Wealth tax criticized by billionaires and Gavin Newsom would levy a one-time 5% tax on residents worth over $1bn

Wealth tax criticized by billionaires and Gavin Newsom would levy a one-time 5% tax on residents worth over $1bn

A popular proposal in California to impose a wealth tax on billionaires has gained enough signatures to qualify for the ballot in November, state officials announced on Wednesday.

The news is set to intensify an already heated debate around the tax, which has pitted tech moguls and the state’s governor, Gavin Newsom, against the labor union backing the measure.

The California Billionaire Tax Act, colloquially known as the billionaire tax, would levy a one-time 5% tax on any California resident worth more than $1bn. The proposal is backed by the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) as a means of funding California’s strained healthcare, food assistance and education programs.

    • Jax@sh.itjust.works
      4·
      23 hours ago

      I think sending a message of ‘look what we can do with just 5% of their wealth’ is important, provided anything actually positive comes from those funds.

      That’s where I’m skeptical. I’ve worked as a contractor for the state for most of my professional career and am now a state employee. The answer to the question of ‘Is there corruption in CA state govt?’ is… well, let’s just take the pension fund management application as an example; mycalpers.

      I never got a straight answer for just how much that application cost. I don’t work there anymore so I doubt I ever will, but the only answer I really trusted is that the total comes to around 800 million.

      Let me repeat that with emphasis. 800 million. The best part here is that at least 400 of that 800 million was completely wasted on a first iteration of the app that was scrapped entirely. Thanks to Accenture, who apparently had Sushi Thursdays or some shit during the entire app creation cycle.

      You take one look at the app and will realize it should never have cost that much money.

      So yes, it’s something. Whether that will play out the way you or I think it should is another thing entirely. This is all assuming it even gets passed.