right direction by increasing the CTC and reducing taxes for selected businesses. However, the bill, which provides $78 billion in tax breaks for families and small companies, is "on life support" in the Senate, thanks to GOP opposition and election-year politics.
Celebrate Tax Day today by emailing or phoning FL Senators Rick Scott (904.479.7227) and Marco Rubio (904.354.4300) and urging them to act now and pass The Tax Relief for Families and Workers Act. You can also sign on to this letter urging our members of Congress to endorse and pass the Ultra-Millionaire Tax Act. Support policies and elect candidates that promote tax fairness!
Happening This Week!
Simon Rosenberg will be the virtual guest of the Beaches Democratic Club on
Tuesday, April 16 at 6:30 p.m. Defying all the polls and predictions, Rosenberg was one of the few to correctly predict there would NOT be a red wave in the 2022 mid-term elections. RSVP here and find out why he is optimistic about 2024!
Join BAM at Arts in the Park on Saturday, April 20 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Johansen Park in Atlantic Beach! We'll be registering voters, helping voters check their voting status, and renewing their Vote-by-Mail requests. We'll also have info on upcoming elections in August and November! Email us if you'd like to help! We need volunteers for one to two hours shifts!
DEMS will elect delegates this week to represent our area at the 2024 Democratic National Convention in August. Congressional District 5, which includes the Beaches, will send five delegates to the convention. If you're a registered DEM and want to participate, click on the links to find out more about the process, candidates in CD5, and where to cast your vote. Voting starts Thursday, April 18th.
Pizza & Postcards
We had an awesome group of postcarders turn out for "Pizza & Postcards" last Thursday evening! We sent 900+ reminders to voters to renew their Vote-By-Mail requests. State House District 16 candidate Rachel Grage stopped by to thank everyone for their help with her candidate petitions too. She's almost there!
Great Info on School Closures
If you are looking for information on the School Board's Master Facilities Plan and potential school closures at the Beach and elsewhere, check out this well-researched Q & A resource from Public School Defenders. A reminder that District 2 School Board member April Carney, who represents the Beaches, will host a town hall at San Pablo Elementary on April 30 at 6:15 p.m.
Join us for the virtual kick-off of Joyful Resistance: Together, We Win! 2024 Get-Out-The-Vote Summit featuring political commentator and author Steve Phillips! Invited leaders of community organizations and advocacy groups will meet on May 8th in Jacksonville to plan strategies and strengthen their collaboration in getting out the vote for the 2024 election. The summit is hosted by BAM, Indivisible Mandarin and Indivisible Jax Riverside in partnership with the Northside Coalition of Jacksonville, Florida for All and Floridians for Democracy. The event is supported by a GROW grant from national Indivisible. RSVP for the virtual opening session here.