Sen. Elizabeth Warren introduces “ultra-millionaire” wealth tax bill

Senator Elizabeth Warren introduced a bill in the senate that looks to impose a new tax on the assets of “America’s wealthiest individuals.” 

This plan is very similar to a proposal that was the a big talking point of Warren’s campaign when she ran for president in 2020. Warren’s want of a tax increase on millionaires and billionaires in the U.S. is not new. 

The plan would place a 2% tax on those with a net worth between $50 million and $1 billion. Anyone with a net worth over $1 billion would be subject to a 3% tax. Anyone with a networth below $50 million would be safe from the tax. 

According to the tax bill’s sponsors, the tax would raise $2.75 trillion in tax revenue over a ten-year period. 

Warren claimed, “The ultra-rich and powerful have rigged the rules in their favor so much that the top 0.1% pay a lower effective tax rate than the bottom 99%, and billionaire wealth is 40% higher than before the COVID crisis began.”  Warren also stated, “A wealth tax is popular among voters on both sides for good reason: because they understand the system is rigged to benefit the wealthy and large corporations.”

See Ursula Perano, Sen. Elizabeth Warren introduces “ultra-millionaire” wealth tax bill, Axios, March 1, 2021. 

Special thanks to Joel C. Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.