Conference Agenda
Event Wifi: USER: HIBERNIA EVENTS | PW: Hiberniasf1J
US vs. Billionaires is bringing together national progressive leaders, state lawmakers, AI reform experts, and tax justice champions to tackle the most critical question facing our nation: how do we take power back from billionaires and put it in the hands of working people?
9:15 AM | Registration & Light Breakfast
9:45 AM | Cold Open: The Price We Pay
San Francisco Supervisors Bilal Mahmood and Chyanne Chen open the conference by with what excessive wealth concentration costs ordinary Californians, from the housing crisis to the fight for affordable health care.
9:50 AM | Benediction: The Immorality Of Excessive Wealth
Rev. Dr. Gina Fromer, President & CEO of GLIDE grounds the day in shared values and the moral stakes of the work ahead.
10:00 AM | Welcome Remarks: What Is Excessive Wealth?
Larry Ottinger, of Excessive Wealth, opens the day by showing us just how much wealth and power America's billionaires have amassed, and how a rigged tax system lets their fortunes grow while working people pay more.
10:05 AM | How Excessive Wealth Is Unraveling Our Nation
A panel discussion about how billionaire power is reshaping our economy, democracy, media, and climate, and who pays the price. Moderated by Chris Hoene (California Budget & Policy Center), with Sulma Arias (People's Action), Laura Martin (Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada), Portia Allen-Kyle (New School), and Jessica González (Free Press).
11:10 AM | Tom Steyer & Rep. Ro Khanna In Conversation
Two leading California voices on why fighting extreme wealth has become a defining political fight, and what it will take to win it.
11:40 AM | Rebalancing Power: Policies That Work
From taxing extreme wealth to breaking up monopolies to raising wages, state and national leaders share proven strategies for shrinking billionaire power and building power for working people. Moderated by Amy Hanauer (ITEP), with Saru Jayaraman (One Fair Wage), California Assemblymember Alex Lee, Barry Lynn (Open Markets Institute), and Darien Shanske (UC Davis School of Law).
12:30 PM | Lunch & Special Musical Performance
1:40 PM | Alan S. Davis: Billionaires Should Have Less
Alan S. Davis, the founder of Excessive Wealth, lays out the case for why policymakers must use tax as a tool to reduce the wealth and power of billionaires.
1:50 PM | New Polling & Research On How Americans View The Excessive Wealth Crisis
The first look at new public opinion and campaign ad research on billionaires and economic power. Moderated by Emma Lydon (PCCC), Devorah Adler (Beehive) and Robb Willer (Stanford University) break down what voters believe, which messages move them, and how progressives can make this a winning issue.
2:45 PM | Erica Payne: Tax The Rich, Pay The People, Spread The Power
Erica Payne, the Founder and President of Patriotic Millionaires, on why some of the wealthiest Americans are calling for higher taxes on themselves.
2:55 PM | Coffee Break
3:05 PM | Tech Oligarchs & AI: The Next Great Wealth Transfer
AI and Big Tech are poised to concentrate wealth and power faster than anything before. Moderated by Igor Volsky (Excessive Wealth) with Gil Duran (author, The Nerd Reich), Adam Becker (author, More Everything Forever), and Veena Dubal (UC Irvine School of Law), this panel examines the ideology driving Silicon Valley's elite, what it means for workers and democracy, and how we fight back.
4:05 PM | Jeff Freitas: Building An Equitable Future
Jeff Freitas, the President of the California Federation of Teachers, will address how excessive wealth is impacting our children and what we must do to pass on a robust democracy and economy to the next generation.
4:15 PM | Video Address: Kate Pickett
Professor Kate Pickett, the co-author of The Spirit Level and The Good Society, will speak on the evidence that more equal societies do better on nearly every measure of wellbeing.
4:20 PM | Imagining Better: A World Without Extreme Inequality
EJ Juarez and Ida Eskamani of the State Innovation Exchange (SiX) lead an interactive session where attendees picture what their communities could look like if we rebalanced wealth and power, and chart the steps to get there.
5:05 PM | Closing Remarks: Igor Volsky
Igor Volsky, Executive Director of Excessive Wealth, will summarize the day and underscore the need to channel public enthusiasm for taxing the ultra-wealthy into a governing agenda.