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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s push to tax luxury second homes is drawing reactions from some of the country’s wealthiest business leaders, with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos saying Wednesday that the New York City mayor’s pied-à-terre tax proposal is “fine” while rejecting broader “tax-the-rich” arguments.
Speaking during CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Bezos weighed in on Mamdani’s proposal to raise taxes on second homes worth more than $5 million — a plan backed by Mamdani and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul as part of a broader affordability push.
“I think that the pied-à-terre tax is a fine thing for New York to do,” Bezos said.
But Bezos pushed back on Mamdani’s recent tactic of publicly targeting wealthy business figures, including Citadel CEO Ken Griffin.
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“This is an annual fee on luxury properties …. like for this penthouse, which hedge fund CEO Ken Griffin bought for $238 million,” Mamdani said in a recent social media video outside Griffin’s Manhattan residence.
“Ken Griffin isn’t a villain. He hasn’t hurt anybody; he’s not hurting New York. In fact, quite the opposite,” Bezos said Wednesday.
The exchange marks the latest sign that Mamdani’s tax proposals targeting wealthy business leaders are becoming a broader national political flashpoint, drawing attention from Wall Street executives, billionaires and President Donald Trump.
Bezos also used the interview to argue that lower-income Americans should pay no federal income taxes, saying the current tax structure unfairly burdens struggling workers while generating relatively little government revenue.
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“When people are starting out, and they’re struggling, stop taxing them. We don’t need it. We live in the wealthiest country in the world,” Bezos said.
“We shouldn’t be asking this nurse in Queens to send money to Washington,” Bezos added. “They should be sending her an apology. It really makes no sense.”
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMZN | AMAZON.COM INC. | 265.01 | +5.67 | +2.19% |
The billionaire said the top 1% of taxpayers currently pay roughly 40% of federal income taxes while the bottom half contribute about 3%, citing figures consistent with Tax Foundation and IRS analysis.
Still, Bezos argued that simply raising taxes on billionaires would not materially improve conditions for working-class Americans.
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“You could double the taxes I pay, and it’s not going to help that teacher in Queens. I promise you,” Bezos said.
A representative for Bezos did not immediately respond to FOX Business’ request for comment.
