United Church of Christ - JPANet: Stand up for the Common Good this Thanksgiving

JPANet: Stand up for the Common Good this Thanksgiving

service This week as we gather to give prayerful thanks for the abundance of gifts in our lives, please take some time to reflect on those among us who continue to struggle. As people of faith we are called to promote the common good. Do so now by urging congress to extend tax cuts for the families who need them most, but end them for the wealthiest taxpayers.

Congress has a major piece of unfinished business that must be tackled before the year ends: taxes. During the Bush administration Congress passed two sets of enormous tax cuts that were skewed to benefit people with the highest incomes. These cuts are scheduled to end on December 31, 2010.

The tax cuts reduced tax revenues, increasing the size of the federal government deficit and reducing funds that could have been used to strengthen the safety net and help the economy. The cuts are a major factor driving up the federal government deficit.

Now some members of Congress are proposing to extend the Bush tax cuts for lower- and middle-income tax payers while ending the cuts for married tax payers with incomes over $250,000 and singles with income over $200,000. This would affect just 2% of tax payers while bringing in $40 billion in 2011 and nearly $700 billion over 10 years. But other members of Congress prefer to extend all the tax cuts including those for people with the highest incomes. Struggling families should not be asked to pay higher taxes at this time but the wealthiest among us could pay more.

Tell Congress to extend the tax cuts for lower- and middle-income Americans but end them for the wealthiest taxpayers.

In recent years, while the rich have gotten richer, and everyone else has recieved only left-overs. Ending the Bush tax cuts for the highest-income tax payers would slightly reduce this disparity. The additional tax revenue could create jobs and strengthen the safety net in the short run, and reduce the deficit in the longer term. Act now!

For more information see the Witness for Justice: “Congress Must End Tax Cuts for the Wealthy”

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Dear [Decision Maker],

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I am writing to urge you to extend tax cuts for lower- and middle-income Americans but end them for the wealthiest taxpayers.

As you know, the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts will expire at the end of 2010 unless Congress takes action. As a person of faith and member of the United Church of Christ, I urge you to extend the Bush tax cuts for lower- and middle-income tax payers while ending the cuts for married tax payers with incomes over $250,000 and singles with income over $200,000. This would affect just 2% of tax payers while bringing in $40 billion in 2011 and nearly $700 billion over 10 years.

These Bush tax cuts are a major factor driving up the federal government deficit. The cuts reduced tax revenues, increasing the size of the federal government deficit and reducing funds that could have been used to strengthen the safety net and help the economy. Struggling families should not be asked to pay higher taxes at this time but the wealthiest among us could pay more.  I urge you to extend the tax cuts for lower- and middle-income Americans but end them for the wealthiest taxpayers.

In recent years, the rich have gotten richer and everyone else has gotten the left-overs. Ending the Bush tax cuts for the highest-income tax payers would slightly reduce this disparity. The additional revenue could be used to strengthen the safety net and create jobs in the short run, and reduce the deficit in the longer term. I urge you to extend the tax cuts for lower- and middle-income Americans but end them for the wealthiest taxpayers.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]
[Your Address]
[City, State ZIP]
[Your Email]