I use the internet to inform myself when I need to make decisions, for entertainment, and to stay in touch with my grown children, grandchildren and friends. Working at a non-profit special education school, my income has not kept pace with the cost of living, since my state sets the rates we charge for our services, and often allows no increase at all. My pay has been eroded over the years, but the cost of internet and cable TV have continued to rise, despite "introductory" rate deals for new customers. I recently dropped cable TV to reduce my costs, and pay to stream what I want to watch. Verizon and Comcast are the only options for high speed internet service where I live, and I was shocked to find out how much they are charging without any competition. Please curb this virtual monopoly, and ensure that all Americans have affordable access to information and entertainment.

The way streaming services pay royalties represents a major shift in the economic gears that have been underlying the industry for a decade. On a 99-cent download, a typical artist might earn 7 to 10 cents after deductions for the retailer, the record company and the songwriter. One industry joke calls the flow of these royalties a “river of nickels.” In the new economics of streaming music, however, the river of nickels looks more like a torrent of micropennies. Spotify, Pandora and others like them pay fractions of a cent to record companies and publishers each time a song is played, some portion of which goes to performers and songwriters as royalties. Unlike the royalties from a sale, these payments accrue every time a listener clicks on a song, year after year. The question dogging the music industry is whether these micropayments can add up to anything substantial. Complicating the issue, each type of service pays different rates. Pandora’s are set by law. Spotify generally pays 0.5 to 0.7 cents per stream for its paid tier, and as much as 90 percent less for its free tier. At this very moment, lobbyists for these streaming services are trying to set the amount paid per play to even lower amounts. This unjust and self-serving move is forcing songwriters of even the most popular and highly spun songs to see dismal amounts of return for their hard work and investment into their craft. Although there are many songwriters and music artists expressing their views on various online news outlets and Facebook, not enough attention is being brought to this issue on the national news stage. Congress is currently reviewing this matter, but with the financing power and lobbying of these streaming services being heavily implemented, the real losers of this battle are the artist, songwriters and music fans. Songwriters have helped create the most memorable music for decades and now people in this profession are seeking employment elsewhere or seek multiple jobs to sustain themselves and their families. Please sign and share this petition if you love music and want to see your artist and songwriters be paid fairly for their contribution to society. We hope that with enough attention, this issue could be brought to light on a national level.

After months of negotiations, a broad coalition recommended raising Seattle's minimum wage to $15 per hour. This is a historic moment for the working people of Seattle and will help build momentum for raising the minimum wage across the country. Now it's up to the Seattle City Council to adopt this proposal. Tell the Seattle City Council to vote YES on a $15 minimum wage!

For a year and a half, fast food employees and other low-wage workers across the country have been organizing and striking for $15 an hour and the right to form a union without retaliation. Now, the city of Seattle has just announced a landmark agreement to raise the minimum wage to $15. Seattle's wage raise will pump $500 million back into their economy without raising taxes. Large employers paying the lowest wages are subsidized by our taxes when their low-paid employees are forced to use public programs like welfare just to get by. This is a huge victory for workers, but it's only the beginning of a wave that will sweep across the country. Republicans in the Senate just blocked an increase in the federal minimum wage--but cities like Seattle are showing that progress is made locally. Who's next? In Detroit, raising the minimum wage to $15 will provide a dramatic boost for thousands of working families and the local economy.

For a year and a half, fast food employees and other low-wage workers across the country have been organizing and striking for $15 an hour and the right to form a union without retaliation. Now, the city of Seattle has just announced a landmark agreement to raise the minimum wage to $15. Seattle's wage raise will pump $500 million back into their economy without raising taxes. Large employers paying the lowest wages are subsidized by our taxes when their low-paid employees are forced to use public programs like welfare just to get by. This is a huge victory for workers, but it's only the beginning of a wave that will sweep across the country. Republicans in the Senate just blocked an increase in the federal minimum wage--but cities like Seattle are showing that progress is made locally. Who's next? In Chicago, raising the minimum wage to $15 will provide a dramatic boost for thousands of working families and the local economy.

