The Oklahoman: Citizens for Tax Justice working for fair and sustainable tax system
media mention“Class warfare creeps into tax cut extension debate” (Our Views, June 26) mischaracterized Citizens for Tax Justice’s views in criticizing our report about the expiring tax cuts. The CTJ report is based on numbers from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy’s micro-simulation model that estimates the effect of tax policy changes on real-life taxpayers. ITEP is a nonpartisan research organization whose only agenda is to inform tax policy debates with real numbers. CTJ is a nonpartisan research and advocacy organization that’s been working for a fair and sustainable tax system for over 30 years. Oklahomans know that the tax system isn’t fair when firefighters pay a higher tax rate than wealthy investors, when small businesses pay a higher rate than companies like General Electric and Apple that send their profits to offshore tax havens, and when local retailers collect sales tax while Internet giants sell tax-free.
These are the issue areas in which CTJ is giving a voice to ordinary citizens. A sustainable tax system collects enough revenue to pay for whatever level of government services the people democratically decide we want. CTJ has always opposed the Bush tax cuts and has criticized President Obama’s plan to extend them. The tax cuts were unaffordable when they were enacted, which is why they were temporary, and they’re unaffordable now.
Rebecca Wilkins, Washington, D.C.
Wilkins is senior counsel for federal tax policy at Citizens for Tax Justice.