The proposed measure levies a one-time 5% tax on billionaires as of January 1, 2026, directing the proceeds toward healthcare, food assistance, and education. Healthcare union leader Dave Regan created the policy to counteract federal reductions from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which mandates a trillion dollars in cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act. In response, wealthy opponents have invested more than $356 million into Super PACs to run aggressive advertising blitzes, while grassroots supporters counter through celebrity endorsements, viral outreach, and political rallies.
Key points
Federal cuts totaling one trillion dollars to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act prompt…: Federal cuts totaling one trillion dollars to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act prompted union leaders to draft the wealth tax.
Wealthy opponents fear that approving the measure could trigger the spread of similar wea…: Wealthy opponents fear that approving the measure could trigger the spread of similar wealth-tax initiatives to other states.
The underfunded supportive campaign relies on rallies featuring Senator Bernie Sanders, s…: The underfunded supportive campaign relies on rallies featuring Senator Bernie Sanders, social media outreach, and prominent celebrity endorsements.
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One year ago, the idea of a billionaire tax in California was still in its infancy.
It wasn’t yet one of the most contentious ballot measure fights in state history – pitting Democrats against Democrats, drawing national attention from political heavyweights, and netting hundreds of millions of Silicon Valley dollars to fight it. Back then, it was a bold and desperate answer to Donald Trump’s healthcare cuts.
Trump had just signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which dictated a trillion dollars of Medicaid, Affordable Care Act and other healthcare funding be cut over the next decade to offset sweeping tax cuts. When the bill goes into effect in January, that could mean more than 3.4m Californians will lose their coverage, including millions of children.
“That’s why we were willing to do something that lots of people said was crazy,” said Dave Regan, the divisive architect of the billionaire tax and president of the healthcare union SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW). “To us, what’s crazy is doing nothing and watching millions of people lose coverage.”
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