On Sunday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) took to X to accuse Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk of paying “an effective tax rate of less than 3.3%”
Sanders Alleges Unfair Tax Practices
“Elon Musk, the wealthiest man alive, recently paid an effective tax rate of less than 3.3%. That is less than the average truck driver, nurse and teacher,” he wrote on social media.
Sanders added, “YES, we must demand the wealthy and corporations pay their fair share.”
The remarks come amid renewed debate over billionaire taxation in the U.S. Sanders’ office did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comments.
Musk’s Record Wealth And Tax Claims
According to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index, Musk’s net worth now stands at $637 billion, making him the richest person on the planet, up $17.3 billion so far this year.
Last year, he became the first individual to surpass $500 billion in net worth. In February 2026, Musk said he expects to pay roughly the same amount in taxes over his lifetime.
He took to X and said, “I will probably end up paying over $500 billion in taxes, inclusive of death.”
In 2021, Musk had said he would pay over $11 billion in taxes that year.
In the same year, a ProPublica investigation suggested that he and several other billionaires paid no federal income tax in 2018.
Elon Musk’s $1 Trillion Tesla Pay Plan
Last year, the Delaware Supreme Court restored Musk’s 2018 compensation plan at Tesla.
The EV giant’s board has also approved a performance-based compensation plan that could be worth up to $1 trillion over the next decade, marking the largest CEO pay package in U.S. corporate history.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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