Vote YES for the Unemployed Rally in Ashland
Y E S * O N * B A L L O T * M E A S U R E S * 6 6 * & * 6 7, 16.01.2010 08:04
No More Tax Breaks for Big Banks: Oregonians Protest US Bank’s Opposition to Ballot Measures 66 & 67
Ashland, OR – Over 60 unemployed people will hold a rally where they will urge Oregonians to vote YES for tax fairness. They will also deliver a petition with over 1,000 signatures, protesting US Bank’s opposition to Ballot Measures 66 & 67. The rally will be held in front of US Bank at 30 North 2nd Street Ashland, OR at 9 am Tuesday, January 19. Tax Fairness Oregon is coordinating this effort with Southern Oregon Jobs With Justice, Western Regional Advocacy Project, Sisters Of The Road, and Street Roots.
STOP HURTING THE UNEMPLOYED
RALLY WILL BE HELD IN FRONT OF THE US BANK
30 NORTH 2ND STREET ASHLAND, OREGON
CONTACT: Jason Hitzert * 503-473-5633 * 
jghitzert@gmail.com * 
http://www.TaxFairnessOregon.org
=========================Vote YES for the Unemployed Rally in Ashland=========================
VOTE YES ON BALLET MEASURES 66 & 67
Measure 66 eliminates income taxes on the first $2,400 of unemployment benefits received last year, providing a break for over 270,000 Oregonians who were unemployed in 2009. At the same time, a YES vote on both ballot measures will maintain critical services that these citizens need more than ever by protecting job training programs and career centers, health care services, temporary assistance for families in need, and affordable daycare programs for those underemployed or unemployed.
However, US Bank is opposing these efforts. US Bank is a member and PAC contributor to the Oregon Bankers Association - the banking industry's lobbying arm. This association has donated $150,000 to opponents of the tax fairness measures. “I am voting YES for tax fairness. It is simple - if the big banks win, out-of-work Oregonians will lose,” said Demus Martinez, an unemployed firefighter from Madras.
James Amos, an unemployed heating and cooling tech from Talent, said, “I think it is wrong that the very folks who took billions of our taxpayer dollars for their bailout, are now spending big bucks so that corporations doing business in Oregon don't have to pay more than $10 a year in taxes, while schools have to deal with shortened school years and oversized classes.“
US Bank is the issuer of the ReliaCard, a "prepaid Visa" card through which out-of-work Oregonians receive their unemployment benefits. As a result, hundreds of thousands of US Bank's unemployed customers would get a tax cut if Oregonians vote YES for tax fairness. Instead of helping their hardest hit customers, US Bank is actively organizing against their interests.
“I am angry. It's out-of-work Oregonians who deserve a tax cut, not the big banks and their well-heeled CEOs,” said Valerie Wallace, an underemployed educator from Beaverton.
GO HERE TO SIGN PETITION DEMANDING THAT US BANK STOP HURTING ITS UNEMPLOYED CUSTOMERS: http://3bl.me/5esqb3
