Everywhere you look across the country, they're aiming to grab more taxpayer cash.
The polls say Democrats are likely to do well in the November elections, so it's worth noting what they say they'll do with more power. Believe it or not, they are showing across the country that they want to raise taxes.
A buoyant stock market and strong capital gains have turbocharged tax revenue in most states, especially those with progressive tax systems. Total tax revenue across the 50 states increased 43% between 2019 and 2025, twice as much as inflation. But Democrats and their public union allies want more -- much more.
- Start in California, where a Service Employees International Union affiliate is seeking to qualify a referendum for the November ballot to impose a 5% wealth tax on residents with more than $1 billion in net worth. This includes stocks, illiquid stakes in private companies, artwork, patents and family trusts.
- The tax would even be levied on illusory assets. Silicon Valley investors who own super-voting shares in a company would be taxed on their voting rights, rather than the value of their shares. A startup founder could be required to pay tax on the 25% of voting rights he controls even if he only owns 5% of shares.
- Gov. Gavin Newsom opposes the initiative because he says it could drive away billionaires and result in less income-tax revenue. At least six billionaires have already left. But Mr. Newsom has said he's open to a "national conversation" about a wealth tax. Tom Steyer, a leading candidate in the race to replace Mr. Newsom this November, has endorsed the wealth tax initiative. Democratic legislators have also introduced proposals for a wealth tax.
- Washington state was once a zero-income tax refuge for entrepreneurs like Amazon's Jeff Bezos and Starbucks' Howard Schultz. No longer. Democrats have passed a 9.9% income tax on millionaires, despite a state constitutional ban on a graduated income tax.
- The slippery slope to an income tax began in 2022 when Democrats enacted a 7% tax on capital gains exceeding $250,000, disguised as an "excise tax" on asset sales. Last year they raised the rate to 9.9% on capital gains over $1 million. Now they're extending the 9.9% tax to all forms of income. Democrats also included a sneaky provision that only adjusts for inflation every other year.
- In the past few years, Democrats in Olympia have raised taxes on real-estate sales, business gross receipts and estates (to 35% from 20%), while extending the state's 6.5% sales tax to business services.
- The tax-and-spend ratchet is getting worse in New York, where Albany Democrats are proposing income, corporate and real-estate tax hikes to fund more welfare and public-worker benefits. The Assembly wants to raise the top state-and-local income-tax rate to 15.9% from 14.8%, and the Senate to 15.3%. Democrats also want to raise the state top corporate tax rate and let New York City raise its rate. That would make the top business tax rate nearly 20% in New York City.
- But that isn't enough for New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani. He wants to increase the estate tax to 50% from 16% and impose a two percentage-point city tax surcharge on incomes over $1 million. That would raise the top individual rate in the city to 16.8%. If Democrats in Albany don't deliver, he's threatening an across-the-board 9.5% property tax hike.
- To keep up with its blue-state neighbors, Rhode Island Democratic Gov. Dan McKee is pushing a 3% surtax on income over $1 million, which would raise the state's top rate to 8.99%. This would eliminate one of Rhode Island's few advantages over neighboring Massachusetts, which boasts a 9% top rate on millionaires.
- In Virginia, Democratic lawmakers want to use their newly gained control of the governorship to wallop high earners. One bill would impose a 3.8% tax on investment income of taxpayers making more than $500,000, which would raise the top rate to 9.55%. Another bill would create two new individual top tax brackets of 8% (starting at $600,000) and 10% (more than $1 million). Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger campaigned last year as a moderate, but will she buck the leftists in her legislature?
- Then there's Congress. Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen wants to add three new tax brackets on high earners, which would raise the top federal rate by 12 percentage points to 49%. New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker is proposing to raise the current 35% tax bracket (starting at $256,226 for individuals) to 41% and the 37% bracket ($640,601) to 43%.
- The duo are combining this with new tax exemptions for lower-wage workers plus increased refundable tax credits to redistribute more income. But don't be fooled. This is a gigantic tax increase on small businesses that pay taxes at the individual rate -- $1.01 trillion over 10 years for the Booker proposal, according to the Tax Foundation.
Democrats were supposed to have learned something from their 2024 defeat, but on fiscal policy the party is moving further left. The policies of Bernie Sanders are becoming party orthodoxy.