New York Millionaire’s Club Says They’re Happy Paying Higher Taxes Under Mamdani

Sigh. It’s all so exhausting. Not all of New York’s wealthiest residents are sounding alarms over Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s plan to raise taxes on high earners. In fact, a small group of millionaires says the backlash is a bit over the top, according to Bloomberg.

Members of the Patriotic Millionaires — including filmmaker Abigail Disney, granddaughter of Roy O. Disney of The Walt Disney Company — argue the rich can easily afford to contribute more if it helps fund things like schools, transit and child care.

“I’ve gotten tax cut after tax cut after tax cut. And I never needed any of them,” Disney said, backing Mamdani’s proposed 2-percentage-point income-tax surcharge on millionaires. “All these things have fallen out from under the middle class — an education system that works, public transportation, infrastructure, health care.”

Bloomberg writes that the mayor has floated several ways to boost city revenue, including higher income taxes for people earning more than $1 million and an increase in the top corporate tax rate. Critics, including hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman, say the approach risks driving wealthy residents and companies to lower-tax states like Florida or Texas — a concern echoed by Kathy Hochul and business groups.

Supporters counter that the idea of a billionaire stampede out of Manhattan is exaggerated. “I’m certainly not going to move because of higher taxes. That’s ridiculous,” said Morris Pearl, a former executive at BlackRock. “I live where I want to live, and so do most rich people.”

New York isn’t short on potential taxpayers. Nearly 35,000 city residents earned at least $1 million in 2023, and the top 1% already generate roughly two-fifths of the city’s income-tax revenue, according to the New York City Independent Budget Office. For some wealthy advocates, that just proves the point: the people with the deepest pockets can afford to keep the city running.

Pearl also notes how easily the ultra-wealthy can sidestep income taxes altogether. “When you’re already rich, you don’t need income,” he said. “If you don’t have income, you don’t pay income taxes.”