scalzi.com profile picture

John Scalzi @scalzi.com

  1. The extra marginal tax rate will affect millionaires' daily lives almost not at all, which is why in reality none of them would leave the state.

  2. When you have this much money, your accountant/financial folks are already making you as tax efficient as possible.

www.wbur.org/news/2025/04...

Despite previous concerns, Massachusetts' "millionaire's tax" hasn't seemed to deter high-earners from continuing to live here, according to a new study from the Institute for Policy Studies.

Not fleeing: New report shows more wealthy residents in Mass., 2 years into 'millionaire's tax'

Despite previous concerns, Massachusetts' "millionaire's tax" hasn't seemed to deter high-earners from continuing to live here, according to a new study from the Institute for Policy Studies.

Replies

  1. mrtoads.bsky.social profile picture

    @mrtoads.bsky.social

    The US used to have a top marginal tax rate of near 100 percent. The millionaires then didn’t flee the country; they lived like emperors. Now they have even more money. Taking a few pennies away will only hurt them emotionally.

    0
  4. seeyouinnj.bsky.social profile picture

    Chris Fredda 🩷💜💙 @seeyouinnj.bsky.social

    They already live in places with comparatively high taxes, because those are the places they like and that have the stuff they want instead of cheap places with no taxes in largely empty regions. They’re already paying a premium for it so having to pay slightly more won’t make them want to leave it

    4
  5. kelleywillis.bsky.social profile picture

    @kelleywillis.bsky.social

    I remarked, years ago, that if every one of the billionaire Walton (Wal-mart) kids had to give back 90% of their wealth, they’d each…still be billionaires.

    0
  6. existentiallyme.bsky.social profile picture

    Roger @existentiallyme.bsky.social

    Rich Americans are not moving to backwards shithole red states. Tax law has always been the core of government driving American life. We need to throw out all the loopholes and dodges and go to a graduated flat tax based on income with no differentiation on whether it's earned or unearned income.

    0
  9. larunasoftpaw.bsky.social profile picture

    Laruna Softpaw @larunasoftpaw.bsky.social

    My extremist position at the moment is for states to stop paying federal taxes until this administration is brought to heel. Theyre illegally canceling our grants and sucking up our Medicare to go to billionaires. It's extreme but we're in extreme times.

    0
  10. beardedpip.bsky.social profile picture

    Bearded Pip @beardedpip.bsky.social

    The biggest negative impact is that certain professional athletes (and a certain type of pundit loves this angle) won't sign for Boston teams because of the taxes.

    If that's as bad as it gets, then this is a huge win and I am glad I voted in favor of it.

    0
  11. sunsetdenizen.bsky.social profile picture

    Sunset Dweller @sunsetdenizen.bsky.social

    One perk of being filthy rich is getting to live wherever you want. They all love where they live or they wouldn't be there. They aren't moving just to save a few bucks

    0
  12. ralphb3rd.bsky.social profile picture

    Random Ralph @ralphb3rd.bsky.social

    Taxes and the American Dream aside, does anybody really understand how rich rich really is: Let's say you're under 35. Your net worth is $45K. A candy bar costs $2. That's .0044% Let say you're a billionaire. That percentage of your net worth is a new Lexus.

    1
  17. scalzi.com profile picture

    John Scalzi @scalzi.com

    So much of tax outrage is manufactured by the rich, messaging people who a) don't understand how marginal tax rates, b) generally won't ever be near the upper end of those tax rates in their lives.

    19

  18. @fsherman.bsky.social

    I remember when lots of people said they'd Go Galt and cut back their income if Obama won to stop him sucking out their wealth with taxes. IIRC, none of them did.

    0

  19. Hap @hapchem.bsky.social

    Maybe wealthy people live in those places because the increased cost of living and taxation is more than compensated by the availability of talent and the opportunity cost of being around lots of people (and maybe lots of smart people).

    2
  20. besttrousers.bsky.social profile picture

    Matt Darling @besttrousers.bsky.social

    The methodology in the study doesn't seem particularly reliable. The reason the population of millionaires has expanded is inflation, the study is not informative about the effect of taxes.

    0
  21. vjy1.bsky.social profile picture

    vy @vjy1.bsky.social

    Particularly with new Republican tax cuts for the ultra-rich, states should be able to capture that revenue.

