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Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman has blasted California’s proposed wealth tax as a potential government seizure of private property, arguing such taxes have failed everywhere they have been tried.
Ackman, who is not a California resident, took to X earlier this week to criticize the proposal which, if approved by voters, would impose a one-time 5% tax on the assets of California residents worth more than $1 billion.
“I am opposed to wealth taxes because they effectively represent an expropriation of private property and have many unintended and negative consequences that have occurred in every country that has launched such a tax,” Ackman said in the post.
The proposal comes as California faces a projected $18 billion deficit for fiscal year 2026-27, according to the state’s Legislative Analyst’s Office.
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“With respect to California’s budget problem, the issue is not a lack of tax revenues. The problem is how the money is being spent,” Ackman wrote.
Days earlier, Ackman said that “California is on a path to self-destruction” amid news that some tech billionaires were considering leaving the state if the proposal were to move forward.
Billionaire tech investor Peter Thiel and Google co-founder Larry Page were weighing whether to cut ties with California over the proposed ballot measure, according to a New York Times report.
“Hollywood is already toast and now the most productive entrepreneurs will leave taking their tax revenues and job creation elsewhere,” Ackman said. “And then the Democrats highlight California Gov. Gavin Newsom as a great leader. Crazy.”
Last month, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said he opposed the proposed billionaire tax, while cautioning against panic over the measure.
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Supporters say the wealth tax revenue could help offset potential federal funding cuts for health care and say the measure is backed by the Service Employees International Union–United Healthcare Workers West.
The measure remains under consideration for the November statewide ballot and would apply retroactively to anyone who lived in California as of Jan. 1, 2026.
Under the proposal, a resident with $20 billion in assets on that date would owe a one-time tax of $1 billion, payable over five years.
Ackman said he would instead support a narrower tax-code change aimed at billionaires who live off stock-backed loans, arguing the tax code should be tightened so ultra-wealthy individuals cannot live tax-free by borrowing against stock instead of selling it.
He said a simple fix would be to tax large personal loans above a person’s original investment as if the stock had been sold, closing what he described as a loophole used by many ultra-wealthy individuals.
“One shouldn’t be able to live and spend like a billionaire and pay no tax,” Ackman said.
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Ackman’s post drew support from fellow billionaire Mark Cuban, who reposted it, writing, “Agree.”
Fox News’ Amanda Macias contributed to this report.
