Greetings!

Everyone in our state desires a healthy and productive life. But access to good jobs and safe communities does not just happen; it depends on shared investments in the public systems that underpin our quality of life.

By providing all children with the opportunity to learn, we offer a chance to build a better life - and a stronger Massachusetts economy. By protecting our environment, maintaining our highways and bridges, and providing adequate police and fire protection, we create communities that are safe and secure for us all. By ensuring that everyone has access to quality health care and a network of social support systems, we build robust and healthy communities for all of our neighbors.

These shared goals cannot be achieved without also sharing the support that makes them possible.

Today, the public structures that are the foundation of our Commonwealth face a severe challenge. The national recession and an inadequate state revenue system threaten to disable and dismantle the core functions of our state. Though we face a funding gap of nearly $3 billion dollars, many of our elected leaders have suggested that any revenue increases are "off the table." The consequences of such a short-sighted position will be devastating, with layoffs and deep cuts to programs that support virtually every aspect of our lives.


There are common sense answers to the challenge we face:

• Ensure That Everyone Pays Their Fair Share, Including The Wealthiest of Our Citizens. Restore the tax rate on investment interest and dividends to 12%, with an exemption for moderate income seniors and generate an estimated $500 million, almost exclusively from those at the top end of the income scale.
   
  
• Eliminate Unnecessary Tax Breaks. Start to address the giveaways in the tax expenditure budget by capping the film credit tax for one year to generate an estimated $75 million, limit life sciences tax credits to generate another $5 million, repeal the aircraft sales tax exemption and generate another $4.2 million, for a total of $84.5 million.
  
  
• Support our Common Health. Eliminate the sales tax exemption on soda and candy and generate an estimated $51.7 million for public health programs, and end the exemption on cigars, smoking and smokeless tobacco and generate another $15 million, for a total of $66.7 million.
  
  
• Support Transparency in the Tax Expenditure Budget. Support proposals by Governor Patrick, the Legislature, and its Revenue Committee to make the tax expenditure budget more transparent and accountable.
  

These proposals will help protect what we value about our state while asking wealthy individuals and corporations to pay their fair share. Together these proposals, and the $650 million in revenue they will generate, will allow us to reinvest in our Commonwealth for the long-term well-being of all of our people.

ONE Massachusetts and its allies are looking for organizations and individuals statewide to sign on to this letter. If you or your organization are interested in helping us push for sound investment in all of our communities, please contact me today!

Thank you,

Yawu Miller
Project Director, ONE Massachusetts
yawu@realclout.org | 617-275-2918