A Practical Remedy for Extreme Wealth Concentration in the United States
Proposed by ORANS | orans.org
America has a wealth problem. Not too much wealth — too little distribution of it. The Billionaire Program is our answer.
Extreme wealth concentration in the United States has reached a level that most economists, political scientists, and ordinary citizens recognize as deeply dangerous. A handful of individuals — roughly 800 people — control more wealth than the bottom 90 percent of Americans combined. This is not just an inequality problem. It is a democracy problem and a power problem.
When a small number of individuals can single-handedly fund political campaigns, purchase media outlets, shape regulatory outcomes, and exercise influence over entire industries, they function less like citizens and more like private sovereigns — what political theorists call oligarchs. The concentration of this kind of power in so few hands is a threat to the democratic governance and economic opportunity that America depends on.
The Billionaire Program is our answer. It is practical, constitutionally sound, and designed to work without taxation, without government seizure of assets, and without any hint of socialism or anti-capitalism. It is a narrowly targeted remedy for a specifically defined problem, modeled on the same legal tradition that gave us antitrust law, environmental regulation, and securities oversight.
| ~800 Americans with wealth above $1 billion |
50,000 Americans with net worth above $200 million |
90% of Americans whose combined wealth equals that of the top group |
WHAT IS THE BILLIONAIRE PROGRAM?
The Billionaire Program is a proposed federal law — the Billionaire Program Act (BPA) — that establishes a structured, voluntary system through which Americans with net worth above $200 million (called “Ultras”) can redistribute their excess wealth directly to other individual people.
There is no taxation. No transfer of wealth to government. No philanthropy to foundations or nonprofits. The wealth goes directly, person to person, as unconditional gifts to individual human beings chosen by the Ultra themselves.
The Billionaire Program is not socialism. It is not a wealth tax. It is capitalism with a single, narrowly targeted constraint — and a powerful incentive to comply.
An Ultra who participates keeps extraordinary wealth: up to $200 million in general net worth, their primary home of unlimited value, up to $200 million in their primary operating business, and the freedom to accumulate up to $300 million after completing the Program.
WHY IS EXTREME WEALTH CONCENTRATION A PROBLEM?
The case against extreme wealth concentration is not primarily about envy. It is about power.
It Corrupts Democratic Governance
Extreme individual wealth enables sustained, multibillion-dollar political spending that distorts regulatory outcomes, legislative priorities, and enforcement decisions in ways unavailable to ordinary citizens. When a single individual can outspend entire political parties, the formal equality of one person, one vote becomes increasingly nominal.
It Distorts Free Markets
Individuals with extreme net worth can simultaneously acquire controlling or dominant interests in multiple major industries, reducing competitive market dynamics and suppressing price competition. They can acquire media properties and communications platforms, giving single individuals disproportionate control over the information environment.
It Is Self-Perpetuating
At $200 million in net worth, even conservative investments generate $6 million or more per year in income — far more than any individual could spend on consumption. The wealth does not just sit there. It grows, automatically, compounding year after year. Technological change, including artificial intelligence, is making this worse, not better.
It Cannot Fix Itself
Voluntary philanthropic giving has not meaningfully reduced wealth concentration. Giving to foundations, universities, and nonprofits does not disperse power — it redirects it. The Billionaire Program requires unconditional, irrevocable gifts of actual wealth to actual people.
HOW DOES THE PROGRAM WORK?
Who It Applies To
The Program applies to U.S. citizens and permanent residents with net worth above $200 million. The Program is estimated to apply to approximately 50,000 individuals.
What Participants Must Do
A Billionaire Program Participant (BPP) must make gifts of their excess wealth to individual human beings at a minimum annual rate of 10 percent of the amount above the Wealth Cap, or $150 million, whichever is greater. Gifts must be unconditional, immediate, irrevocable, person-to-person only, and capped at $15 million per recipient.
The Donee Diversity Requirement
At least 60 percent of all gifts must go to individuals with no prior financial, employment, or familial relationship with the BPP within the past 10 years. This ensures genuine wealth democratization — not just redistribution among an existing power network.
What Participants Keep
- Homestead Exemption — primary residence of unlimited value, excluded from net worth calculation.
- One Entity Exemption — up to $200 million in equity in a single operating business excluded.
WHAT DO PARTICIPANTS RECEIVE?
Downside Protection Floor
A BPP is guaranteed their net worth will never fall below $100 million as a result of market fluctuations. The U.S. Treasury makes the BPP whole if qualifying losses push net worth below this Floor.
New Wealth Cap
After completing gifting obligations, a BPP may accumulate net worth up to $300 million — $100 million above the original Wealth Cap.
Federal Estate and Gift Tax Exemption
BPPs are permanently exempt from federal estate tax. Gifts made under the Program are exempt from federal gift tax.
National Benefactor Recognition
BPPs who complete their gifting obligations receive the designation of National Benefactor — conferred at a White House ceremony — with permanent listing in the National Benefactor Registry, naming rights on federal public works, a seat on the Federal Economic Advisory Council, and the Presidential Medal of Economic Citizenship.
Participation in the Billionaire Program is not a sacrifice. It is a trade: excess wealth that generates oligarchic power, in exchange for security, legacy, and a place in American history.
WHAT HAPPENS IF AN ULTRA REFUSES?
Step 1 — FWOA Assessment and Compliance Order: Annual net worth assessment; Compliance Order issued if above Wealth Cap and not enrolled.
Step 2 — Administrative Appeal: Full de novo review before the independent Administrative Appeals Tribunal.
Step 3 — Federal Court Review: De novo review in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Step 4 — Civil Penalties: 15% of excess net worth in year one, rising to 60% per year by year four.
Step 5 — Contempt of Court: Potential incarceration for willful defiance of a Confirmed Court Order.
Step 6 — Criminal Referral: DOJ prosecution for specific criminal acts — not for being wealthy, but for willful regulatory violations.
At Any Point — Voluntary Self-Exile: Permanent departure from the U.S. with full retention of wealth and citizenship rights.
The Program does not punish wealth. It creates an inescapable choice: participate, leave, or face the consequences of defying a lawful court order.
IS THE BILLIONAIRE PROGRAM CONSTITUTIONAL?
No Takings Clause Violation: No wealth passes to the government. Gifts flow exclusively to private individuals.
No Status Crime: Every criminal offense targets a specific voluntary act, not the status of being wealthy.
Commerce Clause Authority: Extreme wealth concentration distorts market competition, suppresses labor markets, and concentrates political influence — all documented effects on interstate commerce.
No Equal Protection Violation: Wealth is not a suspect classification. The BPA easily satisfies rational basis review.
For detailed constitutional analysis, see the Supreme Court Brief Defending the BPA.
JOIN THE MOVEMENT
The Billionaire Program is backed by a growing single-issue political movement: we will not vote for any candidate — of any party — who does not publicly support the Billionaire Program Act.
Share this proposal. Talk to your representatives. Make clear that your vote depends on where a candidate stands on this issue.
Read the full Billionaire Program Act | Supreme Court Brief | Long Term Impact Assessment | FAQ | Memo for Ultras | The Political Movement
ORANS is an all-volunteer organization that exists solely to promote ideas and find solutions to difficult problems.