It’s deadline day for the contentious proposal to impose a new tax on California billionaires, an idea opposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, influential groups with deep pockets, and, of course, the ultra rich themselves.
Secretary of State Shirley Weber announced last week that proponents had collected enough valid signatures to put it before voters Nov. 3. If supporters do not withdraw the proposal by 5 p.m. Thursday, it will be on the ballot.
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The measure would impose a one-time 5% tax on taxpayers and trusts with assets — such as businesses, art and intellectual property — valued at more than $1 billion, with some exclusions, such as property. Billionaires would be able to spread the tax payment over five years.
The proposal has triggered fierce debate
The proposed tax was crafted by Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, which represents more than 120,000 healthcare workers, patients and consumers, as a way to counter massive healthcare funding cuts that President Trump signed last year.
Proponents say it will raise $100 billion. Most of those funds would be used for healthcare programs, with 10% going to food assistance and education programs, the union said.
Suzanne Jimenez, the SEIU-UHW chief of staff, described the proposal to me earlier this year as “a modest tax” that “affects few people.”
In April, supporters submitted nearly 1.6 million signatures, roughly double the number needed to qualify.
Newsom and other opponents have argued that the levy would prompt the ultrarich, including tech entrepreneurs, to flee California, ultimately hurting the economy.
The state budget is largely dependent on income taxes paid by its highest earners, so “revenues are prone to volatility, hinging on capital gains from investments, bonuses to executives and windfalls from new stock offerings, and are notoriously difficult for the state to predict,” my colleagues Queenie Wong and Seema Mehta reported.
A December analysis by the nonpartisan California Legislative Analyst’s Office said the tax would temporarily increase revenue by tens of billions spread over several years — but if too many billionaires move away, the state could eventually lose “hundreds of millions of dollars or more per year.”
A proposed compromise — denied.
Last week, the Billionaire Tax Now Coalition (funded by SEIU-UHW) tried to strike a deal with Newsom ahead of Thursday’s deadline for withdrawing the proposal.
The group urged Newsom to support a smaller 2% tax on the state’s billionaires in lieu of the 5% levy, saying in a statement that its willingness to compromise “reflects the urgency of the moment and the need to secure funding quickly to protect patients, preserve healthcare access, and prevent the burden of Trump’s healthcare cuts from being shifted onto working Californians.”
The governor’s office rejected the proposal.
“The Governor supports making the wealthiest Americans pay their fair share, but this poorly designed state-only measure will defund teachers, schools, clinics, and public safety,” Tara Gallegos, a spokesperson for Newsom, said in a statement. “Changing the tax rate doesn’t change this measure’s fundamental flaws that harm working Californians.”
Lots of mega rich in the Golden State
The focus on taxing the ultra rich comes amid a growing affordability crisis in California, home to the nation’s most expensive housing market and highest income tax.
More than 200 billionaires reside in California, more than any other state, according to a group of law and economics professors at UC Berkeley, UC Davis and the University of Missouri who helped draft the billionaire tax proposal.
The collective wealth of the state’s billionaires surged from $300 billion in 2011 to $2.2 trillion in October 2025, according to a December report by those professors.
No one in the state has yet attained the new strata of wealth achieved — then quickly lost, per Forbes — by former Californian Elon Musk: trillionaire.
Today’s top stories 
Rancher Bill Fales checks irrigation lines on one of his family’s pastures near Carbondale, Colo. Fales says he has been working to change his irrigation techniques to sustain the pastures when there is little water.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
The Colorado River is drying upThe source of the Colorado River in the Rocky Mountains is drying up, threatening a critical water lifeline for about 35 million people and 5 million acres of farmland across the Southwest.Scientists say the entire Southwest needs to permanently adapt to having less water as the warming climate dries out the region.Boyle Heights warehouse fire finally extinguishedA fire that has burned at a Boyle Heights warehouse for more than a week is finally out, officials said Wednesday evening.But residents in many Eastside communities were just beginning to assess the health implications from days of dirty air as well as significant economic losses.LAX people mover train delaysLAUSD bans screen time before second gradeLos Angeles Unified will ban classroom screen time in preschool through first grade and sharply limit it for older students.The policy was fueled in part by parent demands to halt the reliance of computers in the classroom.What else is going onCommentary and opinionsThis morning’s must-readOther must-readsFor your downtime 
(Nico189 / For The Times)
Going outStaying inA question for you: What’s your favorite hike?
Maria B. writes: Ten Lakes trail in Yosemite.
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And finally … your photo of the day 
Dog lovers enjoy an evening at the Silver Lake dog park with their furry companions.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
Today’s great photo is from Times photographer Jason Armond at the Silver Lake dog park.
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