iRATE Coalition 2015 Highlights

2015 HIGHLIGHTSDecember 2015

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2RATE Coalition 2015 Highlights

PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE OUTREACH As candidates formally entered the nomination contest, Jim Pinkerton and Elaine Kamarck welcomed them with a personalized memo that was accompanied by RATE branded messaging materials and issue backgrounders related to tax reform. The sharing of this type of information with each campaign has continued on a regular basis.

The RATE Coalition met with the following presidential campaign policy staff to share RATE’s messaging and serve as a resource on corporate tax reform:

• September 10: Austen Furse & Zina Bash, Director & Deputy Director of Policy, Ted Cruz for President

• August 18: Rachel Leman, Policy Director, Lindsey Graham for President

• July 28: Jonathan Slemrod, Policy Director, Marco Rubio for President

• July 13: Jack Sisson & Pratik Chougule, Director of Research and Rapid Response and Policy Coordinator, Mike Huckabee for President

• June 26: Casey Enders, Policy Director, Carly for President

• June 11: Danny Heil, Fiscal Policy Director, Jeb 2016

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PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN DEBATES SOCIAL MEDIA The RATE Coalition bracketed the Republican and Democratic presidential debates with social media posts and live-tweeted during the debates, as appropriate. RATE posts about the 2016 race and debates offered a tax reform centric view for followers and helped promote tax reform into the debate chatter. We also shared RATE materials with debate moderators and submitted questions on corporate tax reform beforehand.

EVENTSUsing the Republican presidential debates as a hook, we worked with independent organizations to host tax reform and political panels in advance of the debates to help shape the tax reform story and spread RATE messaging.

In Boulder, Colorado, National Taxpayers Union hosted a panel featuring Hugh Hewitt as the moderator, and had significant attendance of approximately 90 attendees and media amplification. Colorado Majority Leader Scheffler was on the panel and used RATE messaging on corporate tax. He drove home the point that Colorado can do everything it can in order to compete for business with surrounding states, but if Washington does nothing, they cannot be competitive with other countries. Kevin Madden was also on the panel and talked about the politics of corporate tax reform in Washington.

• That day, Hugh Hewitt has Sen. Scheffler on his program as well as one of the allies identified on the ground, the president of Constellation Energy, who spoke specifically about his experience owning a business and needing business tax reform.

In Wisconsin, the McIver Institute hosted a similar event, co-sponsoring with local chamber of business organizations. Jim Pinkerton did a key note speech at the end of the event specifically speaking to corporate tax reform and The RATE Plan.

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EARNED MEDIA RATE earned media this year centered on op-ed placements, statements, and opportunistic interviews for both Elaine Kamarck and Jim Pinkerton. The earned media print and radio placements included:

February 10: The Hill, “Time, Once Again, for Bipartisan Tax Reform” by Jim Pinkerton and Elaine Kamarck

March 9: KRDO in Colorado, Interview with Elaine Kamarck

June 8: Roll Call, “Why Is U.S. Economic Growth So Disappointing?” by Jim Pinkerton and Elaine Kamarck

October 13: Nevada Public Radio, Interview with Elaine Kamarck

November 10: Washington Times, “GOP Debate Promises Spotlight on High Corporate Taxes, Says Low-Tax Advocate,” Quotes from Jim Pinkerton

December: Esquire Magazine, “America: These Are Your Choices,” Citing Elaine Kamarck, Brookings Scholar

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REPATRIATION Throughout the Spring, there were several opportunities to drive home the message that repatriation is fine and should be part of a comprehensive business tax reform package, but a) is not reform on its own, and b) should not be used to pay for other projects.

American Action Forum (AAF) produced a policy paper making this argument. RATE shared the research work, and AAF helped to push it out. AAF did social media on the paper, met with transportation policy staff, distributed the paper to all Hill offices, featured it in their morning tip sheet, and has sited it over time in their other tax work.

In addition, other organizations like Taxpayers Protection Alliance blogged about the need to not pay for highways with repatriation.

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THE RATE PLAN WEBSITE ROLL OUT RATE had a website upgrade that makes it easier to find key information and prominently displays RATE news and statements. We also created a microsite dedicated to selling The RATE Plan. This site became the target for RATE Plan related advertising on social media and the reference point for our #WhatsYourTaxPlan hashtag. It also housed our impactful video product about the RATE Plan.

VIDEO & PROMOTIONRATE created a short video that was shared on social media, particularly surrounding the presidential debates, and detailed tenants of and the need for the RATE Plan. The video garnered:

SOCIAL MEDIA RATE pushed most heavily on Facebook, where we grew the audience (or likes) to over 22,000 and increased our posting cadence significantly. Through advertising and post promotion, the RATE Facebook page received hundreds of likes, shares, and comments on most posts. The audience provided strong feedback and intelligence about where the public stands on the issue of taxes and reform.

