Here's what Mark Cuban's $275.9 million in taxes would cover for the US government

Mark Cuban has been touted as a future presidential candidate. BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/Getty Images

• Mark Cuban paid $275,900,000 in federal taxes this year, he said on X.
• The billionaire also took a jab at former President Donald Trump while disclosing the figure.
• Here’s what Cuban’s millions could do for the US government. 

Billionaire Mark Cuban disclosed the hefty chunk of change he paid in 2023 taxes this year, publishing the nine-figure number in a post on X this week while simultaneously taking a shot at former President Donald Trump.

“I pay what I owe. Tomorrow I will wire transfer to the IRS $288,000,000.00,” Cuban wrote on the social media site on Sunday before amending the actual figure to $275,900,000 in a follow-up post.

“This country has done so much for me, I’m proud to pay my taxes every single year. Tag a former president that you know doesn’t,” Cuban added, in a seeming dig at Trump, who declined to share his tax returns while running for office and during his four-year term, breaking with recent tradition.

President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden shared their tax returns on Monday, revealing they earned nearly $620,000 in 2023.

The average federal income tax payment among the more than 164 million Americans who filed returns in 2020 was $16,615, Business Insider reported last year — much less than the $275.9 million in taxes Cuban just paid. Though, his net worth is much, much higher.

Here’s how the US Government could put Cuban’s millions to use. And yes, we know Cuban’s tax bill won’t go directly to paying for these programs, but for the sake of context, here’s what his taxes could have funded.

Fund the NTSB in its entirety

The National Transportation Safety Board, which is an independent US government agency that oversees civil transportation accident investigations, secured $145 million in funding for Fiscal Year 2024 in the president’s budget, the agency announced in a March 2023 press release. That figure represents a $15.7 million increase from the previous budget year.

An explanatory statement on the Transportation Department’s funding in the 2024 Appropriations Act said the agency ultimately got $140,000,000 for salaries and expenses in the final bill.

Earlier this year, the agency requested $150 million for FY 2025 to fund its 455-full time equivalent employees.

Cuban’s $275.9 million contribution to the US government could fully back the department with nearly half still left over.

Pay a bunch of lawmakers’ salaries

Representatives and senators, on average, make $174,000 each year. Multiply that figure by all 535 members of Congress, and you get $93 million.

Cuban’s million could easily cover congressional paychecks and even account for President Joe Biden’s $400,000 salary and Vice President Kamala Harris’ $235,100 salary.

Fund the DOD (for a couple of hours)

The Department of Defense has requested a whopping $850 billion budget for the 2025 Fiscal Year. It’s too soon to say whether the spending bill will pass, but the department managed to score $841.4 billion in Fiscal Year 2024.

If you divide $850 billion by 365 days in the year, you get a $2,328,767,123.29 department cost per day. Divide that number by 24 hours, and you get $97,031,963.47 per hour.

So, Cuban’s $275.9 million wouldn’t quite be able to cover the potential three-hour DOD cost at $291,095,890.41. But his tax payment could fund the US war machine for a little over two hours.

Take a (tiny) chunk out of US debt

The US government’s debt load is increasing by almost $1 trillion nearly every 100 days, CNBC reported earlier this year.

The current national debt sits at $34 trillion as of April 2023. While $275.9 million might not seem like it would make a dent in that astronomical number, every little bit helps! Right?

If you enjoyed this story, be sure to follow Business Insider on Microsoft Start.