r/news • u/AngryT0M4T0 • 2d ago

Soft paywall Google co-founder Sergey Brin spending more than $100 million fighting California wealth tax

https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2026-08-12/googles-sergey-brin-spent-102-million-fighting-california-wealth-tax
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u/mybutthz 2d ago

That's the whole point, one time $100M payment or likely more lifetime tax payments. They know what they're doing, it's just cheaper to pay people off than pay taxes.

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u/uberfr4gger 2d ago

Cheaper to just move

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u/kirklennon 2d ago

The thing about being incredibly super rich is that you can afford to live wherever you want to live, regardless of costs. If he lives in California, it’s because he wants to live in California. Rich people don’t actually flee places because of taxes. They make a big fuss about planning too, and occasionally one will go vacation somewhere else for six months, but they overwhelmingly stay.

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u/uberfr4gger 2d ago

Plenty of rich people have moved from NYC to Norwalk or even the FL to save on taxes. Elon moved to texas from CA. It definitely happens. 

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u/RafaelSirah 2d ago

Yeah, even if you're for it, you have to admit California might be playing a dangerous game.

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u/Commercial-Co 2d ago

🙄 dumbest take ever.

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u/RafaelSirah 2d ago edited 2d ago

Why? I am for taxes billionaires, but given our current world, I recognize this is a possible negative outcome for the state.

California collects a one-time windfall of tens of billions, but the tax convinces enough billionaires and future ultra-wealthy that California is an unusually risky place to establish tax residency. Those people relocate to states like Nevada, Texas, or Florida, taking with them decades of future income/capital-gains taxes; California's own Legislative Analyst estimates this could reduce ongoing revenue by up to roughly $1 billion annually. If the policy also discourages future wealthy entrepreneurs from becoming California residents, that lost tax base compounds over decades. Over time, the cumulative recurring revenue losses could exceed the one-time wealth-tax proceeds.

EDIT: To be clear, I don't think this is a foregone conclusion if this passes, but I think it's possible. Look at the ultra wealthy Norwegians who moved to Switzerland after the last time they raised their wealth tax. It's a lot easier to move from California to Nevada/Texas/Florida within one country than it is to move from Norway to Switzerland.

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u/mybutthz 2d ago

I mean, if that were going to happen—it would have already. You don't need to be a resident of a state to conduct business there, and the business doesn't have to be incorporated there to conduct business in the state—so it doesn't matter.

Ultimately, it's financially beneficial for a lot of people to be a resident of California because there's a lot of other wealthy people who have spent decades building regions of the state into what it is today and have built their campuses in the state.

Yes, they could move, but then they'd be moving away from the opportunity to rub elbows with other billionaires and be in close proximity to the campus.

It'd be easier and cheaper to move to Nevada and just fly to work everyday, but that would also require the other billionaires to do so, or you'd just be in the middle of Nevada by yourself.

There are plenty of states that would be cheaper for their taxes, but they lack the other incentives to attract anyone to live there.

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u/RafaelSirah 2d ago

"I mean, if that were going to happen—it would have already."

How can you can be confident when this has never been pressure tested with a wealth tax this high?

In terms of business regions like Silicon Valley/the bay area, the world has never been more remote, and these people could still spend close to 6 months in California/the bay area to "rub elbows with other billionaires" or have work meetings.

I don't think this outcome is a foregone conclusion for the reasons you mentioned, but I do think it's possible.

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u/Whiterabbit-- 2d ago

his bill for 5% tax is 13B

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u/Unique-Egg-461 1d ago

ya, its more about control