‘Pa’ Florida me voy’

There is a variation of that old Lecuona song: It’s from “Para Vigo me voy” to “Pa’ Florida me voy.” They always say “follow the money” for scandals or just about anything else.  Well, let’s follow this money going out. 

This is the story

New York has lost 10 billionaires in the last four years — three of whom fled to Florida — leaving tax coffers lighter by tens of millions of dollars annually.

This year 62 New York-based billionaires appeared on the Forbes 400 list of the wealthiest Americans, compared to 72 in 2019 and 65 last year. 

Investor and Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris, whose net worth was valued at $5.7 billion last year, has grown his fortune to $6.9 billion — but he packed his bags for Florida.

Other billionaires who have relocated from Gotham to the Sunshine State in the last four years include hedge funder Daniel Och — whose net worth now stands at $3.6 billion — and investor Carl Icahn, who’s worth $6.9 billion. 

“You have this incredibly high rate imposed on all the income of the highest earners [in New York], and living just about anywhere else will substantially reduce your tax burden. Going to Florida will obviously eliminate your individual tax burden, and many of these billionaires clearly have that flexibility,” the National Tax Foundation’s vice president, Jared Walczak, explained.

It makes a lot of sense to me.  You work hard for your money and then the state wants more of it.  Of course, what is New York doing to make itself more attractive to the wealth creators?  So far nothing, so expect more of the wealthy to seek a better place to preserve their wealth.

You can hear driving down I-95 and singing “Pa Florida me voy.”

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