Google’s co-founder Sergey Brin is reportedly heavily against California’s Prop 40, a “billionaire tax” that would see the state’s richest residents pay a one-time tax that totals about 5% of their total individual net worth. The state-focused tax is being opposed by California Governor Gavin Newsom, who is instead advocating for a national billionaire tax. According to Newsom, the California billionaire tax would “dedicate almost all of the revenue it raises to a single category of state spending,” while ignoring other areas in need of funding like public schools, safety-net clinics, child care, public schools, and several other areas.
One main issue appears to lie with California’s richest leaving the state. Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg, former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, Peter Thiel, and Google Co-Founder Larry Page have all reportedly left California in an attempt to avoid this billionaire tax should it pass. The tax is to be voted on in November. Newsom’s national tax proposal seeks to prevent billionaires from avoiding this tax by moving to states that have one instituted. Other billionaires, such as Brin, have simply spent some of their enormous wealth to lobby against the proposal.
Google Co-Founder Sergey Brin has reportedly spent more than $100 million to lobby against the billionaire tax
A new report states that Brin has spent another $20 million by donating that money to an organization called Build a Better California, which advocates against passing Prop 40 so that billionaires wouldn’t have to pay the one-time tax. In total, Brin is said to have spent over $100 million to keep Prop 40 from passing.
Brin is not the only billionaire in California fighting to keep Prop 40 from passing. Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt has reportedly spent $2 million, while Stripe CEO Patrick Collison has also reportedly spent $2 million. Venture capitalists John Doerr and Michael Moritz are also said to have spent $2 million.
Newsom believes that passing a national billionaire tax would help the country fight against concentrated wealth.
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