Californians will have the opportunity to VOTE YES to save patient lives, prevent job losses, preserve coverage for millions, and keep emergency rooms open through one-time tax on billionaires
SACRAMENTO, CA — Frontline healthcare workers and allies within the Billionaire Tax Now Coalition announced Thursday that the popular California Billionaire Tax has officially been certified to appear on the November ballot, giving Californians the chance to vote YES to a one-time tax on billionaires that will save patient lives, protect jobs, and keep hospitals open.
“Healthcare workers and working families across California are putting forward a solution to the healthcare crisis created by Donald Trump. And today we’re making it clear that we aren’t backing down – the billionaire tax will be on the ballot this November, and we intend to win,” said Debru Carthan, radiologic technologist and Billionaire Tax Now Coalition spokesperson.
The Billionaire Tax has received hundreds of endorsements from elected officials, labor unions, and community-based organizations ranging from U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, Representative Ro Khanna, Teamsters California, AFSCME California, SEIU-UHW, Committee of Interns and Residents / SEIU, UNITE HERE Local 11, UNITE HERE Local 30, AFT Local 1521, Disability Voices United, Our Revolution California, Oxfam America, Color of Change, and many, many more. Several were on hand this evening to speak in support of the proposal.
“This issue couldn’t be more simple. There are 250 billionaires in a state of 40 million people. What we’re saying is, tax these 250 billionaires so that millions of Californians can have healthcare,” said Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA), who was an early endorser of the Billionaire Tax.
Khanna rejected the long-debunked claim that billionaires will leave the state if the wealth tax is passed. “The arguments on flight are hogwash,” he said. “The first quarter of 2026 had the most venture capital coming into California than ever before. There’s more investment in California now, not less.”
He also noted that even after the Billionaire Tax is enacted, billionaires’ net worth will still be higher at the end of the year than it was at the beginning, because of the massive gains their wealth reaps.
Voters consistently support the Billionaire Tax by large, double-digit margins, and the growing campaign has brought on thousands of volunteers. Supporters of the measure submitted over 1.6 million signatures, more than double the number needed to secure a spot on the general election ballot. Under state law, June 25 marks the last day a proposed ballot measure can be removed from the November ballot, meaning the measure will assuredly be presented to general election voters later this year.
For healthcare workers who have dedicated their lives to caring for patients, today’s news isn’t just welcome, it’s critical. With no other viable alternatives proposed by Governor Newsom, the billionaire tax is the only available option to stop a cascade of hospital and clinic closures spurred by massive federal cuts in President Trump’s so-called “Big, Beautiful Bill.”
Supporters made clear that without the passage of the one-time emergency tax this fall, patients’ lives will be in jeopardy.
“Every day, my colleagues and I treat seniors, children, and Californians at every stage of health and disease. What we are facing now is an onslaught of layoffs and service cuts across our healthcare system that will lead to needless patient deaths,” said Dr. Michelle Martinelli, a resident physician in Pediatrics and a Regional Vice President at the Committee of Interns and Residents / SEIU. “In order to stop this and keep California’s hospitals and emergency rooms open, we are taking action by backing the California Billionaire Tax.”
The issue of affordability, and who pays for Trump’s devastating healthcare cuts, was another important topic of the night.
“California’s healthcare crisis started when a few of Donald Trump’s billionaire buddies elected him to gut healthcare to pay for the largest tax breaks U.S. billionaires have ever seen,” noted Carthan. “While billionaires have seen their wealth increase 212%, working families are falling behind.”
“Working families aren’t willing to keep paying more for healthcare because billionaires insist on paying less. It’s time for them to pay their fair share, like the rest of us do, and have always done,” said Joe Bishop, an Administrator at UNITE HERE Local 30 in San Diego.
California’s healthcare system is facing a growing crisis as hospitals lay off thousands of workers and brace for widespread closures because of massive federal healthcare cuts that will slash as much as $20 billion annually over the next five years.
The more than 400 hospitals statewide have already laid off more than 3,400 healthcare workers as of mid-March, with a second wave of layoffs expected as funding cuts tied to recent federal policy changes are phased in over the next several years. Statewide, projections show the cuts could result in the loss of up to 145,000 healthcare jobs, impacting hospitals, clinics, and home care providers alike.
Without revenue from the California Billionaire Tax, federal healthcare cuts are expected to put an estimated 83 California hospitals and clinics at risk of closure. Cuts and closures have already started, impacting communities from Los Angeles to Oakland, to Glenn County.
Tax experts have underscored that what makes the billionaire tax unique is how it’s designed to be fair and enforceable — so billionaires can’t avoid responsibility by moving their assets or claiming residency elsewhere after the now-passed January 1, 2026 deadline for residency changes.
In November, California voters will at last have a chance to make billionaires pay their fair share to help prevent that, through a commonsense ballot initiative that places a one-time 5% tax on the wealth of approximately 200 billionaires who reside in the Golden State. Ninety percent of that funding will go to offset Medi-Cal cuts in order to prevent ER and other service closures, and 10% will go toward funding food assistance and public education.
Impact of federal healthcare cuts
- Dozens of hospitals and ERs will close; dozens more will be forced to cut back services and lay off healthcare workers. The patient care crisis will worsen as patients are forced to wait longer and drive further for medical care.
- Up to 3.4 million Californians could lose their healthcare coverage under Medicaid, including many seniors, children, veterans, and people with disabilities
- The state could lose about $20 billion in federal healthcare funding every year — destabilizing the health care system and driving up health care costs for everyone.
- Insurance premiums for Californians who purchase Affordable Care Act plans could rise as much as 97%, and an estimated 400,000 Californians could be priced out of healthcare altogether.
Impact of food assistance cuts
- Currently, 5.5 million Californians benefit from food aid. 3.5 million are senior citizens and children.
- At least 754,000 people could lose their entire monthly benefit, with over 3 million households facing reductions.
- The estimated funding loss is $2.5 to $4.5 billion annually.
- The SNAP/Cal-Fresh cuts, if not backfilled by other funding mechanisms, are expected to cost California approximately 400,000 jobs over the next nine years.
About the California Billionaire Tax Act
The 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 Save California Health Care and Public Education, 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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