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A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release
Contact:

Sam Quigley, sam@patrioticmillionaires.org

Patriotic Millionaires Celebrate the Inflation Reduction Act

"The vast majority of working Americans pay every cent they owe in federal taxes - it’s time for wealthy criminal tax evaders to do the same."

WASHINGTON

Today, President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) into law. Covering a new tax on stock buybacks, billions in IRS enforcement funding, and a national corporate minimum tax, the IRA is the largest change to the federal tax code since the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and the most significant movement towards making wealthy Americans and corporations pay what they owe in decades.

In response, Morris Pearl, the Chair of the Patriotic Millionaires and a former managing director at BlackRock, Inc., released the following statement:

"Today, Democrats accomplished something meaningful for hardworking American taxpayers and provided the biggest win for tax fairness we've seen in decades. Tax increases on billion-dollar corporations and having more law enforcement to prosecute criminal tax evaders are all incredibly significant steps towards achieving economic equality.

The vast majority of working Americans pay every cent they owe in federal taxes - it's time for wealthy criminal tax evaders to do the same.

Nearly every small business and corporation in America pays some form of federal income tax - it's time for billion-dollar corporations to do the same.

The American people are tired of doing their part daily to keep this country running while criminal tax evaders and corporate tax cheats pay nothing. The rich are required to pay the bare minimum back to the society responsible for their success, and the IRA will make them do just that.

The tides are beginning to turn; the economic systems that have allowed the consolidation of wealth to the already-rich in this country are at long last being challenged and struck down. But while this bill establishes many desperately-needed changes to our tax laws and funding allocation, it still leaves us far from a truly fair tax code. There are many more systemic changes necessary. In celebrating this massive win, we should take care not to let ourselves become complacent: this is a great step forward, but it's just one step in a long, ongoing journey."

The Patriotic Millionaires is a group of high-net worth Americans who share a profound concern about the destabilizing level of inequality in America. Our work centers on the two things that matter most in a capitalist democracy: power and money. Our goal is to ensure that the country's political economy is structured to meet the needs of regular Americans, rather than just millionaires. We focus on three "first" principles: a highly progressive tax system, a livable minimum wage, and equal political representation for all citizens.

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