Proposition 40 in California Pits Billionaires Against a 5 Percent Wealth Tax

The 'California Wealth Tax' proposal, which will be put to a vote on November 3 in the US state of California, envisions billionaires in the state paying 5 percent of their accumulated wealth as a one-time tax. Aiming to finance healthcare programs, the proposal has caused some billionaires to leave the state, while businessman Sergey Brin donated more than $100 million to political organizations attempting to block the proposal.

Proposition 40, which will be submitted to California voters for a decision, aims to have mega-rich individuals—including names like Oprah Winfrey, Mark Zuckerberg, Kim Kardashian, and George Lucas—contribute to healthcare services. If approved, slightly more than 200 billionaires in the state will pay 5 percent of their accumulated wealth as a one-time tax. The generated revenue will be transferred primarily to healthcare programs, followed by food assistance and public education. It aims to raise $100 billion to compensate for federal funding cuts in the healthcare system.

While the proposal has sparked controversy, some billionaires have begun leaving the state. Speaking to the BBC, an anonymous billionaire stated that this situation made them feel unwanted. Conversely, Google co-founder Sergey Brin donated more than $100 million to a political organization financing referendum proposals that could block the wealth tax. While a 'millionaires tax' imposing a 9.9 percent tax on incomes over $1 million annually is also being discussed in Washington state, according to a poll by the Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies and the Los Angeles Times, 45 percent of voters are in favor of the tax, 42 percent are against it, and 13 percent are undecided.