More Revenue Is Needed to Help Our Communities Thrive

Our Commonwealth must continue to be a great place to live, work and raise a family. We need excellent schools and colleges, reliable transportation systems and a strong economy that provides good jobs.

With Massachusetts families continuing to feel the pain of our economic crisis, we must act now to protect our future. We know how to build a strong and secure economy and help people succeed - by having an educated work force, well maintained roads, good public transit systems and safe neighborhoods in which companies will want to do business and people will want to live.

To make the investments needed for all of us to be healthy and productive, we need progressive revenue reforms. These reforms are being proposed today by the Campaign for Our Communities.

THE CHALLENGE: In recent years, the state has cut funding for educational programs that keep our schools strong, for public colleges and universities, and for local aid. We have woefully underfunded roads, public transportation and other public systems and structures that we all count on. If we continue down this path, we risk weakening the state economy and making Massachusetts a far less attractive place in which to live and do business.

THE OPPORTUNITY: We need to adopt tax reforms that raise revenue - and do so in a way that is fair and holds down increases on middle-income families. The reforms supported by the Campaign for Our Communities would restore the state income tax to 5.95 percent and raise the tax rate on investment income to 8.95 percent. Significant exemptions to protect low- and middle-income taxpayers and seniors are a central part of the proposal. The package is projected to raise approximately $2 billion a year when fully phased in.

ACTION: We need these revenue reforms to support abroad array of investments in our future .By asking everyone - particularly those who can best afford it - to do their share, we can make our state a better place for families and create a strong foundation for future economic growth.