For a year and a half, fast food employees and other low-wage workers across the country have been organizing and striking for $15 an hour and the right to form a union without retaliation. Now, the city of Seattle has just announced a landmark agreement to raise the minimum wage to $15. Seattle's wage raise will pump $500 million back into their economy without raising taxes. Large employers paying the lowest wages are subsidized by our taxes when their low-paid employees are forced to use public programs like welfare just to get by. This is a huge victory for workers, but it's only the beginning of a wave that will sweep across the country. Who's next? In New York, raising the minimum wage to $15 will provide a dramatic boost for thousands of working families and the local economy

For a year and a half, fast food employees and other low-wage workers across the country have been organizing and striking for $15 an hour and the right to form a union without retaliation. Now, the city of Seattle has just announced a landmark agreement to raise the minimum wage to $15. Seattle's wage raise will pump $500 million back into their economy without raising taxes. Large employers paying the lowest wages are subsidized by our taxes when their low-paid employees are forced to use public programs like welfare just to get by. This is a huge victory for workers, but it's only the beginning of a wave that will sweep across the country. Who's next? In Los Angeles, raising the minimum wage to $15 will provide a dramatic boost for thousands of working families and the local economy

For a year and a half, fast food employees and other low-wage workers across the country have been organizing and striking for $15 an hour and the right to form a union without retaliation. Now, the city of Seattle has just announced a landmark agreement to raise the minimum wage to $15. Seattle's wage raise will pump $500 million back into their economy without raising taxes. Large employers paying the lowest wages are subsidized by our taxes when their low-paid employees are forced to use public programs like welfare just to get by. This is a huge victory for workers, but it's only the beginning of a wave that will sweep across the country. Republicans in the Senate just blocked an increase in the federal minimum wage--but cities like Seattle are showing that progress is made locally. Who's next? In San Francisco, raising the minimum wage to $15 will provide a dramatic boost for thousands of working families and the local economy

For a year and a half, fast food employees and other low-wage workers across the country have been organizing and striking for $15 an hour and the right to form a union without retaliation. Now, the city of Seattle has just announced a landmark agreement to raise the minimum wage to $15. Seattle's wage raise will pump $500 million back into their economy without raising taxes. Large employers paying the lowest wages are subsidized by our taxes when their low-paid employees are forced to use public programs like welfare just to get by. This is a huge victory for workers, but it's only the beginning of a wave that will sweep across the country. Republicans in the Senate just blocked an increase in the federal minimum wage--but cities like Seattle are showing that progress is made locally. Who's next? In Portland, raising the minimum wage to $15 will provide a dramatic boost for thousands of working families and the local economy.

Our “Do Nothing Congress”, particularly the obstructionist Republican party, implemented a Government shutdown policy last year. Amazingly it actually made it to the house floor, costing American taxpayers 24 billion dollars. This was according to a Standard and Poor’s estimate as reported by Time Magazine, Oct. 17, 2013. This cost can not be recovered! Our nation was founded on the principle of low taxes. No one likes higher taxes. We’re urging Congress to close the gap that tax loopholes create. For example, The Tax Haven Abuse Act is currently in Congress, Senate bill S1533 and House bill HR 1554. The bill would restrict the use of offshore tax havens and abusive tax shelters to inappropriately avoid Federal taxation, and for other purposes. A report issued by U.S. PIRG, released April 15, 2014, tells us “every year, corporations and wealthy individuals avoid paying an estimated $184 billion in state and federal income taxes by using complicated accounting tricks to shift their profits to offshore tax havens. Of that $184 billion, $110 billion is avoided specifically by corporations.” The report further notes, “The Senate Finance Committee squandered an opportunity to stand with regular taxpayers who can’t marshal armies of lawyers and lobbyists to bend the tax code to their whim. Unfortunately, they caved to special interest pressure.” “Many of America’s largest and best-known corporations use these complex tax avoidance schemes to shift their profits offshore and drastically shrink their tax bill. GE, Microsoft, and Pfizer boast the largest offshore cash hoards.” By closing these loopholes Congress can save billions of dollars for our country. Join us by signing this petition and hold Congress responsible to close tax loopholes rather than let average Americans struggle every year.

