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America has had a form of wealth tax for a very long time now, but oddly only applied to real estate (property tax), this isn't as Weird as it sounds, nor is it

• ashtonkem 6y ago
  I agree that property taxes are wealth taxes, but they’re particularly pernicious ones. The big issue is that schools are primarily funded by property taxes, which creates a system by which the children of rich Americans get better educations than poor children, reinforcing existing economic positions. That being said, a state level wealth tax would go a long way to smooth these things out compared to property taxes.
  • wahern 6y ago
    > The big issue is that schools are primarily funded by property taxes, which creates a system by which the children of rich Americans get better educations than poor children, reinforcing existing economic positions. This funding disparity isn't the case in California, yet it sees similar outcomes in terms of educational achievement.
• SamReidHughes 6y ago
  Property taxes on land are consumption taxes.
• bawolff 6y ago
  Its difficult to hide a house. It is relatively easy to value a house compared to some assets. There are also more direct arguments for property taxes - in many places they are used to fund municipal services so its a pretty direct way of getting the people who benefit from those services to pay for them. There is also the social benefit of ususlly space is at a premium in cities, so property taxes discourage people from hoarding space they are not using.