Signatures submitted for California initiatives to prohibit taxes on personal savings and assets, require audits for new
Campaigns behind two ballot initiatives in California designed to challenge provisions of the proposed billionaires' tax initiative filed signatures for verification on May 4. The initiatives are constitutional amendments that would:
- prohibit the enactment of new taxes after January 1, 2026, on ownership or accumulation of retirement holdings, individually-owned assets, and other forms of personal savings and
- require state laws or ballot initiatives levying a new special tax, which is any tax imposed for specific purposes, enacted after January 1, 2026, to undergo state audits to determine program effectiveness and cost-saving measures.
Californians to Protect Retirement and Life Savings, sponsored by Building a Better California, is leading the Yes to Protect Retirement and Life Savings campaign in support of the first initiative. It reported submitting more than 1.4 million raw signatures. The campaign has reported over $27.7 million in contributions as of March 30. All of the contributions were from Building a Better California, which has received $57 million from Google co-founder Sergey Brin.
Tom Hudson, president of the California Taxpayer Protection Committee, said, “It’s not surprising that voters support protecting their retirement and savings from new taxes. History shows that taxes sold as narrow taxes on the wealthy often end up reaching working and middle-class families. Californians want our state to do better with the money they already have. They shouldn’t get to take more money from Californians if they saved responsibly.”
https://news.ballotpedia.org/2026/05/07/signatures-submitted-for-california-initiatives-to-prohibit-taxes-on-personal-savings-and-assets-require-audits-for-new-special-taxes-and-challenge-proposed-billionaire-tax-measure/