HEALTHCARE WORKERS AND DOCTORS HAIL ADVANCEMENT OF URGENT BILLIONAIRE TAX AIMED AT SAVING HOSPITALS, KEEPING EMERGENCY ROOMS OPEN

The 2026 Billionaire Tax Act will protect healthcare for all Californians, provide food assistance, support K-14 education

Thousands of frontline healthcare workers and allies prepare to gather ballot signatures starting in January

CALIFORNIA — California Attorney General Rob Bonta has issued the official title and summary for the California Billionaire Tax Act, bringing the popular proposal one step closer to the November 2026 ballot, and one step closer to preventing a statewide healthcare collapse.

The 2026 Billionaire Tax Act would generate $100 billion in revenue by applying a one-time 5% emergency tax on roughly 200 California billionaires to close the gap on federal healthcare cuts. California billionaires will have the option to pay it over five years. Most billionaires get more capital gains in a matter of months than what those annual tax payments would be, so it is unlikely that many billionaires would actually see a decrease in their current wealth. 

The emergency billionaire tax would keep hospitals and ERs open, prevent higher healthcare costs, and protect healthcare for all Californians, including children, seniors, and people with disabilities. 

This commonsense measure is designed in part to ensure that billionaires pay their fair share to stabilize and protect the state’s vast healthcare system. It is a direct response to the Medicaid cuts that were included in federal HR1, which will decimate California businesses and families beginning in 2026 through higher insurance premiums, higher healthcare costs, and shuttered access to emergency rooms and other vital services.

Tax experts have underscored that what makes the billionaire tax unique is how it’s designed to be fair and enforceable – so billionaires who are California residents on January 1, 2026 can’t avoid responsibility by moving their assets or claiming residency elsewhere. 

In comparison, working people like nurses, healthcare workers, teachers, and firefighters pay taxes on nearly every dollar they earn. Without this measure, higher healthcare costs will be shifted onto millions of Californians, many of whom are already struggling with skyrocketing healthcare and prescription costs. 

Measures such as the Massachusetts Fair Share Amendment and Washington State’s capital gains tax have generated billions in new revenue for public transportation and education, and increased the number of high-income residents and their cumulative wealth in both states.

The ballot measure will give all Californians the opportunity to vote “yes” to save their healthcare, with 90% of funds raised going toward stabilizing California’s healthcare system and protecting healthcare for all Californians, and 10% funding food aid and supporting K-14 public education. 

“California is facing massive federal healthcare cuts — $20 to $30 billion a year for the next five years. The billionaire tax would raise dollar-for-dollar emergency funding of $100 billion through a one-time 5% tax on the worldwide net worth of California’s billionaires. Any reductions in state income tax would be negligible in comparison to the billions that will be raised by the billionaire tax. And billionaires would still be taxed at lower rates than were in effect under President Reagan,” said Suzanne Jimenez, Chief of Staff, SEIU-UHW, a leading supporter of the 2026 Billionaire Tax Act. 

“Frontline healthcare workers like me are already doing more with less, and I’m deeply concerned about how these enormous cuts will affect patients. At a time when so many people are struggling with the skyrocketing costs of housing, electricity, and groceries, these cuts won’t just rip healthcare away from millions of Californians—they’ll also drive healthcare costs even higher for all of us. That’s why I’m volunteering my time to make sure my friends and neighbors know the facts about the Billionaire Tax and how it will prevent a full-scale healthcare collapse, protect patients, and save lives,” said Mayra Castaneda, an Ultrasound Technologist from Lynwood, California.

“Doctors across California are already seeing the strain that chronic underfunding puts on our hospitals, emergency rooms, and clinics,” said Dr. Mahima Iyengar, Secretary Treasurer of CIR/SEIU, the largest house staff union in the United States, representing over 40,000 resident physicians and fellows nationwide. “The federal healthcare cuts are pushing an already fragile system to the breaking point — forcing hospital closures, longer wait times, and worse outcomes for patients. The California Billionaire Tax Act is a responsible, common-sense solution that protects patient care and ensures doctors and healthcare workers can continue doing our jobs: saving lives.”

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About the California Billionaire Tax Act

The California Billionaire Tax Act proposes a modest tax on the wealth of the state’s ultra-high-net-worth individuals to safeguard Medi-Cal, protect hospitals and health care workers, expand food assistance programs, and support public education. The initiative reflects a comprehensive response to federal policies that simultaneously threaten health care, food security, school performance, and economic stability throughout California.

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