FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 23, 2025
Contact: Kirstin Snow, snow@pennpolicy.org
“Stop the Billionaire Tax Giveaway” National Bus Tour Stops in Bethlehem
Fair Share America + Pennsylvanians Together brought the 14-State National Campaign to PA to Highlight the Harmful Impacts of the GOP’s Federal Budget + Tax Bill
Bethlehem, PA – On Monday, June 23rd, Fair Share America, Pennsylvanians Together and Unrig our Economy brought the “Stop the Billionaire Tax Giveaway” national bus tour to Bethlehem’s Payrow Plaza to highlight the devastating impact of the GOP’s budget and tax proposal on the Keystone State’s families, communities and economy.
The 45-foot tour bus, wrapped in a giant trillion-dollar bill, has 6 total stops in Pennsylvania to send a clear message to elected officials: working families should not have to pay the price so billionaires and big corporations can get more tax breaks. At each stop, local voices call on US senators and members of Congress to reject any budget bill that cuts Medicaid and SNAP in order to fund over $1 trillion in tax breaks for the wealthy.
SPEAKERS:
- Kristin Crowell, Executive Director, Fair Share America
- Marc Stier, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Policy Center
- Kristin Volchansky, Action Together NEPA
- Annie Kisilewicz, Values into Action
- Autumn Gravier, Planned Parenthood, PA
- Linda Smith, Indivisible Lehigh Valley
- Jennifer K. Graham Partyka, RN
- Jane Cook, Board member, Monocacy Farm Project
- Dwayne Heisler, Campaign Director, Pennsylvanians Together
QUOTES:
“Pennsylvania’s families and businesses are fed up with Washington putting billionaires ahead of their basic needs and the public good,” said Fair Share America Executive Director Kristen Crowell. “This tour is about showing up, speaking out, and giving people the tools to fight back for common sense and tax fairness. We’re stopping in here because folks here will be hit hard—and your Federal elected officials have the chance to stop the harm by putting families over billionaires.”
“Pennsylvania families are already working hard to get by—and now Washington wants to make it harder by gutting Medicaid and food assistance to protect tax breaks for billionaires,” said Marc Stier, Executive Director of Pennsylvania Policy Center. “These cuts would hit our communities directly raising costs, increasing hardship, and pushing more pressure onto our schools, hospitals, and local budgets. We’re standing up in Pennsylvania to say: enough is enough. Our elected officials need to reject this plan and stand with the people they’re supposed to serve.”
Dwayne Heisler: “As Campaign Director for Pennsylvanians Together, I’m proud to support the Fair Share America Bus Tour as it rolls into communities across Pennsylvania. At every stop, we’re calling out the cruel tradeoff behind the Big Ugly Bill—slashing Medicaid and SNAP to hand even more tax breaks to billionaires. This tour is about standing up for everyday Pennsylvanians and demanding that we fund healthcare and put food on the table, not pad the pockets of the ultra-wealthy.”
Autumn Gravier: “I work every day to advocate for reproductive freedom, but this budget is especially personal. Years ago, when I escaped an abusive relationship, Medicaid gave me the care I needed to survive and rebuild. It wasn’t charity, it was dignity, it was stability, and it was a brighter future for my kids. Without Medicaid, I don’t know where we’d be.”
Lynn Weidner: “Medicaid empowers my home care client with the dignity and freedom to live in his own home. So when Senator Dave McCormick and Republican congressmembers attack Medicaid, they are directly attacking the dignity and freedom of my client, as well as all seniors and people with disabilities across our Commonwealth.”
Kristin Volchansky: “Millions of Pennsylvanians rely on programs like Medicaid and SNAP. They’re not statistics – they’re our family, our neighbors, our friends, and our coworkers. Medicaid was a lifeline for me. Medicaid is the reason that I’m healthy, independent, and working. During a time of debilitating illness, Medicaid gave me dignity and hope. Despite Ryan Mackenzie and Dave McCormick’s claims, cutting Medicaid will hurt folks like me. I applied for Medicaid, before the Expansion, and I was denied. I applied for Social Security Disability, and I was told I didn’t qualify. Finally, I qualified under the Medicaid Expansion. Voting to slash Medicaid is taking healthcare away from people in their most vulnerable moment.
Linda Smith: “The OBBB is a mandate to our federal legislators to decrease spending for Americans’ vital services to be able to decrease taxes disproportionately to favor the wealthy. This is set to be the underlying structure for the next 10 years of federal budgets. One segment of society that will be hit hardest is Veterans. As a Veterans’ advocate, this is particularly alarming to me.”
Learn more about the Stop the Billionaire Giveaway Bus Tour at bus.fairshareusa.org.
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