Washington, D.C. – With growing momentum sweeping across the United States to rein in the power of dominant corporations, Fight Corporate Monopolies today launched a new coalition of state and local leaders leading the charge, which features New York Assemblymember Emily Gallagher.

“The movement to dismantle the power of corporate monopolies is being led at the state level. The task force provides a real time check on the same corporations that are price gouging working people, profiteering while workers suffer, and making backdoor deals on taxpayers’ dime,” said Helen Brosnan, Executive Director of Fight Corporate Monopolies. “Their efforts reflect constituents’ concerns about the control and power corporations have over our economy and democracy. We’re proud to work with a coalition of legislative champions who are taking on bold policy fights to challenge corruption and corporate power at the root. We hope other state and local leaders continue to join their efforts.”

“State governments have a long history of challenging corporations in order to protect their states’ workers, local businesses, and communities from the harms of consolidated economic power, and those efforts are continuing todays thanks to these great champions,” said Pat Garofalo, Director of State and Local Policy at Fight Corporate Monopolies. “The members of this task force have proven they’re willing to take on the toughest fights against the country’s largest corporations. They’re providing an example that elected leaders all across the country can and should follow.”

Assemblymember Emily Gallagher wrote and introduced the LLC Transparency Act. This legislation would shed light on the anonymous shell companies doing business in New York -- many of whom are private equity firms, developers, contractors, landlords, and sometimes even foreign governments. 

If enacted, LLC transparency would allow the mask to be pulled off of private equity firms which use LLCs as fronts when they buy up swaths of neighborhoods; it would allow the government to verify the identities of contractors applying for bids or subsidies, to ensure that there are no conflicts of interest; it would prevent campaign finance violations facilitated by LLCs; and it would give law enforcement more information to identify and prosecute financial crimes and tax avoidance.

"Much of what's been called inflation over the past two years has been nothing more than old fashioned price gouging by some of the biggest corporate monopolies in history. And their outsized influence in politics and policymaking has made the task of confronting their corrupting power and bringing relief to workers, consumers and communities all the more difficult,” said Assemblymember Emily Gallagher. “That's why I am so excited to join the Fight Corporate Monopolies Task Force, a national network of legislators committed to transparency, accountability and economic democracy. The ruling class is organized and relentless: we need to be, too." 

Members of the task force currently include Delaware Rep. John Kowalko, Illinois Sen. Robert Peters, Pennsylvania Reps. Sara Innamorato and Nick Pisciottano, Pennsylvania Sen. Katie Muth, New York Deputy Senate Majority Leader Michael Gianaris, and New York Assemblymembers Emily Gallagher and Anna Kelles. Additional members will be added over time.