US wants to tax billionaires more: “They will no longer be subject to a lower tax rate than teachers or firefighters”

The proposal, titled “Minimum Tax on Billionaires’ Income,” would target 700 or so wealthy Americans by setting a minimum tax rate of 20% on incomes over $100 million annually.

“The minimum income tax on billionaires would ensure that the wealthiest Americans pay at least 20% in taxes on all their income,” said the White House text obtained by the newspaper.

“With this minimum tax, the wealthiest Americans will no longer be subject to a lower tax rate than teachers or firefighters,” the White House says.

This new measure, which must be approved by Congress to be implemented, could add up to $360 billion in new revenue over ten years.

A previous study by the US administration said that 400 families of billionaires this fall paid an average of only 8.2% in taxes on their income between 2010 and 2018, often significantly less than many US households.

This White House project, while taxing the richest people was one of Democrats’ main concerns during the 2020 presidential campaign, could radically change the tax slate of American billionaires.

For example, Elon Musk, the leader of Tesla and the world’s richest man, should pay $50 billion in additional taxes and give Amazon founder Jeff Bezos about $35 billion more, according to a University of Berkeley economist’s calculations. Needed. In California, Gabriel Zuckman, quoted by the newspaper.