Taxing Wealth and Income from Wealth

Proposition 40, California’s proposed billionaire tax, is a one-time 5 percent levy that addresses a significant one-time emergency, namely the cuts made to the healthcare system by the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.”

This fall, voters across the country will consider a host of ballot measures that could reshape the fairness and adequacy of their states’ tax systems. Here’s some of what we’re following.

Trump is once again weighing a proposal to index capital gains taxes to inflation as part of a set of policy promises ahead of the midterm elections. It would amount to a massive new tax break for wealthy investors.

Congress could use its taxing power to ensure a fairer distribution of the fruits of labor, innovation and investment, address the specific harms (the negative externalities) of AI specifically, and acquire a public stake in the companies that are driving the AI revolution.

In fact, thanks to the legislation’s expansion of the state’s Working Families Tax Credit and elimination of sales taxes on several categories of items, 95% of Washington households will pay less in state taxes, according to an analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.

A former Democratic senator from Nebraska has joined Saving America’s Family Enterprises and taken up its cause of opposing wealth taxes.

In 2026, cities, counties, and school districts must manage tax cuts coming from federal and state governments, the end of federal pandemic aid, rising costs, and a stagnant economy. This challenging environment is forcing municipalities of all types to ask how they can best fund core priorities and invest in communities in the long term.

Crypto provides no clear benefit and instead harms society in several ways. Even if crypto was useful in some way that outweighed the harms it causes, there is no reason to make exceptions that treat it more generously than other types of assets or transactions.

If Juneteenth is to mean anything beyond symbolism, it must also be a call to confront the policies that continue to shape racial inequities today. One of the most powerful drivers of that inequity is our tax system.

As rising costs strain our community and household budgets, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker’s proposed taxes attempted to patch gaping holes with meager solutions.

From surcharges on the income of high-earners to higher taxes on second homes, here are recent steps states have taken to tax the rich.

This week Hawaiʻi lawmakers reached a compromise to balance the state budget and maintain tax cuts for most residents by, in part, raising rates on the richest Hawaiians. Other states are working to generate revenue from their wealthiest residents, too.

Maine Gov. Janet Mills on Friday put her seal of approval on a supplemental budget bill that includes a “millionaires’ tax.”

As many state legislative sessions near or cross the halfway point, lawmakers are facing tough choices.

While some may be excited for a romantic Valentine’s Day this weekend, many state lawmakers are breaking up and decoupling from recent federal tax changes that are poised to leave states with revenue shortfalls – much like a bad date who forgets their wallet and asks you to pick up the tab.

The results are a mixed bag, with some states enacting promising policies that will improve tax equity and others going in the opposite direction.

Trust use is widespread among the wealthiest households, with reports showing that roughly half of the nation’s wealthiest people rely on trusts for tax avoidance reasons

Her timely book, The Second Estate: How the Tax Code Made an American Aristocracy, walks readers through federal tax policy history and the modern-day legal maneuvers the wealthy use to pay little to no taxes

They should take steps to protect and boost their own revenues. And they should take a second look at their own tax cuts.

His 900-word New York Times op-ed identifies some sensible federal tax reform ideas that would create a fairer, more sustainable tax system.

The Opportunity Zones program benefits wealthy investors more than it benefits disadvantaged communities.

Taxing the proceeds generated by wealth through a new Wealth Proceeds Tax is a simple way for states to raise billions in new revenue and improve the fairness of their tax systems.

The Trump megabill hands the richest 1% a trillion-dollar windfall while gutting funding for health care, education, and disaster relief — leaving communities to pick up the pieces. State and local leaders must step up, tax the wealthiest fairly, and safeguard the essentials that keep America healthy, educated, and safe.

Maryland is taking aim at income and racial disparities through a revised personal income tax. By raising taxes on high earners and cutting them for most households across racial and ethnic lines, the state is proving that progressive tax policy can drive both equity and revenue.

Missouri lawmakers are debating a tax cut that will mostly benefit the wealthiest in the state, while relying on an unrealistic estimate of what it will cost.