The Everywhere Millionaire: Zidar and Zwick Reveal America's Hidden Wealth Class
Economists Owen Zidar from Berkeley and Eric Zwick from Harvard have published their book "The Everywhere Millionaire," which challenges conventional views of wealth in America. They argue that the wealthiest individuals are primarily pass-through business owners, not merely billionaires. The research indicates almost five million households possess over five million dollars, with more than two million exceeding ten million. Their findings reveal a significant decline in workers' income share, plummeting from sixty-five percent in 1980 to fifty-six percent in 2024. They suggest enhancing entrepreneurial networks and early-stage business support as strategies to counter rising economic inequality.
Key facts
- The book "The Everywhere Millionaire" is by Owen Zidar and Eric Zwick, published by Holt.
- There are nearly five million U.S. households with a net worth of at least five million dollars.
- More than two million decamillionaires are worth at least ten million dollars.
- Around sixty-five thousand centimillionaires are worth a hundred million dollars or more.
- The Tax Reform Act of 1986 created the pass-through tax structure.
- The share of national income going to workers fell from sixty-five per cent in 1980 to fifty-six per cent in 2024.
- Decamillionaires hold twelve per cent of congressional seats while being less than one per cent of the population.
- The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act allowed pass-through owners to deduct up to twenty per cent of qualified business income, costing an estimated four hundred and fifteen billion dollars over ten years.
Entities
Artists
- John Updike
- Harry Angstrom
- Nancy Mueller
- Dick Portillo
- Mike Ditka
- Ronald Reagan
- Barack Obama
- Donald Trump
- Ron Johnson
- Elon Musk
- Owen Zidar
- Eric Zwick
- Logan Roy
- Buddy Garrity
- Daniel LaRusso
Institutions
- Forbes
- Holt
- Berkeley
- Harvard
- Office of Tax Analysis
- Treasury
- I.R.S.
- Price Club
- Buc-ee's
- Bass Pro Shops
- McDonald's
- Ditka Dogs
- Chicago Bears
- National Association of Realtors
- Congress
- The New Yorker
Locations
- United States
- America
- California
- Chicago
- Texas