Contributes to the Rise in the Highest Incomes?

We study how much of the top end of the income distribution is represented by four sectors—non-financial-firm top executives (Main Street); investment bankers and hedge, private equity, and mutual fund investors (Wall Street); corporate lawyers; and athletes and celebrities. Wall Street individuals comprise a higher percentage of the top income brackets than nonfinancial executives of public companies. While top executives ’ representation in the top brackets has increased from 1994 to 2004, Wall Street’s representation has likely increased even more. We discuss the implications of our findings for different explanations for the increased skewness at the highest income levels. (JEL D31, G34, J33, M52) It is well known that the personal income distribution in the United States has become increasingly unequal over the last several decades.1 The sources of this increased inequality, however, are not completely understood, particularly at the very top end of the distribution. In this article, we consider in detail how much of the inequality today at the very top end of the income distribution can be attributed to four different sectors of the economy: top executives of nonfi-nancial firms (Main Street); financial service sector employees from investment banks, hedge funds, private equity (PE) funds, and mutual funds (Wall Street); lawyers; and professional athletes and celebrities.