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Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) plan to introduce a bill to impose a 5% federal wealth tax on billionaires, according to a newly released bill summary document.
What's the Scoop?
- Tax the Rich: Senator Sanders and Representative Khanna believe a new tax will solve wealth inequality in America. The pair's newly released proposal promises to strictly assess unrealized wealth taxes of 5% on individuals with a networth greater than $1B, and claims it will raise $4.4T of new tax revenue over the next decade.
- New Social Programs: Unrealized tax revenue would go toward expanding the welfare state. Among other things, this includes: paying $3k to every resident in a household that earns less than $150k, reversing $1.1T of "One Big Beautiful Bill" cuts to Medicaid and healthcare, expanding Medicare coverage for seniors, and establishing a $60k per year minimum salary for every public school teacher in America.
- Going Dutch: Wealth tax implementation has gained increasing traction among some policymakers. California voters may consider a "one-time" 5% wealth tax later this November, and the Netherlands controversially enacted a 36% tax on unrealized gains in February (anticipated to become effective beginning calendar year 2028).
Today, while billionaires have never had it so good, 60% live paycheck to paycheck.
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) March 2, 2026
We can no longer tolerate a rigged system that lets billionaires pay a lower tax rate than average workers.
A tax on billionaires will help create an economy that works for all, not the 1%. https://t.co/Xgx6ICedAf