Of the 6,514 families presently living in poverty—with many having to make the choice to pay bills before buying food—44 percent or 2,874 of those families have female heads of household without a contributing male present. These women aren’t just teenagers looking for extra money; they are mothers hoping to build a stable foundation for their children’s future. Yet, this simple dream—based on the premise that law-abiding and hardworking members of the community can give their children a better life—isn’t real for thousands of hardworking Guamanians. You see, some of island’s biggest businesses have made more money year after year—all the while holding wages flat. When indexed against the cost of housing, food, medical care, and electricity; today’s minimum wage would have to be $8.41 an hour just to have the same purchasing power as it did in 2007. This means that thousands of people who work full-time jobs still have to raise their families in poverty. Although Guam is blessed with many good corporate citizens, too many people—too many of our neighbors—are still weighed down by minimum wages that can never lift them out of indigence or allow them the opportunity to work their way out of the hard life. After more than six months of study and consultation with economists Dr. Claret Ruane, Dr. Rosanne Jones, Mr. Joe Bradley, Mr. Gary Hiles and Mr. Albert Perez, Vice Speaker BJ Cruz introduced legislation, Bill No. 316-32 (LS), to raise Guam’s Minimum Wage from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour over the next three years. According to federal and local labor figures, hourly wages, total employment, and the number of hours worked after the last three minimum wage increases in 2007, 2008, and 2009, either held steady or rose. Put simply, the Guam experience says increasing the minimum wage does not kill jobs, cut hours or cause the collapse of our economy. And our experience is also the experience of our nation. The federal government has raised the minimum wage 22 times since 1938, and every time the same counsels of doubt and cynicism have proclaimed that the economic sky would fall -- yet history has not been kind to their predictions. Here we are, still working, still building, still trying to expand the circle of opportunity for everyone willing to work for it. Many of you support this measure but will be too busy working a second shift, cooking dinner for your families, or helping your kids with their homework to attend public hearings. Or, even more concerning, many of you have been intimidated by employers, your voice suppressed by the climate of fear perpetuated by pro-business politics that is more concerned about the bottom line: profit margins. Regardless of your hourly wage or your station in life, your opinion matters. Express your support by calling your Senators, talking about the minimum wage issue with friends on Facebook, or simply signing this petition to stand up for fair wages for our fellow working-class Guamanians.

The very large number of home foreclosures have reduced our home values by ~ 40% which has eliminated most, if not all, of our citizens' home equity, has precipitated 3 home property tax increases within 3 years, caused vacant and looted homes, increased crime, caused large budget cuts to our schools, etc. The actions requested in our Petition plus our non-profit's Foreclosure Prevention activities help from our Federal and Georgia Government Foreclosure Prevention Units will prevent and eliminate most of the pending, present, and future foreclosures in Douglas County. These actions have proven to be very successful in doing that across the nation. When the Foreclosures are prevented and removed, our Home values will increase 40% or more and then the county can reduce our home property tax rates. As a result of our Home Values increasing by 30%-40%, 60% of our home owners will no longer owe more on their mortgage than their house is worth. All their Home Equity will be restored + some. They'll be able to use their new-found home equity as they did before, i.e. for emergencies, to pay high cost medical bills, pay their kid's college tuition, consolidate their bills, buy "big ticket items" i.e. a boat, RV, new furniture, luxury vacation, etc. or be able to sell their home and use their equity to buy another one. Please help us to make those things a reality for all of Douglas County homeowners by signing this Petition and getting everyone you know to do the same.