John,

For generations, U.S. workers have fought for the labor and financial protections we enjoy today―the minimum wage, overtime pay, unemployment benefits, health benefits, worker-safety protections and more. Even Social Security and Medicare.

In the midst of the pandemic, those protections are all the more important, with millions of people still out of work, and others working in unsafe conditions. And, while we continue to fight for fair pay and benefits at this critical time of need―there are those who are seeing their fortunes grow exponentially in the midst of this health and financial crisis.

According to Americans for Tax Fairness research, 467 billionaires have seen their wealth grow by $732 billion―or 30%―since the pandemic began. That’s $5.2 billion a day.

Thankfully, our champions in Congress, Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Ilhan Omar, have a plan to apply a 60% tax on the extreme wealth gains of billionaires whose fortunes grow from the beginning of the pandemic in March through the end of the year. They want to use that revenue to cover the out-of-pocket healthcare expenses of millions of Americans for the next year.

If you haven’t already, become a grassroots co-sponsor of Bernie Sanders and Ilhan Omar’s Make Billionaires Pay Act.

If you’ve already signed, along with over 53,000 other supporters, please share the petition on Facebook, growing support for this critical legislation.

Americans for Tax Fairness was instrumental in the crafting of this bill, providing the research and data of how much these billionaires have seen their wealth grow during the pandemic and how much revenue this bill would raise.

Together, we’re demanding that Congress pass a pandemic response that puts working people and vulnerable families first. That means taxing the wealth gains of America’s billionaires. That means putting direct cash payments of $600 per week into the hands of the unemployed. That means passing an evictions moratorium and rental assistance to protect millions of families from homelessness. And that means covering the out-of-pocket healthcare expenses of millions of Americans in the midst of a pandemic.

Become a grassroots co-sponsor of the Make Billionaires Pay Act today.

And if you’ve already signed, please share our petition and graphic on Facebook to show your support for Senator Sanders’s and Representative Omar’s bill that would tax the extreme wealth gains of billionaires while covering the out-of-pocket healthcare expenses of millions of Americans.

Thank you for all you do to demand an economy and a tax system that works for everyone, not just the wealthy few.

Frank Clemente
Executive Director
Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund