Democrats Draw Up Billionaire-Tax Plan to Replace Hike

  • Threshold of $1 billion in assets, or $100 million in income
  • Party seeking options to pay for multitrillion-dollar bill
Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg
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Democratic lawmakers, with President Joe Biden’s support, are drawing up details of a plan to tax billionaires and other ultra-high earners after Senator Kyrsten Sinema’s opposition to raising the rate on corporations sank a key funding component for a multitrillion-dollar social-spending package.

Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, plans next week to unveil a new tax on the unrealized capital gains of the ultra wealthy, according to his office. The proposal, which has support from other Democratic lawmakers, would set the so-called billionaires’ income tax at $1 billion in assets, or three consecutive years of $100 million or more in income -- hitting some 700 taxpayers.