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The Deipnosophist

Where the science of investing becomes an art of living

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Location: Summerlin, Nevada, United States

A private investor for 20+ years, I manage private portfolios and write about investing. You can read my market musings on three different sites: 1) The Deipnosophist, dedicated to teaching the market's processes and mechanics; 2) Investment Poetry, a subscription site dedicated to real time investment recommendations; and 3) Seeking Alpha, a combination of the other two sites with a mix of reprints from this site and all-original content. See you here, there, or the other site!

17 December 2005

Wealth Tax in CA?

The note that follows is from Scott Grannis, Chief Economist at Western Asset Management. He writes, however, in his guise as fellow person and potentially outraged citizen of California.
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Did you know that there is a madman out there circulating a petition for a proposition to be placed on next year's ballot that would do the following? Believe it or not, it's true. You can check it out
here:

Proposal: An additional 12% tax on all income exceeding $250,000, plus a one-time 45% tax on all wealth exceeding $40 million.

And there's presumably no way of escaping it should it pass, unless you move out of the state before the end of the year AND you haven't lived in the state for at least 5 years. This is madness, and I have to believe it stands no chance of passing (though it could qualify for the ballot), but it is indicative of the new political climate here in the wake of the Governator's big defeat in the last election. Holy Cow.
1157. (SA2005RF0096)

Wealth Tax. Tax Rates. Tax Credits. Initiative Constitutional Amendment and Statute.
Summary Date: 10/14/05 Circulation Deadline: 03/13/06 Signatures Required: 598,105
Proponent: Paul McCauley (818) 788-5919

Imposes one-time 45% tax on California residents and certain former California residents owning property worth more than $40 million on January 1, 2007. Amends Constitution to exempt this tax from 1% limit on ad valorem real property taxes. Imposes additional 12% tax on income for high-income taxpayers. Reduces corporate income tax rate by approximately 54%. Eliminates alternative minimum tax and certain tax credits, including those for head of household and dependants. Creates/increases tax credits, including those for teacher pay, public college tuition; property taxes and health insurance. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local governments: One-time increase in state revenues potentially up to $200 billion from imposition of a wealth tax. A portion of this revenue would be required to be allocated to schools with the remainder used for other state spending or tax rebates. Annual increased state taxes- primarily from increased personal income taxes- in the low tens of billions of dollars annually, offset by a commensurate amount of state tax reductions from rate reductions and new tax credits.

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