Billionaires income tax could pose challenges for Democrats as they search for ways to pay for their social spending agenda

As Democrats work to figure out how to raise revenues to pay for their social spending agenda, a new tax on billionaires has emerged as a serious consideration, but it is already receiving opposition from Republicans and skepticism from some Democrats and tax policy experts. 

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden of Oregon said he's set to unveil his billionaires income tax as early as Tuesday night. The proposal would apply to the roughly 700 wealthiest Americans: those worth $1 billion or who have an annual income of $100 million for at least three straight years. 

"This is a billionaires income tax, it's not a wealth tax. It's a billionaires income tax," Wyden said Tuesday. "And we expect that these billionaires and there's something like less than 800, who made close to $2 trillion during the pandemic, would pay a tax, their fair share, every year just like nurses and firefighters."