Bloomberg's Tax Returns Are Written In Rich-Person Code

While Barack Obama and Joe Biden release their complete tax returns to the public once a year, Mayor Bloomberg makes journalists cram into a room and view his redacted returns for less than three hours—no photocopies. The Mayor says that it's because he fears "disclosing sensitive corporate information to his competitors," but it also probably has something to do with all the fun income streams and expenditures the Times found yesterday, including his $98K in equestrian winnings, and his $44K cabinets that were later donated to charity.

Unlike the mere mortals Bloomberg oversees, the mayor's tax documents don't display losses and income as pedestrian "dollar amounts," but as a "dollar range represented by letters." So "A" means $1K-$5K, whereas "G" is $500K-"to the moon," as the Times puts it. So we can only guess what Bloomberg made last year, other than to ballpark it at $4 million "at the very least." But to someone who's been valued at $18 billion, $4 million is couch change. Even less is the amount Bloomberg paid in taxes: $1.5 million. Keep those taxes on the wealthy down!

The Mayor was also charitable, forgiving a $500K loan to his alma mater Johns Hopkins (probably for that really sweet beerpong table they got last year), donating his daughter's old Jeep Grand Cherokee, and giving the $44K cabinets to "a charity that works with formerly homeless New Yorkers."

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By Christopher Robbins in News on May 28, 2011 12:35 PM

Comments [rss]

GalBklyn

The Mayor says that it's because he fears "disclosing sensitive corporate information to his competitors,"
How special. How it forgets that he is on the public payroll and we have a right to that disclosure and he is obligated to give it.

canofpeas

It's hard to find all of the graft, corruption and payola in less than 3 hours, hence the time limit.

Bernie_Geotz_Squirrel_Luv

This is what's wrong with our society.
This guy thinks and acts like he's better than our President. Don't believe me? See his security detail.
There's just one thing, he'll never be President. Isn't it time for another Bloombag running for President rumor?
You enjoy those horsies now.

nicemarmot

That's bizarre. I get to do "rich person" taxes and they are complicated enough without that crap. I suppose Bloomie is so rich he has an entire company of accountants working for him.

And yes, the wealthy should pay more taxes. The taxes were just fine before Bush went and fucked around with them.

Guest

Nice shot at class warfare. Bloomberg is a douche, but he's a self-made douche and while he's the 13th richest person in the country, he's the 7th largest individual contributor to philanthropy in the US. This doesn't include the millions he gives "anonymously" to charity as well.

Sour grapes, Gothamist.

BBnet3000

Saying that the wealthiest New Yorker oughta pay remotely the same percentage in taxes as the rest of us is "class warfare"?

Id say defending that status quo is class warfare.

Guest

Then its fair to demand that the average Joe give as much as he does to charity, or at least volunteer for something.

unretrofiedforu

How is that? Are you aware of the difference? Charity is not analogous to the 'fair share' that that the top individuals and corporations are supposed to pay.

When they arrest and bring to trial those @ the top scamming the public as fast as they bring in someone for marijuana smoking then we can say we live in a equal/fair/free society.

BBnet3000

On my tax return I only get to write philanthropy off of my taxable income, I dont get to write it off my taxes themselves. I dont know why defenders of low tax rates for the ultra-wealthy always seem to think they should get to substitute one for the other.