John,

This week and next we have a tremendous amount on the line, as Congress decides how much financial aid to provide families and communities trying to cope with the fallout from the pandemic before leaving town for the rest of the summer.

With the pandemic and recession ravaging states and communities across the country, we need a massive spending and investment plan, not the anemic proposal being offered by Mitch McConnell.

McConnell’s $1 trillion plan doesn’t come close to meeting the challenge posed by tens of millions who are unemployed, hundreds of thousands who are sick or have died, and state and local government budgets that are cratering, jeopardizing critical services.

The Senate needs to model its plan on the $3 trillion House-passed HEROES Act, which will provide immediate relief to families and communities while laying the groundwork for a much more robust economic recovery.

That plan must continue the lifeline of $600 in extra unemployment benefits to the 30 million who are being cut off next week. It must provide direct payments of up to $6,000 to struggling families. And it must pump $1 trillion into state and local public services like education, healthcare, housing and public safety, saving millions of jobs.

Write to your U.S. Senators right now and demand that the Senate pass COVID-19 relief that meets the urgency of the moment.

Instead of supporting families and communities in need, McConnell’s plan favors 43,000 millionaires and protects reckless corporations from being sued if they make their workers sick.

His plan fails to repeal the Millionaires Giveaway, a giant tax loophole he and Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley inserted into the CARES Act in March without the public knowing the cost and who would benefit.

We now know that the Millionaires Giveaway is giving an average $1.6 million tax cut to 43,000 millionaires this year alone. Repealing this outrageous tax break will raise $250 billion for coronavirus relief.[1]

We must fight back and demand a pandemic response that puts working people first―not millionaires and wealthy corporations. Write to your Senators and demand a bill that reflects the needs of our communities and those on the frontlines.

This bill, when passed, will likely be the last COVID-19 legislation this year. If it doesn’t address the urgent needs of families and communities, our economy will continue to hemorrhage millions of jobs and millions won’t be able to pay the rent or mortgage, just as thousands more become ill and die from this deadly disease.

Thank you for taking action today.

Frank Clemente
Executive Director
Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund