California Billionaire Wealth Tax Projected to Fail

California voters are projected to have rejected Proposition 40, a ballot measure proposing a one-time wealth tax on billionaires. Election projections issued on Monday evening, November 9, called the measure’s defeat following the November 3 vote. Most of the proposed revenue would have been reserved for public healthcare services. The measure would have imposed a tax equal to 5% of net worth on people with billionaire wealth who were California residents on January 1, 2026, with payment due in 2027. Taxpayers could have spread payments over five years by making an additional payment. Real estate, pensions and retirement accounts generally would have been excluded. Ninety percent of the proceeds would have gone to public healthcare, with the remainder allocated to education, food assistance and administration. The state Legislative Analyst’s Office said, “The state probably would collect tens of billions of dollars from the wealth tax.” Its analysis said collections would extend over several years and depend partly on asset prices and taxpayers’ responses. It also estimated possible ongoing state income-tax losses of less than $1 billion annually, including if some billionaires left California. The proposal divided Democrats. Outgoing Governor Gavin Newsom and gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra opposed it, while Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Ro Khanna supported it.