Conversations with two of the CCC’s signers made me aware of an emerging movement in America–-“enoughness.” Scott Ellis created this 8-minute video that does a great job of telling the “enough” story–what standard should we have for determining when people have enough money. Spencer Sherman has a financial consultancy that addresses the “enough” question head on with his clients–how much do you need to feel secure. And Yes! Magazine has done a complete issue on “Enough for Everyone” which explores how moving resources from those who have more than enough to create a society where everyone has enough.
Bob Lord, a fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies and tax counsel to Americans for Tax Fairness recently pointed out in a piece on Common Dreams that the collective wealth of America’s seven wealthiest people (all white men)– Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Sergey Brin and Larry Ellison–probably passed the trillion-dollar mark this week. And they didn’t even need Warren Buffett’s $100 billion to pass that threshold! When is America going to say “enough already?!”
It’s not just a billionaire problem. Ultra-high net worth individuals, with assets above $30 million each, represent 0.1% of all U.S. households and have a combined net worth in excess of $12 trillion. When I think about what could make America great again, I imagine a 25% tax on just the wealth above that $30 million per household, which would raise about $2 trillion, paying for just about all of the $3.5 trillion Biden human infrastructure (education, paid family leave, child care and clean energy) program (Congress seems to agree that they can live with a $1.5 trillion deficit).
How painful would this wealth tax be for billionaires–it’s less than their profits during the pandemic. How about for those with a $100 million whose wealth would be knocked down to $87.5 million (remember, the first $30 million is not subject to the tax)? Should be enough. And what would the 0.1% get out of this beside all the public investment in the Biden plan–a prospering economy, a sense of fairness, and the avoidance of civil unrest. Here’s the kicker: it is just being reported that research shows the benefits come “without a notable loss in happiness among the wealthiest citizens.”
What should be obvious to everyone is that the philanthropic community is not doing ENOUGH to address the problem of excessiveness. First off, there is virtually no funding of nonprofits that work to reduce inequality, to tax the rich, to raise revenue to pay for the programs that we say we want. Even MacKenzie Scott, who has raised the bar for billionaire giving, bemoaned the fact “that a civilization this imbalanced is not only unjust, but also unstable” and yet does not seem to have made any grants that directly address the issue of excessive wealth.
Wealth inequality is not confined to individuals, it is equally unjust in the foundation world. The top 0.5% of non-operating private foundations, about 500 of 98,000, each with more than $200 million in assets, account for approximately 55% of all foundation assets; and they yield extraordinary power on behalf of their rich benefactors. Their $500 billion of endowment influences, if not determines, for example, our educational and health priorities; what art we see in museums; and what policies are researched and advocated. While efforts by some foundations to disperse grantmaking authority to those most affected are to be commended, we all know where the buck stops. The only true way to reduce power is to give the money away, really away. What makes hoarding by large foundations even more outrageous is that it’s not even their money, it is largely taxpayer money. It’s not just the huge charitable deduction that the donor received up front, it’s the investment growth of that money year after year that goes virtually untaxed.
Just like we might address individual wealth inequality with a 25% tax, we could address foundation wealth inequality with a 10% payout requirement on assets in excess of $100 million. If you thought there was no such thing as a free lunch, think again. The taxpayers have already paid the foundation and its donors to give the money away and the additional $30 billion will provide sorely needed support for the nonprofit community. And again, here’s the kicker: with the possible exception of a foundation’s overpaid financial managers, there would likely be a notable gain of happiness by everyone connected with giving that money away (and receiving it).
But wait a minute–taxing excess wealth of individuals and foundations for the common good that would required by legislation and the Crisis Charitable Commitment is a voluntary effort. Voluntary and legislative efforts can complement one another and I support both. One-hundred-plus CCC signers have shown both foundations and wealthy individuals the way forward, voluntarily. They can answer the question “are you giving enough” with a “yes.” We need a significant number of the remaining 150,000 0.1%ers, both individuals and foundations, to join in doing the responsible and reasonable thing–meet the Charitable Standard. To fears of dipping into excessive wealth or endowments, to headlines of major gifts that are mostly paid for by taxpayers, to doing good while not addressing systemic inequality, let’s all say “enough already!”