What’s the status of California’s proposal to tax billionaires?
A California measure to tax the net worth of billionaires that divided liberal leaders nationally and triggered one of the most expensive ballot fights in state history was too early to call Wednesday morning as the vote tally continued. Proposition 40 would impose a one-time 5% tax on the wealth of Californians whose net worth exceeds $1 billion, with most of the revenue dedicated to replacing…
California's proposal to impose a one-time 5% tax on the net worth of billionaires, known as Proposition 40, remains unresolved as of Wednesday morning. The measure, which would primarily fund replacing federal funding cuts to healthcare, has been a contentious issue, dividing liberal leaders both within the state and nationally.
With almost 6 million votes still to be counted, the AP Decision Team will wait for additional vote results before declaring a winner. While Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders called it a monumental step towards addressing wealth inequality, California's Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom warned that it would prompt the state's wealthiest to leave the state and take their tax money with them.
The "no" side, which included opponents like traditional Democratic allies and tech moguls, raised roughly 10 times as much as the "yes" side, thanks in large part to heavy donations from billionaires. Despite the uncertainty, backers of the proposed tax, including powerful labor union SEIU United Healthcare Workers West, argue that it is necessary to safeguard the state's healthcare system, estimating that California will lose $100 billion in federal healthcare funding over five years.
Written by urgent.news from Fast Company's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
