Over the last few years, tens of thousands of California's teachers have been put out of work. Our kids are crammed into bigger and bigger classes and their schools can't afford the basics such as books. All because our state is out of money.

The California Dream is dying and there's a big reason why: big corporations like Amazon are gaming the system to line their own pockets at the expense of our communities. Amazon is so desperate to avoid competing on a level playing field that it's spending millions of dollars on a ballot initiative so it doesn't have to pay sales tax.

Our state loses more than $1 billion every year because Amazon and other online retailers don't collect sales taxes – and it's not just our schools and vital programs that lose out. Since local stores can't game the system, Amazon is forcing neighborhood businesses -- from bookstores to bike shops -- to close shop and putting our neighbors out of work.

It's only fair for Amazon to do its part to get our state back on track – and it's up to us to make sure they do. We're calling on Amazon to stop bending the rules and end its campaign to avoid collecting sales tax.

We can renew the California Dream. We can make sure our kids get the education they deserve. And it starts by making Amazon do the right thing for California.

Amazon's ballot initiative is unfair for local businesses, bad for our children, and wrong for California. Tell Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to stop Amazon's campaign to avoid collecting sales taxes.