In one of the most expensive ballot fights in California history, opponents heavily outspent supporters of a billionaire tax to mostly fund healthcare. On Wednesday, the wealth tax appeared headed for defeat though results on Proposition 40 were too close to call.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/54152859

Proposition 40, which would impose a one-time 5% tax on California billionaires to help fund healthcare, appeared headed for defeat, though votes were still being counted.

Opponents raised hundreds of millions of dollars to fight the measure, far outspending supporters, who argued the tax could help offset federal healthcare cuts.

The campaign also faced opposition from Gov. Gavin Newsom, teachers, business groups and others, while voters weighed concerns about taxing assets and the possibility that billionaires could leave California.

  • jj4211@lemmy.world
    12·
    2 hours ago

    The argument that people seem to be sticking mostly with is that any tax on a billionaire is a slippery slope to tax regular folk. Despite abundantly clear how narrow the measure is, people have been sweating up and down that the billionaire tax is “how they’ll get you”

    Behind that is a “it’s not good enough so don’t even bother”, but that works be inconsistent with prop 42.

    • NekoKoneko@lemmy.world
      4·
      42 minutes ago

      And of course, hundreds of millions of dollars of disinformation and drafting Prop 42 to intentionally mislead to that conclusion tends to do that.