Amazon Executive Chairman Jeff Bezos called on May 20 for zero federal income taxes on the bottom half of earners, arguing that their current contribution to the tax system is negligible and that eliminating their burden would ease financial pressure on working Americans.
Speaking to CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin on “Squawk Box,” Bezos noted that the bottom half of taxpayers pay just 3% of all federal income tax revenue, while the top 1% pay about 40%. “I don’t think it should be 3%,” Bezos said. “I think it should be zero.”
The bottom half of taxpayers had an adjusted gross income of nearly $54,000 in 2023, according to the Tax Foundation, citing the most recent IRS statistics. Bezos offered a concrete example: a healthcare worker in Queens earning $75,000 annually who pays roughly $12,000 in federal income taxes. “We shouldn’t be asking this nurse in Queens to send money to Washington,” Bezos said. “They should be sending her an apology. It really makes no sense.”
The income tax paid by lower earners represents “a small amount of money for the government,” Bezos argued, and he said he would “advocate” for such a change, though he did not outline specific legislative mechanisms. Bezos is the world’s fourth-richest person, with a net worth around $269 billion according to Forbes.
Bezos’ proposal echoes an existing legislative effort. Senator Cory Booker, D-N.J., introduced the Keep Your Pay Act on March 9, which calls for the first $75,000 of income to be tax-free for households filing joint tax returns, with proportional tax relief for single filers and heads of households. Booker framed the measure as relief for working people: “No income tax on the first $75,000 families earn would be a game changer for working people,” he stated when announcing the bill.
The proposal, however, faces a complicating reality: when counting refundable tax credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit, the bottom 40% of taxpayers already pay no income tax on average, according to Erica York, vice president of federal tax policy for the Tax Foundation. There were more than 76 million households in the bottom half in 2023, and they paid an average of $913 in federal income taxes that year.
Bezos’ comments come amid a broader debate over tax fairness and the K-shaped economy, where higher-income households continue to benefit from rising markets and wages while many lower- and middle-income consumers struggle with higher costs. Federal Reserve Bank of New York research shows that the expiration of pandemic-era subsidies for low- and middle-income households created a noticeable divergence in 2023, and sharply higher gasoline prices are exacerbating the divide. Lower earners spend a greater share of their incomes on gasoline relative to higher earners.
Bezos himself has faced scrutiny over his tax history. According to ProPublica’s 2021 investigation, Bezos paid zero federal income tax in 2007 and 2011, in part because investment losses outweighed reported income. Between 2014 and 2018, ProPublica reported, Bezos reported more than $4 billion in taxable income to the IRS, but the value of his wealth grew by an estimated $99 billion, largely from rising Amazon stock, on which he paid less than 1% in taxes.
Sources
- CNBC — Bezos’ May 20, 2026 interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin; tax statistics and context on the bottom half of earners
- Fortune — May 21, 2026 coverage of Bezos’ proposal, including the nurse example
- US Senator Cory Booker’s Office — Keep Your Pay Act announcement and details, March 9, 2026
- Tax Foundation — IRS statistics on income and tax burden by earner tier, cited in CNBC reporting
- ProPublica — 2021 investigation into billionaire tax payments, including Bezos’ historical tax filings
