To: John Chiang, California State Treasurer
Treasurer Chiang: Start a Public Bank in California!
Charter a public bank for the State of California to hold public tax dollars, in order to avoid the greed and abuse associated with Wall Street banks.
Why is this important?
John Chiang, California's state treasurer, just suspended all state business and contracts with Wells Fargo after details of the bank scamming millions of dollars out of customers came to light. If California charters its own public bank, it could not only permanently avoid the risk of doing business with shady private banks like Wells Fargo, but it could avoid losing billions in bank fees and interest every year by storing public dollars in a public bank that exists solely for the purpose of investing in public infrastructure, small businesses, pensions for public workers, public K-12 and higher education, and other dire public needs. North Dakota has successfully managed its state finances with a public bank for over a century. It's time for California to do the same.