At a time when Oregon schools are underfunded and when many Oregon families struggle to make ends meet, the last thing Oregon should be doing is giving special subsidies to the rich. And yet, right now Oregon is spending hundreds of millions of dollars on a special tax break that caters to certain wealthy business owners.

Since 2015, Oregon has been giving owners of S-corporations, partnerships, and limited liability companies (“pass-through businesses”) the option of a lower tax rate on their business income. This means some rich doctors, lawyers, and accountants end up paying a lower tax rate than their assistants and paralegals. That’s wrong.

The federal tax scheme that the Trump Administration and the GOP majority rushed through Congress contains a similar loophole for owners of pass-through businesses. If you’re mad about the federal tax bill, you should also be angry at the Oregon legislature for letting the state’s special subsidy for rich business owners persist.

Now is the time to fix the problem.

Tell your legislators to stop giving special tax breaks to rich Oregonians. Tell them to fix the pass-through business tax loophole, so that Oregon can invest in our schools and other essential services the way we should.