    0
  22. vox-dei.bsky.social profile picture

    Ben Taylor @vox-dei.bsky.social

    The UK is the same. Every time there are rumours of a tax hike on the wealthy suddenly there are a zillion articles about how they're going to leave and take their tax with them. They never do, at least in any significant numbers.

    2
  24. spidur.bsky.social profile picture

    Spidur @spidur.bsky.social

    The flip side is where they congratulate themselves on being good to poor people, like the "no tax on overtime," which is not what most think it is. The deduction is only on the excess over regular wage - i.e., the "half" or "double." So if you get $10/hr and work OT at $15, you only deduct $5.

    1
  26. esther221.bsky.social profile picture

    ESTHER @esther221.bsky.social

    Exactly — for millionaires, tax planning is about strategy, not drastic lifestyle changes.High marginal tax rates don’t push millionaires out as much as people think. It’s mostly about smart financial management.

    0
  27. tupejoon.bsky.social profile picture

    MAHMOUD SALAMA|🇵🇸 @tupejoon.bsky.social

    Hello my friend john 💙 I am writing to you full of hope that you will not leave me alone and help me in promoting my pinned post. Please don't forget us from your kindness.🍉✊

    0
  28. vidmaster.net profile picture

    Vidmaster @vidmaster.net

    Hell, I make decent money in tech but way way less than $1M, and I don’t think I’d be affected much (if at all) by 4%. Tax the rich.

    0
  30. arlecchinoswart.bsky.social profile picture

    James Phillips @arlecchinoswart.bsky.social

    It doesn’t matter where you live. You’re taxed on where you make your money. If you own offices in Boston you can live wherever you want. You’ll still need to pay taxes on that Boston income.

    0
  31. vixolux.bsky.social profile picture

    Vixolux @vixolux.bsky.social

    It's expensive being poor. You pay fees for late payments, fees for even keeping money in a bank (because you don't hit a quota) and your expenses are a substantial portion of your income.

    The rich do not have any of these problems.

    1
  34. pixelsand8.bsky.social profile picture

    mike g @pixelsand8.bsky.social

    Thing is, Boston is expensive for a reason, people want to live here cause there's like, shit to do. Especially if you're rich. None of them were ever going to bumblefuck, New Hampshire, that was the easiest bluff to call.

    0
  36. frisson310.bsky.social profile picture

    @frisson310.bsky.social

    There were plenty of very happy rich people living in America when the tax rate was way higher. They weren’t billionaires and EVERYONE was better off.

    0
  37. runner9.bsky.social profile picture

    @runner9.bsky.social

    Lower middle class is still being crushed in these areas. $2,000-$3,000 rents despite endless condos built in every corner, and $400-$800 a month in Obamacare plans for less&less coverage every year. $15/hour was ok in 2012 when the movement started, not any more. No prospect of improvement onward.

    1
  38. gmerklin.bsky.social profile picture

    Greg Merklin @gmerklin.bsky.social

    If you have a seven-figure income, a townhouse in the Back Bay, a summer place on an island off the coast of Maine or in the Berkshires, and play golf at The Country Club—you’re likely not going to pack it all in and move to Little Rock, taxes be damned.

    0
  42. rickriordan.bsky.social profile picture

    Rick Riordan @rickriordan.bsky.social

    We were affected by this tax. Now the state is using that money to fund school lunches for students and free community college for residents. I think that's awesome, and a good investment in the future.

    6
  43. bonnyd.bsky.social profile picture

    @bonnyd.bsky.social

    They probably would not notice the number until an accountant told it to them.

    0
  44. avatrix.bsky.social profile picture

    Alex C @avatrix.bsky.social

    As a mass resident, that taxes generated have been very beneficial to us. Paid for ALL kids to have school lunches every day, for example. And led to a budget surplus multiple times!

    1
  45. scotthoots.bsky.social profile picture

    @scotthoots.bsky.social

    The whole thing about the wealthy fleeing higher tax rates states has been debunked for years because they use the services like roads, water, etc. and places that tax higher rates have better services. They aren't going to leave for a place that will make their lives harder.

    0
  48. hal-incandenzaa.bsky.social profile picture

    Hal Incandenza @hal-incandenzaa.bsky.social

    Damn. I was hoping it would drive them out. The problem with these people of excess is that they are exceedingly wasteful. They tear down and build monstrosities. They create demand in the wrong places. And they take (from society) much more than they give.

