# California voters reject tax on net worth of billionaires

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/california-voters-reject-tax-on-net-worth-of-billionaires/
- Published: 2026-11-10T18:48:07+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-10T19:33:57+00:00
- Original publisher: PBS NewsHour (publisher lean: Centre)
- Original article: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/california-voters-reject-tax-on-net-worth-of-billionaires
- Topics: Elections, Politics

## Key points

- California voters rejected a proposed 5% tax on billionaires’ wealth.
- Opponents raised about ten times more than supporters.
- Supporters say they may put a tax back on the ballot in 2028.

## Summary

California voters have rejected Proposition 40, a proposed first-of-its-kind tax on billionaires’ net worth. Its defeat is a victory for Democratic leaders who opposed the measure, including Governor Gavin Newsom, while leaving unresolved the debate over taxing the ultra-rich to help fund public services.

The proposal would have imposed a one-off 5% tax on Californians worth more than $1 billion, with most proceeds intended to offset federal healthcare funding cuts and 10% allocated to education and food assistance. The campaign against it raised about ten times as much as supporters, including more than $100 million from Google co-founder Sergey Brin; the opposing committee raised over $333 million. The article says younger voters were more supportive, while roughly seven in ten voters aged 65 and over opposed it.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.