Just days before Congress hammered Mark Zuckerberg over data privacy, Trump’s Department of Homeland Security submitted a rule that would require all visa applicants to the U.S. to release their social media identities for the previous five years when applying for an immigrant or nonimmigrant visa.

This is part of this administration’s continued, unnecessary closed-border policies that directly impact Americans abroad and our families.

This week’s Tiny Action: Protect American families impacted by harmful immigration policies.

1. Submit a comment in opposition to these new plans mentioned above, by emailing [email protected].

My name is [NAME]. I am an American living in [CITY, COUNTRY] and I vote in [STATE].

I am submitting my comments for Docket Number DOS-2018-0003.
        - Title of Information Collection: Electronic Application for Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration.
        - Form Number: DS-260
        - OMB Control Number: 1405-0185.

I strongly oppose the collection of social media data from visa applicants and the additional questions proposed to the visa application process. It is intrusive, unnecessary and an ineffective use of resources, and likely opens the door to racial profiling of visitors and immigrants.

This clearly goes beyond what is relevant or necessary to protect national security, and in some instances even go further into individual histories than security clearance forms for government employees.

The questions proposed are overly broad and burdensome and do not include any standards or guidance regarding who will be asked these questions, thereby increasing the likelihood of inconsistent and ineffective determinations as well as bias and profiling in visa adjudication.

The proposal offers no specificity with respect to social media, creating substantial concerns regarding the meaning or purpose of the question; the substantial impact of the question on privacy and freedom of speech and expression of U.S. citizens and residents; and the use, storage, and retention of the information collected about visa applicants, U.S. citizens, and U.S. residents.

Finally, the department’s own materials estimate that this would add an additional 1.8 million annual hours of work, which is an inappropriate use of resources and adds to the already extensive wait time for visa applicants.

As an American living overseas, I understand the importance of proper vetting and a stringent visa application process. But I also understand what the impact of this proposal would be. The 14.7 million people who would be affected include thousands if not millions of multinational American families. The ability for our families to visit loved ones in the U.S., and to return to the U.S. with us, should not be held hostage by arbitrary searches.

Please do not add to our already extensive, exhausting visa application process.

Sincerely,

2. Tell Senate to vote for the Leahy-Daines bill, to place restrictions on searches and seizures of electronic devices at the border (S.2462).

My name is [NAME]. I am an American living in [CITY, COUNTRY] and I vote in [ZIP, STATE].

I’m calling to ask Senator [NAME] to support the Leahy-Daines bill, to place restrictions on searches and seizures of electronic devices at the border (S.2462).

The recent news that the Department of Homeland Security may ask visa applicants to hand over their social media accounts as one of multiple additional steps in Trump’s “extreme vetting” is unacceptable. The border is not a Constitution-free zone.

As an American living overseas, I understand the importance of proper vetting and a stringent visa application process. But I also understand what the impact of this proposal would be. The 14.7 million people who would be affected include thousands if not millions of multinational American families. The ability for our families to visit loved ones in the U.S., and to return to the U.S. with us, should not be held hostage by arbitrary searches.

Thank you very much.

3. Tell your Rep and Senators to vote for the Adoptee Citizenship Act of 2018 (H.R. 5233; S. 2522).

My name is [NAME]. I am an American living in [CITY, COUNTRY] and I vote in [ZIP, STATE]. I’m calling to ask Senator/Congress(wo)man [NAME] to support the Adoptee Citizenship Act of 2018 (H.R. 5233; S. 2522), to provide citizenship for adoptees to American parents.

International adoptees who were adopted by American parents and raised as Americans should have the same rights of citizenship as biological children. For the 35,000-75,000 international adoptees living in the United States without citizenship, as well as the thousands more living with American parents overseas, this must be corrected.

Thank you.

A lot of people ask us if they can vote this year, and if voting in 2018 is worth it.

Yes. And Yes.

