A proposed California wealth tax and two ballot initiatives designed to kill it are all clinging to narrow leads in a new poll.
A slight majority — 52 percent — of voters support Proposition 40, which would impose a one-time, 5% tax on billionaires’ assets, according to the Public Policy Institute of California survey. But that is a fragile lead as opponents prepare to spend tens of millions of dollars on an ad blitz. And a pair of measures that would nullify the measure, Propositions 41 and 42,both registered similar levels of support: 51% of those surveyed said they would vote for Proposition 41, which would require audits of state spending while invalidating the wealth tax because of how it would allocate money, while 54 percent would vote for Proposition 42, which bars taxes on financial assets like stocks and investments.
Both of those initiatives are crafted to nullify Prop 40 as part of a multifront strategy by a group of billionaires led by Google co-founder Sergey Brin. Under California law, if two conflicting measures are on the ballot and both pass, the initiative with more votes takes effect.
Wealth tax foes will have an overwhelming financial advantage. A group backed by Brin has booked some $100 million in airtime and spent $41.5 million against Prop 40 and $32 million for the other two measures since late July, after the measures qualified.
Dave Regan, the leader of the union championing the wealth tax, is facing allegations of misconduct, which he strenuously denies.
There is a clearer path to victory for Proposition 3, another labor-backed initiative that would make permanent a 2012 income tax increase on California’s top earners. The measure drew support from 58% of voters — one of the highest margins of any ballot measure, per PPIC, a relief for those who feared the initiative could be dragged down by the wealth tax.