Imagine if every single person had the health care, housing, food, and other basic necessities we need to survive. We have the wealth and the resources in this country to do just that. But for too long, and especially under the Trump administration, basic costs have been rising. People are being forced to choose between groceries, medicine, and rent. And with the Trump administration’s tax bill, people are losing health care and SNAP food assistance while billionaires and corporations get even richer.
That’s why today, Local Progress and Local Progress Impact Lab are joining the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy to release a new resource, Tax the Rich, Fund Our Communities: Local Options for Progressive Revenue. This resource walks through different kinds of progressive revenue raisers like income taxes on high earners and business taxes, includes case studies on how certain localities have implemented them, and gives tips for how to design these policies and anticipate opposition.
While federal funds dry up and people are thrown into precarity, local elected officials are the last line of defense to make sure their communities have everything they need. Taxes highlighted in the resource were used for a social housing fund, homelessness services, and public mental health and crisis intervention programs . Local elected officials can try to blunt the worst of the federal cuts and make sure our communities have everything they need, not just to survive, but to thrive.
Read more about progressive revenue in: Tax the Rich, Fund Our Communities: Local Options for Progressive Revenue.