Midterm elections are federal elections, which means that anyone who can vote in a presidential election year can also vote for Senate and House races in the midterms.

And WOW is this year’s election important. If Democrats take back Congress - and we can - we will change Washington. Which is why our single most important task this year is getting all Democrats abroad to vote. This is not a task for October. This is an action for NOW.

This week's Tiny Action: Sign up to be a phone bank volunteer, and start making those calls! 

88% of members we called in 2016 submitted a ballot, but less than 2 in 10 of you signed up to phonebank when we asked in February. So we’re asking again.

Phone banking is easy, flexible, free (with an internet connection and laptop) and rewarding. Phone bankers in the U.S. are shocked to hear how often our members THANK us for calling them about voting!

New to phone banking?

1. Log in to democratsabroad.org and sign up to help with phone banking.
   
2. Review important info for first-time phone bankers. 
3. You will receive an email from CallHub - the system we use to call Americans abroad - to activate your account.
4. Log in to CallHub and get started!

Returning phone banker?

1. Review the refresher materials and info on current campaigns here: https://www.democratsabroad.org/phonebanking
2. Go to https://callhub.io to enter your username and password.
   - Your username is probably country code and name. Ex: CA-Heidi-Burch
   - Forgot your password? Click Forgot to receive CallHub instructions to set up a new one.
3. Start making those calls!

Overseas votes HAVE decided close elections in the past, and we’ll do it again - but not without your help.

MORE INFO

MANY flaws exist in the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act. We know it, voters in the US know it, and even Republican leaders (deep down) know it.

But one thing that few people know is the catastrophic damage the new rules will have on the many Americans overseas who own their own business. If followed through, these policies could literally bankrupt countless small companies owned (or partly owned) by Americans abroad.

This week’s #TinyAction: Demand Americans abroad be exempt from Repatriation & GILTI Taxes.

*If you are a small business owner overseas, please use this more detailed script provided by our Taxation Task Force.
*Does this action look familiar? Good job! You’re also signed up to receive emails from our Taxation Task Force. In this case, the issue was important enough to raise twice.

This is an urgent issue that we can’t wait for Congress to fix, so we’ve drafted language for you to use in an email to the Treasury/IRS and relevant Congressional Committees.

To: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

Cc: [email protected]

Subject: Repatriation/GILTI Tax Relief for Americans business owners abroad

Dear Mr. Kautter, Mr. Harter, Mr. Paul, Ms Preston, Ms. Perkins, Ms. Angus, Mr. Junge, Ms. Getz, Mr. Prater and Ms. Smith,

My name is [NAME]. I’m an American who votes in [STATE], currently living in [COUNTRY]. I’m writing today to ask that you address two components of the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act that will have disastrous impact on Americans overseas like me.

The Repatriation Tax and the GILTI Tax were created with giants like Google and Apple in mind. But they offer no exemption for the millions of Americans overseas who own small businesses, who will be drastically (and unintentionally) hurt by this policy flaw.

The great majority of us are just like our fellow Americans at home. We are law-abiding, tax-paying citizens, working to support ourselves and our families. We are not the 1%. I understand these taxes were designed for large, aggressively tax-structured multinational corporations, but the rest of us are swept up in these policies, and in fact treat us much worse.

1. These companies are entitled to tax credits and deductions that Americans living overseas are not privy to. So while corporations can minimize or avoid these taxes, we cannot.

2. We are now obligated to deal with exceedingly complex tax and filing requirements that came without warning, designed for multinational corporations, which are now virtually incomprehensible because of incomplete IRS guidance.

There is an easy solution for this. Americans overseas with interests in foreign corporations should be exempt from the Repatriation Tax and from the GILTI regime so long as we meet the conditions required for exemption under IRC Section 911, and we are individual U.S. Shareholders.

This will capture the corporate tax that has long been denied (as intended) while recognizing that the profits our businesses generate were always meant to remain in the place where we have made our lives -- in our cases, this happens to be overseas.

