Overview
- The Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act would levy a 5% annual tax on the wealth of roughly 938 to 1,000 U.S. billionaires, with no taxes added for anyone under $1 billion in net worth.
- Sponsors cite a UC Berkeley analysis by Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman projecting $4.4 trillion over 10 years, while critics argue behavioral responses could cut receipts sharply, with one AEI estimate near $2.3 trillion.
- In the first year, eligible households earning $150,000 or less would receive a $3,000 direct payment, equal to $12,000 for a family of four.
- The plan outlines funding for reversing Medicaid and ACA cuts, expanding Medicare dental, vision and hearing coverage, building and preserving over seven million affordable homes, capping childcare costs at 7% of income, setting a $60,000 minimum teacher salary, and expanding Medicaid home care.
- The proposal feeds into a broader debate over taxing extreme wealth, including a separate California push for a one-time 5% billionaire tax that has drawn opposition from Gov. Gavin Newsom and tech donors.