A new report claimed several billionaires and other ultra-wealthy people got government stimulus funds during the spring of 2020. That is despite the government allocated the payouts were intended to assist low and middle-income families to weather the pandemic’s economic crisis.
According to ProPublica, billionaires got government payments as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act because they were qualified for the automatically dispensed funds after declaring their taxable income as business costs.
Millions of Americans are about to receive another form of payments. (Photo: Pexels)
Stimulus Check: Billionaires Received Money from IRS
ProPublica referenced its trove of IRS data on hundreds of the nation’s richest individuals. Around 270 affluent people got payouts in the first round of stimulus checks approved by legislators in 2020, despite having a combined income of $5.7 billion.
The said report, citing IRS records, said the billionaires who allegedly received stimulus checks are George Soros, worth an estimated $8.6 billion. Renco Group founder Ira Rennert, who Forbes estimates is worth $3.7 billion, also got a stimulus check. Through Soros told ProPublica that he and his son both returned the money they received.
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Billionaires Might Have Taken Advantage Of Tax Loopholes To Get Stimulus Checks
US Sun said people could use deductions on such a large scale that they were eligible for stimulus cheques. ProPublica noted that the rich taxpayers who received stimulus cheques did so because their income fell below the government’s income threshold.
In reality, after using company write-offs to wipe out their profits, the billionaires reported much less taxable income — even hundreds of millions less. ProPublica added that the wealthiest taxpayers had negative net earnings on their tax forms.
Did The Rich Only Declared Half Of The Tale?
The vast majority of individuals earn their money via salaries and take advantage of tax breaks wherever possible. However, the income of the ultrawealthy as reported on their taxes only conveys half of the tale. According to a study by ProPublica earlier this year, the richest taxpayers have a lot of freedom in when and how they receive taxable income. This enables them to pay a small percentage of their wealth gain in taxes. Wages are to be avoided by the ultra-rich, who bear the burden of income tax and payroll taxes.
For the 270 wealthy stimulus check recipients uncovered by ProPublica, wages seldom made up a major amount of their income. Only $82 million, or 1.4 percent, of the group’s $5.7 billion in revenue was earned in the form of compensation.
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