California’s Wealth Tax Fantasy Is Already Backfiring
George Will in the Washington Post: The Consequences Are Already Here
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⏱️ 6 min read
George Will Rolls His Eyes At The Latest Hyper-Progressive Idea In California
California may not even pass a wealth tax — and the damage is already happening.
That is the warning from Pulitzer Prize–winning columnist George Will in a sharp Washington Post column worth your attention.
Will’s argument is simple: wisdom means anticipating consequences, and California is once again barreling ahead with a policy that invites economic damage it cannot afford.
And because most of my readers are probably not spending their morning with the Washington Post opinion section open (you do have to have a paid subscription, after all), let me walk you through his argument with full attribution.
The Damage Is Not Theoretical
Will opens with a warning that if California voters approve this wealth tax in November, they will be illustrating a basic truth: bad policy punishes the people who enact it.
In fact, he argues the consequences are already arriving.
The proposal would impose a one-time 5 percent tax on billionaires' net worth. But even before any vote has been cast, some of California’s wealthiest residents are already leaving. That matters because, as Will notes, the richest 1 percent of taxpayers provide about 40 percent of the state’s personal income tax revenue.
That is what makes this so dangerous. California’s fiscal base is already precarious, and Sacramento is threatening the very people it depends on most…
Eek! The Paywall!
Most afternoon columns are for paid subscribers. About 20% of this column is above, but you want to read the rest. Trust me. And you can. Upgrading to a paid membership is easy and really inexpensive: $7 a month or $70 a year. That makes each item you read here cost less than 8 cents. About 65% of our content will always be free, but you want the other 35%. It is where a lot of the best material lives, and your support helps make all of this possible.
The rest of this column is below the paywall. What paid subscribers will see below:
Why George Will says California is ignoring the most obvious consequence of federalism
The migration numbers that should terrify Sacramento Democrats
The Hoover Institution estimates that blows up the rosy revenue claims behind the tax
The reason this “one-time” tax may be anything but one-time
The constitutional arguments that make this look less like taxation and more like confiscation
Why the biggest long-term danger may not be the loss of revenue, but the expansion of government power
Oh yes, for paid subscribers, I place one of my precious “gift links” below so you can actually read Will’s column for yourself!