Twitter was the main stage for 2016 posts from RATE, however. Along with co-chair and prolific tweeter Jim Pinkerton, the RATE Twitter feed was consistently active around all major 2016 debates, especially the most recent Fox Business Network debate the focused on the economy and taxes.

620,443 views 712,142 total Facebook video views

524 shares2,290 likes607 comments

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FIELD (IA & NH)July – October: Field teams coordinated 21 intercepts in Iowa and 28 intercepts in New Hampshire with presidential candidates and their staffs. The teams also secured earned media placements, adding corporate tax reform and principles of the RATE Plan to the presidential campaign narrative in two key primary states.

RATE KOOZIESAugust – October: RATE koozies were distributed to Congressional offices, presidential campaign staff, national media contacts, and RATE member companies. The Iowa and New Hampshire field teams distributed koozies to state and local media, state-based presidential campaign staff, and at political and election events.

IOWA earned media

4 letters to the editor published

2 radio interviews aired

1 television story aired

NEW HAMPSHIRE earned media

1 letter to the editor published

3 radio interviews aired

2 articles published

1 television story aired

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TAX VP CAPITOL HILL VISITS The first seven months of 2015 provided RATE with numerous opportunities to visit with key congressional members and staff. Over 60 different offices (personal, leadership, and committee) were visited during this window. Key highlights included:

• In March, RATE worked with Congressman Tiberi to organize an introductory meeting with the newly appointed Ways and Means members (Noem, Holding, Meehan, and Smith).

• In the spring, RATE visited with all members of the Senate Finance Committee’s Business Income Tax and International Tax Working Groups.

• In May, tax executives from RATE member companies Kimberly-Clark and CVS traveled to Washington, DC to meet with influential members and key staff on Capitol Hill. Their meetings included:

• House Ways and Means Majority (George Calls, Carly McCallie)

• Majority Leader McCarthy (Roger Mahan)

• Presentation with Jim Pinkerton to Tuesday Group

• In July, tax executives from RATE member companies CVS, Disney, and Liberty Media traveled to Washington, DC to meet with influential members and key staff on Capitol Hill. Their meetings included:

• Senate Finance Committee Majority (Mark Prater and Others)

• Representative David Rouzer (Allison Cooke)

• Representative Reid Ribble (Erin Adams)

• Senator Sherrod Brown (Gideon Bragin)

• Senator Debbie Stabenow (Beth Bell)

• Senator Bill Nelson (Carla McGarvey)

SPEAKER SERIESRATE hosted full coalition meetings with the following influential policy and Congressional voices to discuss corporate tax reform in 2015 and what to expect in 2016:

• November 12: Marty Reiser, Legislative Counsel for the House Republican Whip, Steve Scalise

• October 15: Ellen Doneski, Chief Advisor on Tax and Economic Policy, Office of Senator Harry Reid

• June 11: Brendan Dunn, Policy Advisor and Counsel, Office of the Republican Leader, Senator Mitch McConnell

• March 19: Congressman David Reichert, Chairman of the House Ways & Means Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures

• February 19: Stephen Moore, Chief Economist, The Heritage Foundation

• January 22: Jared Bernstein, Senior Fellow, Center on Budget and Policy Priority

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TORTILLA COAST RECEPTION September 10: RATE hosted an End of Summer Reception at Tortilla Coast on Capitol Hill where approximately 50 RATE member companies, staffers from Finance and Ways & Means Committees, and third party groups mingled and discussed tax reform.

CPAC & THE WEEKLY STANDARDSeveral organizations engaged at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) 2015, a conference with over 10,000 activist attendees, in an effort to encourage support for corporate and comprehensive tax reform. The Center for Individual Freedom sponsored the cover of The Weekly Standard and engaged an artist for a rendering of the U.S. having the highest corporate tax rate in the world. The magazine was given to all CPAC attendees, placed in the green room where speakers gather, and distributed on the Hill by hawkers.

We also worked with The Weekly Standard to do a social media program with the hashtag #TaxReformNOW. Working with them and other third party groups, we were able to get hundreds of CPAC attendees and speakers (notably several presidential candidates) to hold a sign up that said why they want tax reform, with that hashtag, and it was posted on social media. Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council (SBEC) ran a mobile billboard throughout National Harbor (where CPAC is located) during the conference, also using the hashtag.

NEW CONGRESSWhile new members of Congress were being sworn in, several policy groups took the opportunity to push the tax reform message knowing that VIPs and “kitchen cabinets” would be in town for that weekend. SBEC ran ads at Reagan National Airport calling for business tax reform in a place where everyone exiting the airport for a car/taxi/Metro would see it. SBEC also ran a mobile billboard in a route that the billboard truck sat outside multiple inauguration parties for new Members, specifically tracking Rep. Boehner and Rep. Ryan’s attendance at parties.

Page 2 photo credits:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Huckabee#/media/File:Mike_Huckabee_by_Gage_Skidmore_6.jpghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carly_Fiorina#/media/File:Carly_Fiorina_by_Gage_Skidmore_3.jpg