You work hard at your job. All of us working for the City of Los Angeles do. And when tax time comes around, we do our duty and we pay our fair share. That’s a fact for US. But that is NOT a fact when it comes to the super rich.
For more than half a century, the wealthiest among us have been getting away with NOT paying their fair share of taxes.
The tax burden has shifted to US, the middle class – and if we can’t pay it, local governments have just gone without it. We see the results all around us. Street maintenance and repair schedules that never seem to catch up with population needs. Frontline workers being told our work is valued but still having to go on a ULP strike to actually get a good contract.
These are just a few examples of what we endure when the rich fail to pay their fair share.
Well, we at SEIU 721 have had enough of it. We know the vast majority of people living and working in the City of Los Angeles have had it, too. That’s why we’re fighting back to make the wealthiest among us pay their fair share.
We’re mobilizing to advance revenue generating strategies that will keep the city from consistently facing budget shortfalls that put our services at risk.
Our groundbreaking report, “A Fair Funding Framework: Progressive Tax Revenue Strategies for a Better LA,” lays out comprehensive solutions to force the super-rich to do their part:
The City of Los Angeles should reform collection of Gross Receipts Tax (GRT) by expanding the small business exemption from $100,000 in worldwide sales to $500,000 in local receipts – and changing the rates from one flat rate to graduated rates that increase for larger businesses. This change could raise $700 million to $800 million annually.
The City of Los Angeles should hire 18 new employees to better enforce the Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT). This change could raise $54 million to $299 million annually.
The City and County of Los Angeles should enact a commercial vacancy tax and a vacancy tax on luxury multi-family residential housing. The vacancy tax change in LA County alone could raise $32.2 million to $670 million annually.
SEIU 721 is fighting back to build back in the face of City budget deficits – with solutions that bolster the vital frontline services we provide. Join us to ensure that any potential shortfall isn’t balanced on the back of frontline workers.
Our vision is bold and our goals are, too, but we will achieve them. We’ve faced tough odds before and won. Make no mistake – we will do it again. But we need to prepare to mobilize now.
Join us, and let’s get the resources we need to actually build a better tomorrow for ourselves, for our families and for each other. We can do it together … because as we say at SEIU 721, together, we win.
P.S. To stay up to date on our fight to make the super rich pay their fair share in the City of Los Angeles, just bookmark this web page: “Progressive Tax Revenue Strategies for a Better LA HQ.” That’s where you’ll find the most recent news.