    0
  49. ronzucker.bsky.social profile picture

    (((Ron Zucker))) @ronzucker.bsky.social

    Moreover, most rich people got rich through a business. Moving would require moving the business, which is expensive and you're likely to lose a hunk of valuable employees. The question this tax asks is whether you'd rather pay less taxes or make more money. The answer is obvious.

    0
  50. niborris.bsky.social profile picture

    Steve Haley @niborris.bsky.social

    I do wish the headline was a bit more clear this is not "people with a net worth of over $1Million" which is not really "clearly has tax people" money, but "people making $1Million/year income" which means if they don't have tax people, they don't care how much they pay in taxes.

    0
  52. righteoushazard.bsky.social profile picture

    Righteous Hazard @righteoushazard.bsky.social

    Scalzi is one of the good ones.

    We should refrain from eating him when the day arrives, or at worst, we should make him into a Burrito.

    It is how he would want it, I think

    1
  54. ghostatlas3.bsky.social profile picture

    @ghostatlas3.bsky.social

    A reward of being rich is freedom to live where you want and not have to obsessively X out a calendar to make sure you spend 181 days a year in Puerto Rico.

    0
  55. pratchet.bsky.social profile picture

    Pratchet @pratchet.bsky.social

    More working class people leave the city because it is unaffordable and this will compound when the 300000 people in NYC on snap will be forced to eat dirt. Republicans are economic terrorists.

    0
  56. violaleanne.bsky.social profile picture

    Leanne @violaleanne.bsky.social

    I'm pretty poor and get nailed with the self-employment tax rate, but I don't mind my taxes going to things like roads ('cause I drive on 'em) and schools, though I have no kids - I mean, dunno about anyone else but I do NOT want to live with a bunch of uneducated people. Oh wait... 🤪

    0
  57. dpengelly.bsky.social profile picture

    @dpengelly.bsky.social

    Businesses and the rich will pay taxes for a place where it is stable and safe for them and their employees.

    Think about it, they like to plan and forecast; predictability and stability allow them to do that.

    Chaos is abhorrent to good business practices.

    0
  59. baybeebecca.bsky.social profile picture

    Bay-🐝Becca @baybeebecca.bsky.social

    my best friend just moved to MA from TX, her mom has better medical treatment and her kids get an education in public school that you can’t even buy in TX. I think taxes our worse, we get nothing in return. It’s all going to Abbott and his donors. It’s a theft ring with extra steps.

    0
  61. assessor1.bsky.social profile picture

    @assessor1.bsky.social

    Uhmn,…where they gonna run to? Texas? Florida? If so, go and stay! Go live in the assholes of the US! What else are places that accept Fascist third-world type leaders? Leaders that seek to foster and foist their dysfunction on the rest of US. They suck! MAGA Making America Greedy(as shit)Again 👊🇺🇸🤑

    0
  62. lexibee69.bsky.social profile picture

    Lexi Bee (360-500 rent) @lexibee69.bsky.social

    Id like to know what it is like to be so detached from reality as these folk. It's like when the news interviewed a guy who thought houses were easy to get if yoou worked for minimum wage.

    0
  63. waybeyondsoccermom.bsky.social profile picture

    WayBeyondSoccerMom @waybeyondsoccermom.bsky.social

    Massachusetts is also only one of four states whose states's insurance commission doesn't allow your credit score to influence your auto insurance premium. The others are: New Mexico, California, and Hawaii.

    0
  65. bruuklin.bsky.social profile picture

    Bruuklin @bruuklin.bsky.social

    The same holds for NYC. The freak out that Mamdani would drive millionaires to the bridges and tunnels is nonsense.

    0
  67. maximummary.bsky.social profile picture

    Maximum Mary @maximummary.bsky.social

    Also, a lot of these wealthy people run businesses tied to a specific location, car dealerships, factories, and the like. Most of the wealthy are not nomads with laptops.

    0
  68. beebeeks.bsky.social profile picture

    Bee @beebeeks.bsky.social

    Mass also has some of the best schools, highest standards of living and best communities in the countries. That’s worth so much.

    0
  70. biknmusicmama.bsky.social profile picture

    Elle @biknmusicmama.bsky.social

    Which is why it was SO important for our gov and both houses of legislature to pass a tax cut for these people as their first order of business, in response to the millionaire’s tax the voters passed /sarcasm

    0
  75. piusonyaga.bsky.social profile picture

    🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ PIUSON YAGA🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @piusonyaga.bsky.social

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