Unfortunate update as of today:
More calls from friends. The total wealth that has left California is now $1T.
We had $2T of billionaire wealth just a few weeks ago. Now, 50% of that wealth has left - taking their income tax revenue, sales tax revenue, real estate tax revenue and all their staffs (and their salaries and income taxes) with them.
In other words, by starting this ill conceived attempt at an asset tax, the California budget deficit will explode. And we still don’t know if the tax will even make the ballot.
California billionaires were reliable tax payers - 13.3% every year. They were the sheep you could shear forever. Now California will lose this revenue source FOREVER.
Unless this ballot initiative is pulled, we will not stop the billionaire exodus. With no rich people left in California, the middle class will have to foot the bill.
Quoted context
These are the quoted author’s words.
Collectively, the amount of Billionaire wealth that has left California in the last month (!) is now in excess of $700B.
That means the $2T of California wealth they expected to tax is now down to $1.3T and falling quickly. I would not be surprised if 2026 ended with less than $1T of billionaire wealth in California and decades and hundreds of lawsuits.
A complete and total unforced error. Where was the Governor? Where are our leaders??
If they don’t kill this ballot initiative and entice those folks to come
back, the California budget will be massively upside down.
Only place to get the money is to cut waste, fraud and abuse or increase taxes on the middle class.
The latter is much simpler than the former.
chamath ↗