Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act

Where Things Stand
Senator Bernie Sanders introduced S. 3956 to create a 5% yearly tax on people with more than $1 billion in assets. This money would fund a $60,000 minimum salary for teachers and provide $3,000 direct payments to families. The bill is currently in committee and requires the IRS to audit half of all billionaires every year to prevent tax evasion.
The Facts
Key Statements
“proposing $3,000 direct payments funded by a new annual wealth tax on billionaires.”
Confirms the specific cash benefit proposed for citizens.
“Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren reintroduce wealth tax proposals, including a 5% annual tax on billionaires' net worth.”
Identifies the lead sponsors and the specific tax rate.
Who This Affects
Mixed
The wealth tax would affect a very small number of business owners whose total net assets exceed $1 billion. For those affected, the 5% annual tax on net wealth would be a significant new obligation. The bill also requires reporting of privately held business values, creating new compliance burdens for businesses with billionaire owners. However, most small business owners would be unaffected.
Helps
Medicare would be expanded to cover dental, hearing, and vision services for the first time. This means seniors could get dental cleanings, fillings, dentures, hearing aids, eye exams, and eyeglasses through Medicare, filling major gaps in coverage that currently force millions to pay thousands of dollars out of pocket or go without care. Dental coverage phases in starting 2027-2028 with premium impacts cushioned through 2031.
The bill provides affordability rebates of $3,000 per individual ($6,000 for joint filers) plus $3,000 per dependent. For a family of four, this could mean $12,000 in direct payments. While structured differently from the traditional child tax credit, the per-dependent payment effectively functions as a major boost for families with children.
Public school students benefit from the $60,000 minimum teacher salary provision, which aims to attract and retain more qualified teachers. Research consistently shows teacher quality is the most important in-school factor affecting student outcomes. The bill also funds child care for children under 6, improving early childhood education access.
The bill permanently removes the 400% of poverty line income cap for premium tax credits, meaning people at any income level could receive subsidies for marketplace insurance. It also sets more generous subsidy percentages, with households below 150% of poverty paying nothing and those above 400% capped at 8.5% of income. This would substantially lower costs for millions currently buying ACA plans.
Policies
The Senate bill S. 3956 serves as the primary vehicle for this wealth tax proposal. While the Senate version focuses on teacher pay and social programs, House members have joined as co-sponsors to push for the inclusion of $3,000 direct payments to citizens. These efforts represent a coordinated push by progressives to link billionaire tax rates directly to new federal spending programs.
News
Progressives Give Wealth Confiscation Another Go | National Review
Plan for $3,000 direct payments to Americans gets boost: List of sponsors
Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.