About the Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative

About the Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative

The Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative, convened in 2004 by United for a Fair Economy, is a network of statewide grassroots organizations that are educating and organizing for fair and adequate taxation at the state and federal levels. The Collaborative seeks to create a long-term national infrastructure of tax fairness organizing to complement the policy work of the State Fiscal Analysis Initiative and the Economic Analysis and Research Network. The Collaborative currently has 24 member organizations in 21 states. It has information and strategy sharing relationships with a number of national organizations and networks working on tax and budget issues.

Anti-tax, anti-government forces have gained tremendous ground over the past 30 years. They have "out-organized" those of us concerned about public investment, equality of opportunity, social welfare and asset building. They have succeeded in molding public consciousness so that it fails to connect quality of life and economic security with taxes. Support for the public sector has eroded to such a degree that a majority of Americans have come to believe that government is an impediment, not an enhancer, of their quality of life.

Long-term, sustained grassroots education and organizing across the country are essential ingredients for re-establishing faith in government and fostering civic participation to raise the dollars necessary to create a society that provides economic security for all. To that end, establishing a powerful, effective national tax organizing infrastructure is one of the most important gaps to fill in the progressive movement.

The Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative:

• Brings together grassroots state organizing groups to exchange experiences and share best practices
• Shares strategies across state lines and forms affinity groups to tackle common problems
• Provides the latest information on messaging, framing, and polling.
• Develops and shares culturally appropriate tools to draw diverse constituencies into tax debates
• Brings the cadres of newly minted state tax activists into the effort to reform federal tax policies
• Builds a Collaborative structure through which members can better secure long-term funding to build and sustain tax organizing capacity

To see the Collaborative principles, goals and commitments, please click here.

To see the list of Collaborative members click here.

If you would like more information or are interested in joining the Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative, please review the Collaborative's principles, goals and commitments and then contact Karen Kraut, kkrautfaireconomy.org 617-423-2148 x122.

TFOC Principles

A fair tax system is one that is progressive, transparent and that generates enough revenue to fund quality public services and provide opportunities that enable all people to thrive.

Comprehensive participation of people at the grassroots level in political change processes is integral to social and economic justice.

Collaborating, communicating and problem solving with peer organizations adds value to an individual organization's work.

The internal and external workings of nonprofit organizations should be explicitly and demonstrably democratic and non-oppressive.

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