Wyden, Cohen, Beyer Introduce the Billionaires Income Tax Act

Wyden, Cohen, Beyer Introduce the Billionaires Income Tax Act

In a Sign of Support Growing Among Democrats, the Billionaires Income Tax is a Bicameral Proposal for the First Time and Crosses 20 Senate Cosponsors

Washington, D.C. - Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) today reintroduced the Billionaires Income Tax Act, legislation that would help ensure billionaires pay a fair share in taxes every year just like Americans who work for a living already do. Congressman Steve Cohen (Tenn.-9), and Congressman Don Beyer (Va.-8) introduced identical legislation in the House of Representatives, making this the first Congress in which the Billionaires Income Tax is a bicameral proposal.

"While people like nurses and firefighters pay taxes straight out of every paycheck, there's a thicket of little-known tricks and accounting rules that allow billionaires to opt out of paying a fair share of tax on the income they enjoy," Senator Wyden said. "Billionaires and Republicans are going to offer up the same set of trickle-down arguments to pretend this proposal would bring about the end of western civilization. The only time you hear billionaires claim they can't scrounge together any cash is when somebody brings up taxes, and odds are a lot of these mega-wealthy individuals are crying poverty from their yachts and private islands. This is a carefully designed proposal that draws on accounting methods already used in the tax code and raises revenue without increasing any tax rates."

The Billionaires Income Tax would expand on an accounting method already used in the U.S. tax code to ensure billionaires pay a fair share. It would not increase any current-law tax rates. The proposal would apply to fewer than 1,000 taxpayers and raise more than $500 billion, which could be used to help shore up funding for vital programs like Social Security and Medicare. Only taxpayers with more than $100 million in annual income or more than $1 billion in assets for three consecutive years would be covered by the proposal. It would not affect middle income taxpayers in any way.

The legislation is cosponsored by Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawai'i), Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i), and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.).

A one-page summary of the Billionaires Income Tax can be found here.

A section-by-section summary of the Billionaires Income Tax can be found here.

Legislative text can be found here.

The Billionaires Income Tax is also endorsed by over 100 supporting organizations. A letter of endorsement with the full list of supporting organizations can be found here.

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