Local leaders and community members called out the harms & injustice of Washington’s choice to give billionaires a massive tax break and stick everyday Americans with the bill.
Scranton, Penn. (July 2, 2026) – Today, Families Over Billionaires joined local partners, including the Pennsylvania Policy Center, Pennsylvanians Together, Action Together NEPA, and the Black Scranton Project, to bring the Who Pays? Bus Tour to Scranton.
During an event held at the Black Scranton Project complex in the historic former North Scranton Bank facility, residents and community leaders shared stories about the real-world consequences of President Trump and Republicans in Congress’ choice to pass the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA). Signed into law one year ago this Saturday, the law delivered $4.5 trillion in tax cuts to billionaires and large corporations and slashed programs that help working families like Medicaid and SNAP.
Guests also commemorated the 62nd anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, reflecting on its enduring legacy as a milestone in the fight for equal rights and opportunity. Felicity Williams, executive director of the Pennsylvania Policy Center, invoked Martin Luther King Jr., reminding attendees that the struggle for economic justice has always been inseparable from the struggle for racial justice.
Scranton was the fourth stop on the 17-stop nationwide tour, which started in Portland, ME on June 30th. The tour will hit 13 states before ending on July 16th in Tucson, Arizona. At every stop, local voices and leaders tell the story behind the headlines. Learn more here.
Media who would like video or photos from the event, or an interview with one of the speakers please email [email protected].
EXCERPTS
James Taylor, a registered ICU nurse from Geisinger Wyoming Valley, called out companies like Kaiser Permanente and it subsidiary Risant raking in billions in profit each year, and the government cutting support to give tax cuts to the ultra-rich:
- “The economic anxiety is tangible; the life-saving surgeries, rehabilitation, medication, all of it weighs on my patients when they should be focused on recovery…
- “The CEOs and executives at Kaiser and at Risant are choosing to prioritize profits over people.They’re purchasing our local hospitals; they’re consolidating their power and limiting our options…. “
- “Our health and well-being is being sacrificed to finance tax cuts for their billionaire donors…This is anti-American, and it makes me sick.”
- “How can we achieve the promise of America – life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness guaranteed to us by the founders – when our politicians refuse to provide us with even the most basic health care that every single other developed nation has been able to achieve with far fewer resources?”
Senator Bob Casey: “I think it’s the worst piece of domestic legislation in at least 75 years, and you could probably go back even further. But the real outrage here in this bill is what might be called a $1 trillion transfer… to the top 1%. And that trillion dollars came from cuts to Medicaid, cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and other programs that help our families. That is an outrage. That is disgusting.”
Rep. Kyle Donahue, PA House District 113, made the case for a state “budget that works for all Pennsylvanians, not just the richest among us”: “Republicans will say that we have a spending problem. I think we have a revenue problem.” He cited a number of proposals, including renewing the impact fee on natural gas companies and taxing illegal slot machines, to raise the revenue PA needs.
Felicity Williams, Executive Director of Pennsylvania Policy Center, pointed to the enormous strain OBBBA budget cuts have put on the commonwealth: “We know that over the next decade the One Big Beautiful Bill, really the “one big ugly bill,” is going to transfer at least $55 billion in costs onto our state budget. When we do these tax cuts and giveaways, it’s not like the costs disappear – somebody has to pay them.They show up in county budgets and state budget negotiations, and ultimately they show up around your kitchen tables, right here in Pennsylvania.”
Kristen Crowell, Executive Director of Families Over Billionaires, decried how Donald Trump’s wealth has skyrocketed while he’s robbed our communities: “I find it really fitting that we are in a bank, standing in front of a vault, because yesterday it was announced that Donald Trump, during his time in office, has raised his own profit margin by over $2.1 billion. Billions of dollars are in his pocket; robbed from our communities – from the taxes that we pay into the system for the programs, and the services, and the safety net that we all deserve.” (Reminder: The event was held at the Black Scranton Project, within the historic former North Scranton Bank facility.)
Alisha Hoffman-Mirilovich, Executive Director of Action Together NEPA: “For too long, Pennsylvanians have watched elected officials use their positions to grow their personal wealth through stock trading and huge tax cuts that they set up to benefit themselves, while real working families are struggling with rising costs. We need to remind them that being in elected office is about public service, not private profit, and we need to hold them accountable. That’s exactly why we’re here today.”
Dwayne Heisler of Families Over Billionaires and a northeastern PA resident: “One of the things that I’ve learned over the past year since this big ugly bill has passed is that people feel they are not being heard… Billionaires are getting billions of dollars and in the process they are stealing our democracy. That is unacceptable. But here’s the truth: they have the billionaires, but we have each other; and that’s stronger than anything.”
Who Pays? bus tour national partners include: Gen Z For Change, Protect Our Care, National Women’s Law Center, Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, DemCast USA, National Nurses United, Oxfam, Unrig Our Economy, Americans for Tax Fairness and State Revenue Alliance.
