John,
Through special loopholes and tax code preferences, the ultra-rich are allowed to pay lower tax rates on investment income than workers pay on wages. The Equal Tax Act corrects this injustice by ensuring that income from wealth is treated the same as income from work.[1]
The Equal Tax Act raises tax rates on capital gains and dividends to match those on income from labor. It eliminates the stepped-up basis loophole, which wealthy families use to pass down massive wealth increases without paying capital gains taxes. It ends the use of “buy, borrow, die” schemes, where billionaires avoid taxes for life and leave behind untaxed fortunes. Capital gains would be treated as realized at the time of gift or death, with reasonable exclusions to protect middle-class families.
This legislation also closes loopholes in the real estate market by capping like-kind exchanges, which investors use to shuffle properties and avoid taxes indefinitely. It limits the pass-through deduction, which allows business owners to deduct up to 20% of their income before figuring their taxes, to those making under $1 million annually. These are necessary steps toward a fair tax system that supports working people, not wealthy business owners and real estate moguls.
Every dollar the rich avoid paying in taxes is a dollar that could be invested in schools, hospitals, and infrastructure. The Equal Tax Act would generate revenue to support those priorities. Congressional inaction allows this unfairness to continue. Tax fairness is not radical. It is the foundation of a healthy democracy. Congress must decide who they work for: the American people or the billionaire donor class.
Demand more than words from your members of Congress. Insist that they stand up to billionaire tax dodgers and pass the Equal Tax Act to ensure income from wealth is taxed the same as income from work.
Tax laws are moral documents that reflect the values of a country. A tax system that privileges speculation over labor sends a clear signal about who matters. The current tax code rewards wealth over work. It gives billionaires more favorable tax treatment than teachers, nurses, construction workers, and small business owners. That imbalance is one of the driving forces behind rising economic inequality in the United States.
Billionaires have spent decades manipulating tax policy through lobbying and campaign contributions. They have rigged the system to ensure their wealth goes untaxed for generations. The Equal Tax Act is a direct challenge to that system. It says no one should be allowed to accumulate massive wealth without contributing to the public good. It puts working people back at the center of our economic policies. It ends the excuses and begins the work of building a fair economy.
This will not happen without pressure. Lobbyists want to kill this bill quietly. We must make our voices louder than their money. Congress needs to hear from thousands of citizens demanding a fair tax code and equal treatment under the law.
Show Congress that the American people will no longer tolerate a rigged tax system that favors the ultra-wealthy. The Equal Tax Act is a necessary step toward justice, equality, and economic sanity.
Thank you for speaking out and demanding that your elected officials do the right thing by building a tax system that works for everyone.
David Kass
Executive Director
Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund
[1] The Equal Tax Act
