Attorney General Rob Bonta speaking at Crissy Field in San Francisco on 11/7/24 (Photo: oag.ca.gov)
CA Attorney General Issues Ludicrous Title and Summary on California Billionaire Tax Act
‘It’s a 5% across-the-board confiscation of net worth’
By Katy Grimes, December 30, 2025 2:44 pm
The California Attorney General has issued the official title and summary for the California Billionaire Tax Act – and you won’t be disappointed in the laughable language attempting to hide the corruption:
IMPOSES ONE-TIME TAX ON CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS AND TRUSTS. INITIATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT AND STATUTE.
First, those “certain individuals and trusts” are the state’s billionaires, also known as employers, job creators, innovators and entrepreneurs. The 2026 Billionaire Tax Act is expected to generate $100 billion in revenue… plenty to cover Governor Gavin Newsom’s current $18 billion budget deficit and anticipated deficits of more than $30 billion… and the $76 billion in fraud recently exposed by the State Auditor…
With $100 billion coming in to the state’s coffers, does anyone really believe this is a “one-time tax” on billionaires.
Secondly, the SEIU claims that the California Billionaire Tax Act is “bringing the popular proposal one step closer to the November 2026 ballot, and one step closer to preventing a statewide healthcare collapse.”
Ah. That’s the hook – taxing California billionaires 5% of their “unrealized gains” will prevent a statewide healthcare collapse.
…the statewide healthcare collapse that Democrats have delivered? The one Newsom created by providing Medi-Cal healthcare to illegal aliens, leading the system to insolvency? That one?
The Globe reported Monday:
California Governor Gavin Newsom is pushing a retroactive billionaire tax targeting the roughly 220 billionaires residing in California in 2025.
Gavin Newsom claims he isn’t supporting this, but the SEIU is doing the dirty work by proxy for the governor, whom they got elected – twice and saved from recall once.
Clearly Gov. Newsom is ignoring that these individuals are the most financially mobile and can live anywhere. Expecting them to remain in the state as if they will happily and willingly hand over even more of their wealth surely must be facetious.
SEIU is sponsoring the “2026 Billionaires Tax Act” ballot initiative. The measure would impose a one-time 5% tax on individual wealth exceeding $1 billion.
Don’t let their committee name fool you: “Save California Health Care and Public Education, Sponsored by Service Employees International Union – United Healthcare Workers West.”
As we reported, entrepreneur David Sacks weighed in explaining, “To be clear, the Billionaire Tax Act in California is not (just) an unrealized gains tax. It’s a 5% across-the-board confiscation of net worth. It applies even if one has already realized and paid taxes on the entire amount.”
This is double taxation and unconstitutional.
This is from the Attorney General’s Ballot title and summary:
Imposes one-time tax of up to 5% on taxpayers and trusts with covered assets valued over $1 billion; covered assets include businesses, securities, art, collectibles, and intellectual property, but exclude real property and some pensions and retirement accounts. Allocates 90% of these tax revenues for health care, 10% for food assistance or education-related programs; prohibits using revenues to replace existing funding for these purposes. Exempts such tax revenues from constitutional requirements for school funding, budget reserves, and state spending limit. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local governments:Temporary increase in state revenues from a new tax on the wealth of billionaires. These wealth tax revenues probably would add up to tens of billions of dollars spread over several years. Likely ongoing decrease in state income tax revenues of hundreds of millions of dollars or more per year. (25-0024A1.)
Note that the initiative “allocates 90% of these tax revenues for health care, 10% for food assistance or education-related programs.”
The SEIU claims the billionaire tax “is designed to be fair and enforceable – so billionaires who are California residents on January 1, 2026 can’t avoid responsibility by moving their assets or claiming residency elsewhere.”
Aha – the government will get you no matter where you go, is the real message.
A California native and Navy mom, Katy lives in Sacramento, CA.
- Sable Pipeline Gets Go-Ahead to Restart California Pipeline - January 2, 2026
- More Prop. 50 Redistricting Contributions and Expenditures and $31M to Consultants - January 2, 2026
- President Trump’s 20 Point Plan To Make America Great Again is Flourishing - January 1, 2026
RELATED ARTICLES
-
March 26, 2023 -
July 23, 2024 -
October 21, 2025
Ya all need to comprehend what San Diego is planning:
A must read!
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2025/12/29/size-of-proposed-increase-in-real-estate-sales-tax-is-staggering/
Better title – The economic coup de gras to California is more like it.
I never ever have gotten a job from a poor person comes to mind.
EXACTLY.
I think all the oil in Newsom and Bonta’s hair has caused their brains to atrophy…
The CCP must be paying them handsomely to kneecap the California economy and ready it for takeover, by whatever means necessary….
My out of state real estate search is ramping up…. time to protect my assets….
Can someone remind me what country I’m living in. Because this sounds ALOT like the Soviet Union. These damn commies have no shame, none whatsoever. If they didn’t keep me barely on the edge of financial collapse, I would find a way outta here. I loathe these Progressive liberal Democrats. LOATHE THEM!
Don’t for a minute think this “billionaire” tax will be limited to billionaires. It will leach down to millionaires. Then thousandaires and hundredaires until we’re all paying taxes on unrealized gains.
Yes indeed, Tom. It is the proverbial Trojan Horse slippery slope like legalizing Marijuana.
Ballot titles and descriptions are SO important. They should be posted 60 days advance of printing voter handbooks with the ability to sue for inaccurate or misleading, including by ommision, wording. Many people would not have voted for Prop 19 if they had full information. I tried many times to view the online link in the voter handbook but always got an error message. I think that was on purpose and it’s passing may cost my family the ranch as value has went up so much due to bay area proximity. But it doesn’t make more money because of it. We don’t want to leave after generations.
This guy is a crook of the highest order carrying out Newsom’s demented democrat platform. A platform top to bottom steeped in malfeasance.
Reading about this guy will spoil your appetite. His ‘vision’ for HUD qualified housing now reaches out to convicted criminals. I’m sorry, but doesn’t being convicted of a crime and doing time disqualify a person from reaping benefits otherwise earmarked for HUD housing?