theSIGNAL BUSINESS
26 October 2026
"Taxes are what we pay for civilized society."
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Business

California Asks Its 200 Billionaires for $100bn

Proposition 40 would impose a one-time 5% levy on billionaire net worth, testing whether a wealth tax can work in the world's fourth-largest economy.

A little more than 200 people could decide how California pays for its hospitals. That is roughly the number of billionaires who live in the state, and Proposition 40 would ask each of them for a single payment equal to 5% of their net worth. Supporters hope the measure will raise $100bn (£75bn). The list of residents it would affect includes Oprah Winfrey, Mark Zuckerberg, Kim Kardashian and George Lucas.

The scale of the numbers explains why the vote matters beyond America. California's economy is the largest in the United States and the fourth largest in the world, bigger than those of India and the UK. Yet the state also has the biggest share of homeless people in the country and one of the widest wealth gaps. Francesco Trebbi, a public policy professor at the University of California, Berkeley, believes this is the first wealth tax aimed at such an extreme slice of the distribution.

If it passes, it will become a test case that other governments, from Europe to Latin America, are likely to study closely. The immediate motive is financial rather than philosophical. Backers, led by the healthcare union SEIU-UHW, argue that federal funding cuts linked to President Donald Trump's tax and spending bill will leave a hole in the state's health system. Suzanne Jimenez, the union's chief of staff, calls the levy a short-term fix while a lasting solution is found.

Photo: Maverick Frame / Unsplash
Coastal mansions in California, home to one of the world's highest concentrations of billionaires, face a historic tax vote.
💰
$100bn
Revenue Proposition 40 aims to raise for healthcare
Discuss
  • Why might a one-time wealth tax affect investment decisions differently from an annual income tax on the same people?
  • Proposition 40 affects about 200 people but is decided by millions of voters. Is that democratic or unfair?
Business

Audi Pays Tariff Toll With Georgia Factory

Four billion dollars buys Audi a place on Donald Trump's rally stage. The German brand will build its first US plant in Macon, Georgia, producing 200,000 SUVs and 4,500 jobs, partly shifting output from Slovakia. The logic is arithmetic: Volkswagen says US tariffs cost it up to €5bn annually.…
  • Can tariff-driven factories in America justify job cuts at carmakers' European home plants?
Business

Burnham Reopens Free Movement, Splitting Labour

Britain's prime minister has dropped a red line that has framed its EU talks since 2016. Andy Burnham says rejoining the single market with free movement could be offered in a manifesto, without a second referendum; full membership would require one. Angela Rayner and Ed Miliband are sympathetic, seeing growth gains. Yet "red wall" MPs fear for Brexit-voting seats, and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has been cautious.…
  • Can promised economic growth persuade voters who rejected free movement in 2016?
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If we do nothing, we're going to see a collapse of our healthcare system, while we figure out a longer-term solution to fund our healthcare.
Suzanne Jimenez, chief of staff, SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West
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theSIGNAL IN THE LAB
IVOCABULARY
levywealth gap
federal funding cutsmobiletariffs
red linemanifesto
IIGRAMMAR FOCUS
Discourse markers — contrast and concession (Nevertheless, Whereas, Despite)
Use 'Despite' (or 'In spite of') before a noun or -ing form, 'Although' or 'While' before a full clause, and 'Nevertheless' or 'However' to start a new sentence that contrasts with the previous one. 'Whereas' links two clauses to show a direct contrast between two things.
Despite · Nevertheless · Whereas · Although · However · While · In spite of
  1. California has the fourth largest economy in the world; , it also has the biggest share of homeless people in the United States.
  2. its enormous economic output, California faces a serious shortfall in its health system.
  3. Supporters see the one-time payment as a short-term fix, opponents fear it will drive wealthy residents away.
  4. the tax could raise $100bn quickly, it may change where the next entrepreneur decides to build a company.
  5. Audi will build a plant in Georgia to avoid US tariffs. , Volkswagen is cutting up to 100,000 jobs at home.
  6. Volkswagen says tariffs cost it up to €5bn a year, the new plant is expected to create 4,500 American jobs.
IIICOLLOCATIONS
Match the verb on the left with the noun phrase it best collocates with on the right.
  1. raise
  2. drop
  3. shift
  4. plug
  5. cut
IVCRITICAL THINKING
All three stories show governments or companies reacting to outside pressure: federal funding cuts, US tariffs and the fallout from Brexit. In each case, who bears the cost of the decision, and who has the least say in making it? Consider whether the people who pay the price are ever the same people who benefit.
VCREATIVE · HEADLINES
Write a headline for the top story in each of the following styles. One line each, no explanation:
  • TABLOID NEWSPAPER
  • LUXURY MAGAZINE
  • ACTIVIST BLOG
VIWRITING
Choose one of the three stories and write a short letter (120-150 words) to a newspaper from the point of view of someone directly affected by it, such as a Californian billionaire, a Slovak factory worker or a voter in a former Labour stronghold. Explain what you fear and what you would want decision-makers to understand.
VIIDEGREES OF EXTREMITY
Complete each ladder from mild to strong.
  • a little more than 200 people→→
  • cautious→→
  • a gap in funding→→
  • a short-term fix→→
  • sympathetic to the idea→→
  • feel unwelcome→→
VIIISPEAKING
  1. Should big companies be rewarded for moving factories to the countries that tax them?
  2. Some say governments should never change a policy after a referendum. Do you agree?
  3. If rich residents leave, who should make up the lost tax income?
  4. Would you support a levy on the wealthy in your own country? Why?