With top city officials talking about tax hikes on the rich again, Mayor Bloomberg yesterday pointed to France as an example of what can happen when the wealthy are walloped by the government.
“You saw in France people moving out when they raised the tax rates,” the mayor said. “Whether you like it or not, the wealthy are mobile.”
French President Francois Hollande set off a stampede of high-earners this year with a proposal to sock those making $1.3 million or more with a staggering 75 percent marginal tax rate.
Realtors in lower-taxed jurisdictions, such as Belgium and Britain, quickly reported being swamped by calls from French citizens looking to relocate.
Bernard Arnault, the wealthiest man in France, applied for Belgian citizenship.
Here, Public Advocate and mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio is pushing an idea to raise taxes on those pulling in $500,000 a year or more to generate about $500 million.
By French standards, de Blasio’s proposal is modest. Someone making $1 million would pay $2,120 more.
But Bloomberg argued there’s no telling what tax level will trigger the wealthy to pack up.
He said just 500 super-wealthy residents account for 15 percent of the city’s tax collections.