Andrew Tobias says tax hike welcome—fruit basket please

Andrew Tobias, a New York City millionaire and member of Patriotic Millionaires, says he supports higher taxes on the wealthy in principle—while pushing back on how the city’s newest pied-à-terre tax was framed and enforced. His comments come as Mayor Zohran M

When Andrew Tobias talks about taxes, he doesn’t sound angry—he sounds almost amused by the idea of punishing success.

The 79-year-old New York City millionaire. who has publicly supported higher taxes on people like himself. tells the story of what it would take for him to see a tax increase as fair. “The Mayor should send the ultra-wealthy taxpayers a thank-you note and a fruit basket. ” he said. adding that people who are successful and pay a lot of taxes should be “celebrated. and respected. and probably thanked.”.

It’s a striking position in a city where wealthy residents have grown wary of new measures tied to Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s push to narrow a budget gap—with money directed toward free buses and universal childcare.

The latest flashpoint is a state pied-à-terre tax championed by Mamdani. In May, state lawmakers passed a tax that more than doubled property taxes on second homes valued at over $5 million. For Tobias, the money goal is not what bothers him. What bothers him is the tone, and the way some policies single out certain people for blame.

Citadel CEO Ken Griffin, who Mamdani filmed speaking about the tax in a video outside Griffin’s New York City penthouse, denounced the policy after the announcement. “The tax itself is a tax that discriminates against a narrow group of people,” Griffin said in an interview with CNBC.

Tobias does not deny the basic premise that the ultrawealthy should contribute more. He simply argues that taxpayers should be treated like partners in public life—not targets. In his view, the ultrawealthy should not be “vilified” for being wealthy and paying taxes.

That distinction matters because Tobias has lived through the city’s tax system up close, including a dispute that drove him out once—long before he returned and started paying New York taxes again.

He moved out of New York in the 1980s after a tax dispute with the New York City Department of Finance. The department wanted to charge him unincorporated business taxes for work he said he had been doing as a writer and speaker outside New York. Tobias argued that the charge was absurd. saying he read the department’s definition of who counts as “a business” and concluded he wasn’t. He threatened that if the city required him to pay, he would permanently move to Miami. In the end, he paid the tax and changed his permanent residence to Miami.

“It was a matter of manhood. Having made that threat, I felt I had to follow through,” Tobias said. “I didn’t leave because of the money, I left because they made me crazy.”

After relocating permanently. he said he used the extra money he saved from not paying New York City taxes to give away to charitable causes. “Being able to take that same money and give it away instead to worthy causes that I chose was such a better feeling than having it taken. ” he said. He added that every time he donated. he received a “wonderful thank you note. ” which he said “wasn’t the reason I gave it. ” but still made him feel good.

The economics of Tobias’s argument are not abstract. He estimates his Upper West Side apartment is worth around $2.5 million. He bought it in 1977 for $11,000 in cash plus a $30,000 mortgage. He splits his time in New York between that Manhattan home and a beach house on Fire Island. while wintering in Miami.

Tobias says he can afford the city’s taxes. He receives a monthly $3. 360 check from Social Security. $6. 600 a month from a charitable gift annuity. an annual royalty check. and “takes a few hundred thousand dollars a year” from his IRA. Every other year. he also gets a check from reruns of his appearances on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson; the last one he got was for 38 cents.

His biggest expense, along with taxes, is charitable and political giving. He said his federal taxes vary a lot year to year, but he paid $350,000 in city and state taxes in 2025. Every year. he donates money to build a school through the international nonprofit buildOn. and he donates to the Success Academy. a network of free public charter schools in New York City. and the Amazon Conservation Team. a nonprofit focused on Amazon conservation and Indigenous rights.

“I like money,” Tobias said. “I love being able to give it away.”

The life he describes is detailed in ways that make the tax debate feel personal rather than political. He says he is “frugal” in some ways—he does not own a car. takes public transportation. and refuses to waste food. He even jokes about eating expired food. saying he has “some salad dressing that’s older than you.” He does not have kids. a therapist. or any big medical bills to add to regular expenses.

What he spends money on instead is unusual: documented history, eccentricities, and art. His apartment walls include lithographs. New Yorker comics. and signed historical documents such as the Presidential Pride Proclamation signed by President Bill Clinton. “It’s a crazy person’s apartment, but I love it,” he said.

Tobias also casts his tax stance as part of a broader political and civic identity. He describes himself as a political activist and served as the Treasurer of the Democratic National Committee from 1999 to 2017. He remains involved with the party and continues to write about politics on his personal website.

He said he doesn’t view paying higher taxes as a sacrifice that harms him personally. Instead, he contrasts New York’s costs with the costs he says he avoids by not raising children. “Instead of the enormous expense of raising kids in New York. and hats off to the parents who do. ” Tobias said. “I get to raise Democrats — and help things like Success Academy and BuildOn and the Amazon Conservation Team. I am a very lucky guy.”.

After 25 years in Miami, he decided to move back to New York to be close to his loved ones. He said he didn’t want to focus on “how many days I spent where. ” and wanted to be near “important people in my life who were dying.” He started paying New York taxes again nearly 20 years ago. and he says he doesn’t mind them. calling New York “a great city.”.

As the debate over Mamdani’s tax push intensifies—especially around second homes valued above $5 million—Tobias’s message stays consistent. He will happily pay more. He just wants the city to recognize who he believes is paying, and why.

“The Mayor should send the ultra-wealthy taxpayers a thank-you note and a fruit basket,” Tobias said, framing the gesture as respect rather than resentment—an answer to a fight over money that has become, for many residents, a fight over status.

Andrew Tobias Patriotic Millionaires Zohran Mamdani pied-à-terre tax New York taxes second homes Ken Griffin Citadel Success Academy buildOn Amazon Conservation Team Fire Island Miami