Anonymous wrote:How much in taxes do these guys actually pay in California? We know their federal taxes are down to single digit percentages because of how their income is structured and reduced by huge phantom deductions like depreciation. Beneficial Trusts own their big expenses like yachts, homes, art. They can time their distributions of capital.

Probably close to nothing.

Screw the wealth tax - the way to go is to charge them an insane luxury purchase or use tax on every purchase or non-market transfer of billionaire-y items, like showy cars, mansions, yachts, private planes, priceless art, jewelry, designer clothing, etc. happening in or coming into the state. Implement a PPT scheme to keep the funds rolling in each year.

Charge a transfer tax when the property gets sold out of state or retitled to a divorced spouse or trust. All taxes based on FMV or sale price, whichever is higher.

Implement a luxury tax for household services. Lock it down so it’s airtight and unavoidable. Target a luxury tax to the use of plastic surgeons and aestheticians for any non medically necessary purpose.

The billionaires could avoid every single tax by living like how cash poor they claim they are.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Switzerland has Cantonal-level wealth taxes that bite quite low (around 50K-200K taxable net worth after deductions). This translates to about 50% of the population paying wealth taxes each year.

https://thepoorswiss.com/wealth-tax/

No one is arguing that Switzerland is bad for business.

Switzerland also keeps out nearly all immigrants, and had a total population that is not much more than the population of Los Angeles. They also don’t have a startup culture and new groundshaking companies almost never come out of Switzerland.

Ludicrous comparison, made by someone with no understanding of economics.

40% of the Swiss population is foreign born (vs. 16% in the US). Switzerland is highly reliant on immigrant labor, both skilled and unskilled.

I agree that Switzerland needs foreign labor (just look at any hospital, full of doctors and nurses from the EU). That being said, a good junk of "foreign born" people are actually children born there since Switzerland doesn't have jus sanguinis.

But the Swiss wealth tax works because their overall taxes are pretty low (on federal / cantonal levels, not just the wealth tax) and tax revenue is responsibly managed. California doesn't have either of that.

Also, whatever they propose isn't going to pass anyway, given how Prop 15 didn't pass 5 years ago. California isn't that progressive.

Nevertheless, the Google guys have cut their ties.

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/09/technology/google-founders-california-wealth-tax.html

Top tax brackets in Switzerland are very similar to the U.S. - 37% in Zurich, 39% in Basel, 43% in Geneva. And that’s before the wealth tax and mandatory pension contribution of 5% of income by the individual.

Those places are for UMCs. Really wealthy people are registered in Zug and Schwyz .