California Ballot Measures Include Major Tax and Bond Proposals

California's November 3 ballot includes 14 statewide measures, five of which relate to taxes, such as Proposition 40, which would tax the wealth of the state’s billionaires. Additionally, local ballots contain measures that would raise taxes for school districts or local governments, or authorize bonds requiring new taxes to repay the debt. The California Taxpayers Association noted that 273 such measures could levy $3 billion a year in direct taxes and sanction $19.5 billion in bonds.

The proposals involve significant fiscal changes, including a large tax measure asking voters in San Francisco and four other counties to hike sales taxes by nearly $1 billion a year to fund public transit. These local and statewide tax and bond measures draw heavy campaign spending and impact state and local fiscal policy.