'5 percent' tax alarm for billionaires in the USA

While the whole world is focusing on the midterm elections on November 3 in the USA, a vote in California is also of critical importance for billionaires in the region.

Voters in California, USA, are about to decide on November 3 whether the mega-rich, including famous presenter Oprah Winfrey, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, reality TV star Kim Kardashian and famous director George Lucas, should donate billions of dollars for improvements in healthcare.

Proposition 40, also known as the 'California Wealth Tax', is an amendment and state law that will be put to vote in the elections to be held in the state of California on November 3, 2026.

If Proposition 40 is approved by voters, the state's billionaires would pay a one-time tax of 5 percent of their accumulated wealth. Revenue from the tax will primarily fund state health programs, with a smaller portion allocated to food assistance and public education.

It is stated that there are slightly more than 200 billionaires in the state to be included in this coverage. But that hasn't stopped some billionaires from already leaving the state. A billionaire who spoke to the BBC but did not disclose his name said that he had brought job opportunities to California, but that this latest offer made him 'feel a bit unwanted'.

Supporters of this decision argued that it would help ensure billionaires pay their fair share and contribute to closing deficits in the state budget. The move aims to raise $100 billion to offset federal funding cuts to the state's healthcare system.

But according to the Los Angeles Times, Google co-founder Sergey Brin donated more than $100 million to a political organization that is funding referendum proposals that could block a wealth tax.

CALIFORNIA IS NOT THE ONLY PLACE

California isn't the only place confused by the idea of taxing billionaires. On the west coast, voters in the US state of Washington are also undecided about whether to accept the 'millionaires tax', which imposes a 9.9 percent tax on income over $1 million annually.

Head of the political economy department at the Institute of Economic Affairs, Dr. According to Kristian Niemietz, while wealth taxes were once a fairly common form of taxation in Europe, they are now implemented in only three European countries, Spain, Norway and Switzerland.

However, a September poll by the Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies and the Los Angeles Times found that the tax proposal clearly failed to convince a majority of voters. According to the poll, 45% of likely voters are in favor of the tax, 42% are against it and 13% are undecided. However, the final results and whether more billionaires will leave the state will be known after November 3.