Despite repeated lies from Big Business Roundtable, Prop 40 cannot be changed to apply to middle-class taxpayers
Media should think twice before giving the California Business Roundtable a platform to peddle already-debunked lies
LOS ANGELES, CA – Billionaire-backed interest groups are peddling outright lies in an effort to scare and confuse voters into opposing the popular Prop 40 Billionaire Tax.
Despite being proven wrong several months ago, California’s Big Business Roundtable continues to FALSELY CLAIM that Prop 40 could be expanded to include taxpayers of any income level. This lie has been debunked for months, yet Big Business Roundtable President Rob Lapsley keeps repeating it anyway.
THE BILLIONAIRE TAX CANNOT BE EXPANDED TO INCLUDE MIDDLE CLASS TAXPAYERS.
As section 50310 of the Billionaire Tax Act says, any amendments cannot change the fundamental purpose of the act, which is to impose a one-time tax on billionaires.
Specifically, the text of section 50310 allows the Legislature, with a two-thirds vote, to amend the Billionaire Tax Act by statute, ‘if the statute is consistent with and furthers the purposes of the 2026 Billionaire Tax Act.’
“The purpose of the 2026 Billionaire Tax Act,” as written in section 3 (a), “is to protect access to high quality, equitable health care, and to support funding for kindergarten through grade fourteen public education and food assistance programs, by raising revenue from a one-time tax on billionaire wealth.”
Extending the billionaire tax to more taxpayers is neither consistent with or in furtherance of the Act. Therefore, IT IS NOT POSSIBLE.
CALIFORNIA BIG BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE KNOWINGLY PEDDLES LIES TO MEDIA AND VOTERS
The Billionaire Tax Now Coalition publicly corrected the California Business Roundtable’s incorrect claim when it was first levied by the group’s President, Rob Lapsley, on April 27, 2026 in the New York Post.
Since then, Lapsley has continued to push the lie, knowingly misleading voters and the media.
The media should think twice before giving the now discredited California Business Roundtable or its President Rob Lapsley a platform to comment on Prop 40. Knowingly repeating lies to further their billionaire-backed agenda should disqualify both from providing public commentary to voters or the media.
About Prop 40, the California Billionaire Tax Act
The Prop 40 California Billionaire Tax Act proposes a one-time emergency tax on the wealth of the state’s ultra-high-net-worth billionaires to safeguard Medi-Cal, keep hospitals and emergency rooms open, expand food assistance, and support public education. The initiative is a direct response to federal healthcare cuts under HR1 that threaten healthcare access and economic stability for millions of Californians.
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| Paid for by Yes on 40 – Billionaire Tax Now, Sponsored by Service Employees International Union – United Healthcare Workers West. Committee’s Top Funder Service Employees International Union – United Healthcare Workers West |
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