Tell the Oregon Attorney General: No get out of jail free card for giant banks

The Occupy Wall Street movement has caught fire and the banks know they're at fault for the mortgage crisis. So they're trying to force a deal with 50 state Attorneys General to let them off the hook for breaking the law and not having human beings properly review and sign mortgages. But there's a growing movement of Attorneys General who refuse to let the banks off the hook, including AGs in New York, Nevada, Massachusetts, Delaware, Kentucky, Minnesota, and California. However, Oregon Attorney General John Kroger has yet to take a stand. As the state's top cop, we demand Oregon Attorney General John Kroger hold the banks accountable for their crimes.

http://www.progressiveoregon.com/no_big_bank_deal

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I need 5 minutes of your time so we can beat back the lobbyists who have descended upon Salem in the last days of the legislative session.

We have just learned the Oregon Senate might vote TODAY on the creation of a new tax credit being pushed by an out-of-state venture capital firm. It could cost the state a whopping $78 million over five years. It would be FAR better to invest those millions on schools and healthcare!¹

Tell your state senator to vote NO on this new corporate giveaway.

FOLLOW THE MONEY

This bill (SB 817) would create a state version of the New Market Tax Credit (NMTC). This lovely-sounding program is supposed to help fund economic development in low-income communities by providing investors with generous tax subsidies.

However, it is a Missouri-based venture capital finance firm called Advantage Capital Partners that has led the lobbying efforts in the Oregon legislature for the subsidy.²

Why would an out-of-state venture capital firm be leading the push for a tax break being sold as a tool to help low-income Oregon communities prosper?

Because, as Bloomberg News found, this tax break can be very lucrative for Wall Street firms. Their investigation discovered the NMTC being used for “more than 300 upscale projects, including hotels, condominiums, office buildings and a car museum, on streets far from poverty.”³