“Microsoft announced its first ever dividend of 16 cents per share and a 2-for-1 stock split.
For Bill Gates, who personally owns 611,749,300 shares, this will give him a dividend of $97.9 million. Normally, this would be taxed at a 38.6% rate, but with Bush’s new tax plan, Gates will save and the Treasury will lose $37.8 million. A $38 million tax cut for the richest man on earth, while almost half of all tax filers would receive less than $100 in benefits”