This petition will provide Congress with the information they need to bring back a vibrant economy to Oregon. Oregon will lead The Nation in lifting our citizens from poverty to prosperity. I am convinced, and I want the entire State of Oregon to know, that "sovereign money" and "banking in the public interest" are solutions to "austerity" economics. Austerity economics has devastated our country and the world. For example, look at Detroit. Neither Detroit nor this country is "bankrupt" if they have tax-paying citizens who want to work. State Banks are the solution to poverty and austerity. This is not a Ponzi scheme. A feasibility study can prove it.

For-Profit Prison Industry leaders, the GEO Group and Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) together with the Million Shares Club (major investors owning over one million shares combined of CCA and GEO stock) are largely responsible for racist laws that target people of color and immigrants for incarceration, and expand the police state in poor communities. REIT status saves private prisons' millions in taxes each year and deepens their relationship with politically powerful investors. The Joint Committee on Taxation has the power to revoke private prisons' REIT status and to help end profiteering off of the criminalization of people of color and immigrants. Not only has REIT status increased profits for these companies, but it is attracting other investors to participate in profiting from the caging of bodies of color. REIT status enables this private industry to manipulate laws and politicians to advance a racist agenda. REIT status incentivizes private lobbying for policies like the detention bed mandate and sentencing policies that place more people for longer in for-profit immigrant detention centers, state prisons, and criminal alien requirement prisons. Our Democracy is under attack when private interests can buy laws and votes to increase their power and wealth. The campaign to #RevokeREIT is an effort of the movement for divestment from prisons and reinvestment in communities of color and of immigrants. Join the national Prison Divestment Campaign at enlaceintl.org.

As Ohio’s unemployment insurance system grapples with insolvency, some lawmakers think working people are to blame. During the 2016 session, HB394 attempted to upend how benefits are received. The unemployment insurance period would have been reduced from 26 weeks to as few as 12 weeks, tying Florida and North Carolina for the shortest systems in the United States. HB394 also went after the most vulnerable Ohioans. Disabled residents receiving most forms of workers’ compensation would no longer qualify for unemployment insurance. Parents would no longer receive additional weekly benefits to help care for their children. After the recession in 2008, the state borrowed $1.6 billion from the federal government to keep the unemployment system going. Employers paid higher taxes for it, but they’re looking to end that. HB394 would have saved corporations $313 million each year in taxes. HB394 fell through, but the unemployment insurance issue isn’t going away. Join us in putting pressure on the state Legislature to expand our benefits, not cut them.

Thousands of working Pennsylvanians are in desperate need of a wage hike. Since he was elected to office in Nov. 2010, Sen. Toomey has consistently sided with corporate CEOs and voted against raising wages. Without a raise, working Pennsylvanians will continue to struggle to afford basic necessities. We deserve to be paid fairly for the work we do. Our senator needs to stand up for working people, not corporate interests. Join us as we push Sen. Toomey to raise wages across Pennsylvania.

To help Formerly Convinced People & their families out of poverty.

"...Harrisburg has the opportunity to be visionary! There is no reason that a place providing support for creatives at all levels couldn't be created at this building. I see a huge opportunity to provide STEAM related learning outside of the typical learning methods in Harrisburg. Creating a youth design/build corp similar to the one highlighted in the documentary If You Build It - http://www.ifyoubuilditmovie.com/ - Designer Emily Pilloton & architect Matt Miller. This should also include a small business incubator for entrepreneurial startups that connect directly back into the Harrisburg communities in need..." - Robert Shoaff, Harrisburg, Pa

As Consumers of Supports Coordinators and Advocates and Allies of People with Disabilities, we are extremely concerned about the proposed credentialing requirements for Supports Coordinators and their Supervisors that was recently released in the MLTSS RFP. These new requirements will directly impact the independent living of thousands of consumers across the Common Wealth of PA. These requirements will destroy the current workforce, resulting in lost payroll tax revenue and increase unemployment rates. These Service Coordinators are in constant communication with people with disabilities to coordinate services, prevent nursing home admissions, provide information and referral for community assistance, and to coordinate home modifications and personal attendant services. It is imperative that the person in this role understand the lives of people with disabilities, which cannot always be taught in a text book. By requiring such credentialing, you are treating people with disabilities as a medical diagnosis, rather than individuals trying to navigate a system that was not created for them. In this case, a higher level of education does not equal better service coordination and delivery.

Corporate profits are soaring despite a lagging economy for the rest of us. Pennsylvanians deserve a helping hand in creating an economy that works for us all.

The Georgia legislature will begin voting on the viability of this program. Spaceport Camden will transform a stranded industrial asset into a viable resource on a 12,000 acre area and will firmly establish Georgia's place in the commercial space race.

On Feb. 18, the Georgia Senate passed SB277—the so-called “Protecting Georgia Small Business Act.” This legislation fails to protect everyday people who work hard each day to build a better life for themselves and their families. The bill keeps everyday Georgians from having the ability to get raises, benefits, and safe working conditions. It’s a shell game we’ve seen before. Businesses across the country often hire subcontractors and temp agencies to run portions of their operations. They use these outlets to misclassify workers and escape responsibility for employee issues like overtime pay, wage theft, and unionization efforts. This gives huge corporations an out when it comes to their responsibility as employers, putting an even bigger burden on working people in Georgia. Back in July, the National Labor Relations Board took a step to protect workers from these kinds of abuses. It rightfully ruled in favor of workers, easing the path for employees to negotiate with their employer while holding companies accountable for their actions. SB277 is a step backward. The bill subjects Georgia workers to the same destructive practices that have thwarted workers’ progress for decades. We don’t need more policies that protect big corporations and their schemes. Instead, our elected officials should be looking for ways to protect and strengthen the rights of working people to be paid for all the hours they work and to have a voice on the job. It’s time for the people we elect to represent us in the statehouse to stand up for the power of working people speaking up together. Join us in opposing SB277. Tell your local representative to vote NO on this legislation.

We need to save the rights of the American people from money hungry wealthy people like State Rep. Barbara Sears. She doesn't care how many people she puts on the welfare roster. I am directly affected by this Bill 394 because I'm a blue collar steel worker whose job is being downsized due to unfair foreign trade with China and the oil glut from Saudi Arabia. Our government has let other countries topple our resources and who's left suffering? The American blue collar workers. Where's our bail out Obama?

Americans have been burdened by an unfair and unjust tax system for far too long.