Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1208082
M O S T O F U S want similar things: good schools for our children, a healthy family, and safe neighborhoods. But for nearly four decades, big corporations have not been paying their fair share, leaving California with the most overcrowded classrooms in the U.S. and with some of the worst ratios of students to counselors, librarians and nurses. The Schools and Communities First (SCF) initiative ensures that our schools and communities come first with the resources to educate all our kids and the services to support all our families. It closes commercial property tax loopholes benefiting big corporations and wealthy investors, without affecting homeowners and renters, and reclaims $12 billion every year to fund world-class schools and strengthen local economies. SCF guarantees the long-term, steady funding stream that our schools and local communities need. What does Schools and Communities First do? • Reclaims over $12 billion per year for K-12 schools, community colleges and local communities. • Closes commercial property tax loopholes that big corporations and wealthy investors use to avoid paying their fair share of property taxes. • Protects homeowners and renters by maintaining tax protections for all residential property. • Invests in education for all our kids and in the vital services necessary to support families and communities. • Provides the single largest tax incentive in a generation to spur new investment in small businesses. • Levels the playing field for businesses that already pay their fair share. • Ensures strict accountability so that money goes directly to our students and communities. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond announced his endorsement for SCF in late January, joining a long — and growing — list of state, county and city leaders, legislators, local governments, progressive community, labor and education groups, and even current and former presidential candidates. For the full list, go to schoolsandcommunitiesfirst.org. Talk to your colleagues, friends and family about the need for SCF, and help gather signatures so it qualifies for the November 2020 ballot. More information about SCF is at cta.org/taxfairness. #SchoolsAndCommunitiesFirst #FundOurSchoolsNow Read our interview with longtime tax reform advocate Lenny Goldberg on the next page. Be part of reclaiming $12 billion each year for California schools and communities by closing tax loopholes big corporations have exploited for more than 40 years. Vote yes on Schools & Communies First. SchoolsAndCommunitiesFirst.org & cta.org/TaxFairness State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond endorses SCF in late January in Sacramento. He is flanked by, from left, Shereen Walter, California State PTA; Jeff Freitas, president of the California Federation of Teachers; and Mike Patterson, member of CTA Board of Directors. Be part of reclaiming $12 billion each year for California schools and communities by closing tax loopholes big corporations have exploited for more than 40 years 39 F E B R U A R Y / M A R C H 2 0 2 0 A