Victory! In a win for Virginians, Governor Youngkin vetoed SB 1252, ensuring financial security, economic mobility, and flexibility. Independent Women has been a leading voice in opposition to SB 1252, driving over 100 letters from concerned Virginian members urging the governor to veto this bill. Independent Women issued a formal letter to Governor Youngkin in opposing SB 1252 and outlining how it would have disproportionately harmed young people, women, and racial minorities with limited credit access.
Topic: Economy
Pass Tax Cut Extensions for Hardworking Americans
Inflation is high, interest rates are high, and life feels unaffordable. Yet, paychecks for regular Americans are set to be cut.
Congress passed the historic Tax Cuts and Jobs Act during the first Trump Administration. It delivered major wins for women, workers, households, and businesses of all sizes.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act spurred a hiring, pay, and benefits boom. Most Americans got a tax cut. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act lowered tax rates across the board for all Americans, not just for the super rich.
- Median household income reached an all-time high of $68,703.
- Real median household incomes grew by more than $5,000.
- The poverty rate fell to a record low.
- 4.2 million Americans were lifted out of poverty.
- Taxpayers spent 2 billion fewer hours on paperwork in 2020 compared to 2017—a time savings worth over $50 billion.
If Congress does not act this year to extend or make the 2017 tax credits permanent, when the clock strikes midnight on December 31, 2025, American families and small businesses will get a historic tax hike! The average taxpayer would see a 22% tax hike.
You deserve to keep your cuts. It is time to earn more, pay less, and simplify your taxes.
Send a message directly to your U.S. Senators and Representatives in support of extending the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
Victory! Stand for Worker Freedom and Support Portable Benefits in Tennessee
UPDATE: Victory! The TN General Assembly passed portable benefits legislation with bipartisan support! It is now headed to Gov. Lee’s desk.
The Tennessee General Assembly is considering bills that would meet the needs of independent contractors by unlocking portable benefits.
Independent workers value the ability to work for whom they want, when, where, and how they choose. Nine out of ten female workers who shifted from full-time employment to independent contract work said they did so to prioritize flexibility over stability. But unfortunately, upwards of 40% of independent workers lack access to any workplace benefits.
Learn more about the stories of those who benefit from economic opportunity HERE.
Tennessee is trying to solve that problem by creating portable benefits that would be available to independent contractors. Unlike traditional employer-provided benefits, portable benefits are attached to the worker instead of a specific employer. This offers workers the ability to maintain coverage no matter how they choose to work or who pays them. Learn more about portable benefits HERE.
Send a message directly to your members, encouraging them to support portable benefits bills and sharing your story of how flexible work has benefited you.
Save My 401k: Stop Woke ESG Investing
Did you know your retirement and investment funds are being used to fund left-wing causes?
It’s true!
In recent years, corporations and investment companies have used Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles to guide investing. ESG principles can be commendable, such as when companies pledge to use products manufactured without using slave labor. Yet many ESG principles are misguided, like companies committing to unrealistic net-zero carbon emissions, or requiring employees to complete “anti-racism” training or diversity quotas on corporate boards.
Mostly, ESG principles are a way for businesses (big and small) to virtue-signal and promote left-wing, socialist, and even communist policies in order to stave off left-wing activists. This is making the world more politicized, dangerous, divisive, and far less free.
The investing public needs to know that their investments could be at stake! In financial terms, ESG investments aren’t as profitable as advertised. Harvard Business Review notes, “…ESG funds certainly perform poorly in financial terms.” And in a recent Journal of Finance paper, University of Chicago researchers found that the high sustainability funds did not outperform the lowest-rated funds.
In other words, this is costing you money and retirement security!
Vanguard, an investment firm founded by the late John Bogle (a Republican) in 1974, is now basing investments on the “E” (Environmental) in ESG, committing nine Vanguard funds that manage roughly $290 billion to companies that say they want to reach the completely make-belive net-zero goal by mid-century. Using hard-earned retirement funds to prop up more expensive and less reliable energy sources like wind and solar is not only harming investment returns, but also undercutting our energy grid and national security. Unfortunately, Vanguard’s CEO and chairman, Tim Buckley, said Vanguard “…will continue to thoughtfully expand our ESG lineup.”
It is becoming increasingly difficult for investors to protect their money as more and more companies choose to embrace ESG.
Urge Vanguard and CEO Tim Buckley to stop using ESG guidelines for investments!
Stop Government Bureaucrats From Taking Your Gas Stove
Did you know DC politicians and unelected bureaucrats are trying to ban gas stoves?
It’s true!
In recent years, radical green activists have been able to use powerful federal officials to jam through onerous, job and business-crushing regulations free from the democratic process. This ensures that the public has no say in regulatory decisions that do great harm to the American economy.
That’s precisely what’s occurring today with one much-loved kitchen appliance.
On December 21, 2022, Representative Don Beyer (D-VA) and a coalition of House and Senate Democrats sent a letter to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), which is an independent federal agency charged with reducing the unreasonable risk of injuries and deaths associated with consumer products. This agency can pull a product from the marketplace or issue recalls on products at will.
In the letter, the lawmakers claimed gas stoves exacerbate respiratory conditions and asthma in children. This claim was based on a deeply flawed study produced by a green activist organization laser-focused on undermining the natural gas industry worldwide. Based on this flimsy evidence, the lawmakers asked the CPSC to consider a wide range of regulatory moves to make buying a gas stove more difficult (and likely much more expensive) for consumers.
In response, CPSC member Richard Trumka Jr., said the agency would consider a ban on gas stoves.
It’s time to kick these guys out of our kitchens!
Use the form below to urge members of Congress to stop pushing for a ban or more costly regulations on gas stoves.