18 Apr Congresswoman Titus, Congressman Horsford, and Community Members Call for The Wealthiest Households and Corporations to Pay Their Fair Share of Taxes
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday April 18, 2022
CONTACT: Will Pregman, wpregman@battlebornprogress.org, 702.752.0656
Congresswoman Titus, Congressman Horsford, and Community Members Call for The Wealthiest Households and Corporations to Pay Their Fair Share of Taxes
**Link to Full Report on Nevada Billionaires’ Wealth Gains During the COVID-19 Pandemic**
NEVADA – On Monday morning, Congresswoman Dina Titus and Congressman Steven Horsford appeared at a press conference hosted by Battle Born Progress announcing their support for taxing the wealthiest households and corporations in the nation to pay their fair share of taxes. During the conference, Battle Born Progress released a state report on how much Nevada billionaires have grown their wealth since March of 2020, underscoring the case for making these members of the ultra-rich pay what they owe in federal taxes like the rest of working Nevadans.
President Biden has recently announced the Billionaire Minimum Income Tax which would ensure that the wealthiest individuals in the nation will pay a minimum tax of 20% if they make more than $100 million. By introducing this tax it would ensure that in the next 10 years a profit of $360 billion will be raised. While everyone suffered to pay for basic necessities during the COVID-19 pandemic, billionaires raked in a total of $1.7 trillion.
“The COVID-19 Pandemic exposed inequities that we can no longer ignore. As millions of Nevadans struggled, America’s billionaires made over $1 trillion last year alone,” said Representative Dina Titus. “Under President Biden’s Billionaire Minimum Income Tax, the wealthiest Americans will finally pay their fair share. This measure will generate critical revenue that will help reduce the deficit and provide potentially millions in funding to help support various projects across Nevada.”
“We must create an economy that works for all Nevadans,” said Representative Steven Horsford. “While ordinary Nevadans have faced economic hardship due to the pandemic, billionaires have profited tremendously. We must ensure the wealthiest pay their fair share and bring benefits for all Nevadans.”
“On Tax Day, it’s important to remember that tax dollars pay for important services that communities need, like public education. Today, public education in Nevada is in crisis. Nevada has long ranked near the bottom of states in education funding and quality. With the additional challenges of the last two years, we now have a frightening shortage of educators to teach our kids and make our schools run, with thousands of vacancies across the state. This not only harms our ability to teach our students, it makes schools far less safe. The cost of living has ballooned here in Nevada with housing increasing 20-25% this past year alone. We have new teachers who can’t find anywhere to live and thousands of education support professionals who don’t make a living wage,” said Dawn Etcheverry NSEA’s President Elect “That’s why NSEA has launched the Time for 20 campaign to address this crisis. Time 20 means a 20% increase in educator pay and at least $20/hour for the workers who make our schools run, so we can retain high quality educators and fill our vacant positions. With some of the largest class sizes in the country, Time for 20 means reaching an average class size of 20 students in core academic subjects. This will mean a better education for our students, allowing for more differentiated instruction and competency-based learning. And this will improve school climate and safety. But in order to accomplish this, our schools need adequate funding. That’s why educators overwhelmingly support progressive taxation. In a recent survey, 86% of our members supported a wealth tax and overwhelmingly supported other progressive proposals like a millionaire’s income tax, increasing the gaming tax, and additional mining taxes. When educators who can’t afford the rent are paying their taxes, it is unconscionable that billionaires are paying nothing at all. It’s time to pass the billionaires tax plan in Washington, DC and to pass new progressive revenue here in Nevada as well.
“Countless working people like myself will be paying taxes this year but the wealthiest people in this country will not be paying taxes. This year I am paying $2,000 and some will think that is not a lot of money but for someone who already struggles to pay for other necessities it can be a lot. It’s time that tax laws changed and taxed wealthy people fairly.” said Martha Vicente, community member.
Spokespeople in Spanish or English are available for individual interviews.
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About Battle Born Progress: Battle Born Progress, through strategic communication efforts, empowers, engages and mobilizes Nevada voters to build a state where everyone has a fair opportunity to succeed. We support, engage, and mobilize the progressive community through bold leadership, strategic communications, accountability, and education. We are on the cutting edge of new media and are the go-to source for pr