This week, Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-OR) is widely expected to introduce his “Billionaires Income Tax” to correct the absurdity of billionaires often paying lower tax rates than working people.
According to a recent report from the Congressional Budget Office, the richest 1% now holds 31% of U.S. wealth while half of the country has just 2.5% of the wealth.
At the same time, 26 top billionaires paid an average income tax rate of just 4.8% in 6 recent years when all their income is counted. And a number of billionaires—including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Michael Bloomberg—have gamed the system to pay $0 in federal income taxes in recent years, even when their income from their wealth was skyrocketing. That’s not just a lower rate than nurses, firefighters, and teachers—that’s a lower dollar amount in those years.
The “Billionaires Income Tax” would raise $557 billion over 10 years and only apply to taxpayers whose net worth either exceeds $1 billion or whose income exceeds $100 million for three consecutive years.
I urge you to become an original co-sponsor of the “Billionaires Income Tax” to halt runaway wealth inequality. Thanks.
First sent on November 27, 2023 by Jess Craven
