Full Breakdown
Sergey Brin’s $100-Million Campaign to Block California’s Billionaire Tax
8/12/2026, 11:54:00 AM
Brin’s New Donation Fuels Opposition to Prop 40
Google co-founder Sergey Brin has contributed an additional $20 million to Build a Better California, a group lobbying against the state’s proposed billionaire tax. The filing shows Brin’s total spending to thwart the measure now exceeds $100 million, a sum aimed at preventing an estimated $13.3 billion tax bill that would affect roughly 200 California-based billionaires.
Background: What Prop 40 Entails
Prop 40 would impose a one-time 5 percent levy on the net worth of about 200 ultra-wealthy residents. Proceeds are earmarked for California’s healthcare programs, with the state’s Medicaid system projected to lose up to $30 billion in federal funding if the tax is blocked. Governor Gavin Newsom has opposed the measure, warning that it could drive high-net-worth individuals and their businesses out of the state and has called for a “national billionaires’ tax” instead.
Financial Scale of the Debate
- Brin’s net worth: approximately $267 billion.
- Total anti-tax spending by Brin: >$100 million.
- Estimated tax liability for Brin: $13.3 billion.
- Jensen Huang’s projected liability: about $8 billion.
- Number of targeted billionaires: ~200.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Today, the office worker can shoulder a higher tax rate than the heiress,” — Gavin Newsom, dissent from governor
- “I have not even thought about it once,” — Jensen Huang
