California voters will now referee a high-stakes fight over whether to slap a one-time 5% tax on the state's billionaires. The health care union behind the initiative said Thursday that the measure would indeed go on the ballot in November, despite a strong push against it from Gov. Gavin Newsom and other Democrats, in addition to the uber-rich, reports Politico. The measure previously qualified for the ballot, and the SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West had until Thursday to decide whether to pull it. They had floated a legislative compromise with a lower tax to Newsom, which he rejected.
Supporters, including Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Ro Khanna, frame the tax as a way to plug holes from federal spending cuts and avert hospital closures and job losses. Opponents—from Newsom to Google co-founder Sergey Brin and a long list of unions and medical groups—argue it would chase wealthy residents and their tax payments out of California, destabilizing funding for schools, health care, and infrastructure.
With billionaires bankrolling the "no" side and the union seeking more cash after spending $7.3 million just to qualify the measure, the campaign is expected to be one of the priciest in state history and a test of Democratic voters' appetite for taxing the ultra-rich heading into the 2028 presidential cycle. "Popular support is on our side," said Debru Carthan, vice president of the union, per the Washington Post.
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