[Excerpts]

Members of Arizona's faith community gathered at the Arizona Capitol on Thursday to condemn the proposed 2.5% flat tax, saying it would disproportionately impact marginalized communities and that they would be "among the first" to call for a referendum if it passes.

The Arizona Interfaith Network, a statewide coalition of organizations including the Valley Interfaith Project, Northern Arizona Interfaith Council and Yuma County Interfaith, held the news conference at 10 a.m.

The Rev. Martha Seaman, a deacon at Church of the Epiphany-Tempe who also serves as president of the Valley Interfaith Project board, began the conference by calling the flat tax a "dangerous" proposal....

The Rev. Hunter Ruffin, a senior pastor at Church of the Ephiphany-Tempe, said the lost tax revenue would "cripple our state for generations to come" and called the state budget "one of our most basic moral documents" that reflects who and what is prioritized in Arizona.

Ruffin said the "immoral" flat tax would benefit wealthy Arizonans at the cost of the poor and middle class, which he described as antithetical to religious teaching.  "You can turn to Leviticus, to Ezekiel, to Zachariah, to Malachi, to the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, to the whole of the Pauline epistles....

"we're taught to care for the most vulnerable among us first, not simply when we have extra in our pockets and we feel charitable."

If the flat tax passes, Ruffin said the Arizona Interfaith Network would be "among the first" to call for a referendum, a measure in which voters can veto a law by gathering enough signatures to get the issue on the ballot.

He said the network would also be launching a series of community and congregational study sessions to further explore the flat tax and its implications.

[Photo credit: (right) Matthew Casey, KJZZ; (left) ABC News]

Oped: First the Pandemic, Now a Flat Tax. Haven't Arizona's Most Vulnerable Suffered Enough?” The Arizona Republic [pdf]

Arizona Faith Leaders Condemn Proposed Flat Tax, Say They Will Call Referendum, The Arizona Republic [pdf]

Arizona State Senate Cannot Find Agreement on the Budget, Joins the House in Recess, ABC Arizona [pdf]

Faith Coalition Calls Arizona Budget Proposal Immoral, KJZZ [pdf]

AIN Clergy Denounce the Flat Tax Proposal, Valley Interfaith Project

Over 100 leaders from across Central Arizona gathered to develop local summer and fall organizing plans in key legislative districts. After reflecting on the importance of organizing, the assembly reviewed the new Arizona State Budget and the 2015 legislative process. VIP leaders then broke out into groups by legislative district to develop plans for maximum impact on school district override and bond measures, prison reform, workforce development, and access to quality healthcare.

135 Valley Interfaith Project leaders convened at Paradise Valley United Methodist Church to celebrate last year's Medicaid Expansion victory and announce its Spring action agenda to key legislative allies including Governor Brewer's Policy and Budget Directors, who briefed the leadership on the Governor's proposed budget, released just the day before.

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