But Congress will struggle to enact a remedy as soon as we require. So I urge the Treasury and IRS to take the following actions:

1. Issue an immediate notice stating that for Americans abroad, the first payment under IRC Section 965 is due the earlier of October 15, 2018, or the issuance of further guidance.

2. Issue a further notice in line with this proposal.

Thank you for your attention and I sincerely hope that the Treasury/IRS can address this matter until such time as Congress acts.

Sincerely,

[NAME]

WHY IT MATTERS

In addition to continuing to fail to address the needs of individual citizens abroad, the new system under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has two troubling components in particular.

Repatriation Tax: Overseas profits for American-majority owned corporations will be subjected to a one-time tax on all profits going back to 1986.

This tax was intended to target U.S.-based parent corporations with foreign subsidiaries, which receive a range of offsets and credits for taxes paid in other countries. However, these deductions are not available for overseas Americans, which means that if an overseas business set up as a corporation is owned (or majority owned) by Americans living abroad, they will be forced to declare profits going back 20 years on their 2017 tax filing.

Global Intangible Low-Tax Income (GILTI) Tax: Going forward, foreign businesses owned by Americans will, again, be subjected to U.S. corporate tax on profits, less about 10%, regardless of whether or not profits are repatriated. As with the Repatriation Tax, U.S.-based corporations with foreign businesses are afforded deductions and offsets so significant that in many instances, it will mean they owe zero taxes to the United States.

Once again, these deductions are not available to overseas Americans. Overseas US citizens who own a business in the country they reside in cannot defer income from GILTI, and will be subjected to US corporate tax on profits, even if those profits never leave the country where the corporation is based.

These Americans, who live overseas and majority own corporations, will be taxed twice on the same dollar of income. Here’s an example of how it might work in real life.

Clearly, these are both grievous errors in drafting and must be addressed urgently. Please join our call for action and email the Treasury/IRS and Congressional leadership today.

Every year, Americans abroad miss the chance to vote. The reason? They didn't realize they were no longer registered.

This week’s #TinyAction: Don’t miss out. Double check that you are registered to vote, and that your overseas absentee ballot request has been confirmed.

After you have requested an overseas absentee ballot, use our Election Official Directory and select your voting state and region to find your Election Official.

Hello:

My name is (NAME) and I vote in (DISTRICT). I currently live in (LOCATION) but I believe I’ve already submitted my overseas absentee ballot request, and I just wanted to check to be sure that I’m properly registered and will receive my ballots throughout the year?

Thank you very much,

Most Election Officials have both phone and email contact options, and they’re very used to responding to questions like yours, which makes it an efficient way to check your voting status quickly and easily.

Then, read up on how your state compares to others:

• Center for American Progress Action Fund: Health of State Democracies
• Rock the Vote: Know Your Voting Rights
• Brennan Center for Justice: Voting Laws Roundup 2018

WHY IT MATTERS

Republican-controlled state governments are actively working to make it harder for Americans to vote. Flawed methods like too-simple name and birthdate matches that misidentify millions as dead or having moved result in voter roll purges.

Just this year, 28 bills restricting access have been introduced in 14 states, including California, and in Wisconsin, 308,000 voters have had their registrations deactivated in this year alone, with thousands thought to have been removed in error.  

Elsewhere, Ohio’s “Use it or Lose it” voter roll purge has made its way to the Supreme Court, Indiana is also in court with the ACLU, as one of 30 states using the flawed method mentioned above that has up to a a 99% error rate.

• The GOP's Stealth War Against Voters (Rolling Stone)
• Culling Voter Rolls: Battling Over Who Even Gets to Go to the Polls (NYT)
• These Three Lawyers Are Quietly Purging Voter Rolls Across the Country (MoJo)
• The Voter Purge Case at the Supreme Court Reveals the Justice Department’s Attack on Voting Rights (ACLU)
• Indiana Sued Over Its Aggressive New Voter Purge Program (MoJo)