Whether you filed your taxes months ago or waited until the last minute, we’ve all got taxes on our minds this time of year. That includes our lawmakers. And with so much constant discussion and debate about taxes, it can be hard to keep up.
But here’s the thing: the truth about tax fairness is actually pretty simple. Let’s break it down.
Wealthy corporations should pay their fair share
When you pay income taxes, the amount you pay is based on how much money you earned that year. Makes sense, right?
It’s how it should be. But thanks to conservative tax loopholes passed by Trump and his buddies in Congress, it’s not always how it goes. In fact, some of the country’s wealthiest corporations get away with paying no taxes at all. In 2020, 55 big corporations like FedEx and Nike paid no federal income tax, despite making billions of dollars in profit.
Let that sink in. If you paid anything at all in federal income taxes last year, you paid more than dozens of billion-dollar corporations, combined.
As we work to balance the budget, let’s remember that while some have done exceedingly well, many more Minnesotans are struggling. The budget is a living document, it sets our course. We need to do what’s necessary so everyone can thrive. #TaxTheRich pic.twitter.com/9ovy8cq9Pz
— Erin Murphy (@epmurphymn) May 13, 2021
And that’s just income tax. When you add in other taxes, like payroll taxes, it paints an even more shocking picture.
It’s not fair that wealthy corporations can avoid paying their fair share while the rest of us do our part even while struggling to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Especially when many of those corporations actually profited from the crisis.
Progressives are trying to pass laws to close tax loopholes and make the super wealthy pay their fair share, but conservatives keep getting in the way.
Don’t believe the scare tactics
When conservatives make a big fuss about tax increases, there’s something they don’t want you to know…
They’re looking out for their wealthy corporate interests. Not you.
When conservatives say that they don’t want to increase taxes, they mean that they don’t want to ask the super wealthy to pay their fair share. They want to continue to shortchange the rest of us while they let the corporations that profited from this pandemic continue to avoid pitching in.
When they try to spin scary stories about what will happen when we ask the wealthy to pay their fair share, they’re lying. And they know it. When former Governor Mark Dayton increased taxes on the super wealthy and directed that money toward schools and working families, our economy thrived.
They know that the vast majority of Minnesotans would benefit from increasing taxes on the super wealthy. They know that it’s a popular plan, and that it works. But they don’t want you to know that. That’s why they keep scaremongering and spewing lie after lie.
Don’t fall for it
We all like to have a little extra cash to save for a rainy day. That’s why progressives are working to pass tax plans that actually benefit Minnesotans like you. Like President Biden’s new child tax credit, which will provide a monthly boost to millions of hardworking families.
True tax fairness means putting people first, not wealthy corporations.
That’s why we need your help to hold conservatives accountable. Find out who represents you and ask them to pass a tax plan that asks the ultra-rich to pay their fair share.
Together, we’ll create a better, stronger, brighter Minnesota for all of us.
