Jeff Bezos pitches major US tax overhaul: ‘Bottom half should pay 0%, not 3%’

Jeff Bezos on Wednesday called for eliminating federal income taxes for the bottom half of earners, saying he would “advocate” for the proposal, but did not outline how lawmakers could implement such a sweeping tax overhaul. As CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin informed that ‘top 1% of taxpayers pay about 40% of all the tax revenue, and the bottom half pay 3%’, the Amazon founder said, “I think it should be zero, and not 3%.” Bezos asserted that the income tax paid by lower earners is “a small amount of money for the government.” Exemplifying his proposal, Bezos pointed to a healthcare worker earning $75,000 a year. He said, “We shouldn’t be asking this nurse in Queens to send money to Washington. They should be sending her an apology. It really makes no sense.” The CNBC report said that although the bottom half of earners pay lower taxes, the real challenge is addressing high inflation and broader concerns about affordability. Federal Reserve Bank research shows that the expiration of pandemic-era subsidies for low- and middle-income households created a noticeable divergence in 2023. More recently, sharply higher gasoline prices amid the Iran war are exacerbating the K-shape, researchers found. Lower earners spend a larger share of their income on gasoline relative to higher earners, the CNBC report said. “I think what’s going on is that it’s kind of a tale of two economies, so you have a bunch of people in this country who are doing really well, but you also have a bunch of people in this country who are struggling,” Bezos said. The bottom half of taxpayers had an adjusted gross income of nearly $54,000 in 2023, according to the Tax Foundation, as per the most recent IRS statistics. By contrast, households in the top 1% earned at least $676,000 of income that year. The average income tax rate in 2023 was 14.1%, according to a Tax Foundation analysis of IRS data. According to the IRS data, the top 1% of taxpayers paid an average rate of 26.3%, seven times higher than the 3.7% average rate paid by the bottom half of taxpayers. There were more than 76 million households in the bottom half in 2023, according to the Tax Foundation. They paid an average of $913 in federal income taxes that year, the report said. Bezos' (who is the world’s fourth-richest person, with a net worth of around $269 billion according to Forbes) comments come at a time when several Democratic states explore higher taxes on the wealthy. Several US lawmakers are also pushing for tax relief aimed at lower-income Americans. Among them, Cory Booker has introduced the ‘Keep Your Pay Act,' which proposes making the first $75,000 of income tax-free for couples filing jointly, with proportional tax relief for single filers and heads of households. “No income tax on the first $75,000 families earn would be a game changer for working people,” said Booker in a statement earlier this year. “This tax cut would immediately put more money in your pocket every month to deal with the high price of everyday expenses, an unexpected emergency, or to plan for the future.” (With inputs from CNBC) Sanchari Ghosh is an Assistant Editor at Mint with over 12 years of experience in journalism, specialising in personal finance, DLT & DeFi, geopolitics and foreign policy, with a particular emphasis on how these areas intersect. <br> She writes extensively about how money works in everyday life—helping readers navigate personal finance decisions. <br> As AI reshapes investing behaviour, capital is increasingly flowing into decentralized ecosystems, redefining how assets are managed, traded, and valued. She focuses on explaining how money flows within frameworks like Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), DeFi protocols, and crypto markets—while also exploring what the future of money could look like in a trustless, programmable financial world. <br> She also focuses on immigration-related issues, simplifying complex topics around visas, passports, overseas financial planning, and the many practical challenges Indians face while moving or living abroad. <br> Alongside personal finance, Sanchari has a strong understanding of international politics, contemporary and historical conflicts, and global state decisions. She closely tracks how geopolitical developments influence economies, markets, and individual financial choices, bringing together finance and global affairs in her reporting. <br> She began her career as a desk editor, which gave her a strong foundation in news writing. Over time, her interest naturally shifted toward personal finance. Before joining Mint in 2020, she worked DNA, The Times of India, Outlook Money, BloombergQuint, and ETMoney. At Mint, she got an opportunity to expand her coverage to include immigration and geopolitical developments while continuing to closely follow personal finance trends and market movements.As a journalist, she is committed to accuracy, intellectual rigour, and fairness. <br> She is an English Major and her work took her across cities including Delhi, Mumbai, and Pune. Living independently from an early age gave her firsthand experience in managing life and money on her own. This practical exposure sparked her strong interest in personal finance. <br> Outside the newsroom, Sanchari is a sports enthusiast who regularly plays lawn tennis and squash. In her younger years, she was also a national-level badminton player. Catch all the Instant Personal Loan, Business Loan, Business News, Money news, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. 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