This paper discusses the progressive taxation of household wealth. We first discuss what wealth is, how it is distributed, and how much revenue a progressive wealth tax could generate in the United States. We try to reconcile discrepancies across wealth data sources. Second, we discuss the role a wealth tax can play to increase the overall progressivity of the U.S. tax system. Third, we discuss the empirical evidence on wealth tax avoidance and evasion as well as tax enforcement policies. We summarize the key elements needed to make a U.S. wealth tax work in light of the experience of other countries. Fourth, we discuss the real economic effects of wealth taxation on inequality, the capital stock, and economic activity. Fifth, we present a simple tractable model of the taxation of billionaires' wealth that can be applied to the Forbes list of the four hundred richest Americans since 1982 to illustrate the long-run effects of concrete wealth tax proposals on top fortunes.

本文讨论了对家庭财富的累进税制。我们首先讨论什么是财富，如何分配以及在美国累进的财富税可以产生多少收入。我们尝试调和财富数据源之间的差异。其次，我们讨论了财富税在提高美国税收体系总体进步性方面所起的作用。第三，我们讨论了避免和逃避财富税以及税收执行政策的经验证据。根据其他国家的经验，我们总结了开展美国财富税所需的关​​键要素。第四，我们讨论财富税对不平等，资本存量和经济活动的实际经济影响。第五，我们提出了一个简单易处理的亿万富翁征税模型