Still Struggling to Make Ends Meet 2022: A report on living wages in Washington State

Over the last two years, the Covid-19 pandemic has triggered many changes in American life, but workers in Washington State and across the country continue to face difficulties making ends meet. Hazard pay premiums for essential workers have temporarily boosted worker pay, but inflation through February 2022 was at its highest rate since 1982, erasingContinue reading “Still Struggling to Make Ends Meet 2022: A report on living wages in Washington State”

Seattle Residents Take Their Demands to Chase Bank

On a beautiful sunny Seattle Saturday, 400 south Seattle residents took to the streets to demand that JPMorgan Chase Bank reinvest money in the communities they have destroyed. The community members — parents, students, workers, homeowners — demanded that Chase reinvest money in the form of principle write down for every Washington homeowner. They alsoContinue reading “Seattle Residents Take Their Demands to Chase Bank”

Rude Awakening for Seattle Tax Dodger & Wells Fargo Board Member

On a typically rainy Seattle morning, Tuesday, May 2, commuters stuck in rush hour traffic were treated to a  perfect view of a banner declaring peoples’ demands to big banks – PAY YOUR TAXES! The banner, hoisted up by 8-foot weather balloons and anchored by local students’ sailboat, reading “Wells Fargo-Pay Your Taxes”  flew aboveContinue reading “Rude Awakening for Seattle Tax Dodger & Wells Fargo Board Member”

Two Steps Backward for Bankers — 100,000 Steps Forward For the People

Last Thursday, April 14, Washingtonians from all walks of life put on their walking shoes and set out on the People’s Walk for Our Future. The five-day, 50-mile walk included stops at places in communities that are facing devastating cuts because of Washington’s $5 billion revenue shortfall: schools, mental health clinics, and many more. LegislatorsContinue reading “Two Steps Backward for Bankers — 100,000 Steps Forward For the People”

Foreclosure Fairness Now Law in Washington State

Last week, the Washington state “Foreclosure Fairness Act” was signed into law, marking a major victory in a long, multi-year fight by advocates for low-income borrowers, including the Statewide Poverty Action Network and Washington Community Action Network (an Alliance affiliate.)

Washington CAN! Leads Takeover of State Capitol to Protest Budget Cuts

At 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 6, Lieutenant  Mark Arras of the Washington State Patrol addressed a crowd of 100 people who had filled the Capitol Building rotunda with sleeping bags and pillows. They had taken up camp in the Capitol to protest state budget cuts slashing social services like health care and education. “WeContinue reading “Washington CAN! Leads Takeover of State Capitol to Protest Budget Cuts”

Video: Washington CAN! Quarantines State Capitol from Bank Lobbyist Germs

On Bankers’ Lobby Day (February 7), members from Washington Community Action Network quarantined the state Capitol building in Olympia to protect lawmakers from from lobbyist “germs” of misinformation. Lobbyists were there to dissuade lawmakers from voting for House Bill 1847, which would eliminate outdated tax breaks for big Wall Street banks and private jet ownersContinue reading “Video: Washington CAN! Quarantines State Capitol from Bank Lobbyist Germs”

Money in Politics: The Best Tax Break Half a Million Dollars Can Buy

The first in a series of articles exploring the influence of corporate money over our political system. When Microsoft filed pay disclosures with the Securities and Exchange Commission last year, it reported a $670,000 bonus for company CEO Steve Ballmer. But the company didn’t mention how Ballmer spent the bulk of that check – onContinue reading “Money in Politics: The Best Tax Break Half a Million Dollars Can Buy”

Washington CAN! and Allies Testify Against Bill Targeting Undocumented Immigrants

On Thursday, February 3, the Washington State Legislature Transportation Committee held a public hearing on SB 5407, a bill that would take away the ability of undocumented, tax-paying immigrants to obtain Washington state driver licenses. The bill would make people provide a social security number or proof that they are in the US legally toContinue reading “Washington CAN! and Allies Testify Against Bill Targeting Undocumented Immigrants”

Direct from Main Street: Washington Small Business Views on Credit and Lending

This report shares the findings of a survey of Washington small businesses, focusing on their experiences with credit and their reactions to one current proposal to support small business and economic growth: the creation of a state bank. This report contributes to the discussion of such a proposal by sharing the perspectives of Washington’s MainContinue reading “Direct from Main Street: Washington Small Business Views on Credit and Lending”