California
Prop 42Prohibits New State Personal Property Taxes and Certain Retroactive State Taxes
What your vote does
A NO vote means
No new limits. The state or voters could still create new taxes on owning financial assets or other personal property, or on past events. 3
Both ovals are empty on purpose. The choice is yours.
Prohibits New State Personal Property Taxes and Certain Retroactive State Taxes. Initiative Constitutional Amendment. Prohibits any new state tax (1) imposed on the ownership of personal property (all things people own other than real estate), or (2) that applies retroactively based on taxpayer’s past activities. Nullifies taxes enacted after January 1, 2026 that conflict with this measure. Fiscal Impact: Possibility that tax revenues will not go up as much in the future. Supporters: CA Professional Firefighters; State Building & Construction Trades Council of CA; AMVETS Department of CA Opponents: US Senator Bernie Sanders; SEIU United Healthcare Workers West
This is the exact wording from the official voter guide.
If it fails
Nothing changes if it fails
If Prop 42 fails, current law stays. The Legislative Analyst (LAO) says some personal property is taxed, but simply owning financial assets is not. It says if Prop 42 passes with more yes votes than Prop 40, courts could find a conflict and stop Prop 40. 3
Why it’s on the ballot now
Personal property is all the things people own other than real estate. The state and local governments already tax owning some of it, like cars and business equipment. 3
Owning financial assets, like stocks and investment accounts, is not taxed today. The state does tax the income people make from those assets. 3
A retroactive tax applies to things that happened in the past. One example is a tax on money someone earned two years ago. 3
The measure's own findings, which argue for it, say "politicians and special interest groups" want to start taxing retirement holdings and other personal savings. 5
The money
The Legislative Analyst (LAO) says Prop 42 could make it somewhat harder for the state to raise taxes. This could reduce future tax revenue. When and by how much is unclear. See the money chart for the latest filed totals. 3
- Amount
- No direct cost; future tax revenue could be lower
- How long
- No end date; covers taxes enacted or taking effect on or after January 1, 2026
Who bears the cost
State government (tax revenue)
If it passes
- The LAO says Prop 42 could make it somewhat harder for the state to raise taxes. That could reduce future tax revenues. The LAO says when and by how much is unclear. 3
Owners of personal property, including financial assetsNo new cost
What they already pay
- Car and truck owners pay a yearly vehicle license fee, and business equipment owners pay county property taxes. The LAO says the state taxes income from financial assets, but not simply owning them. 3
Who’s behind it
How it got on the ballot: Citizen petition
The ballot label calls it an "Initiative Constitutional Amendment." The legal text names Section 8 of Article II of the California Constitution. It says this initiative measure "is submitted to the people" under that section. 15
Where the support comes from
Placed by who endorsed it and who funded it, not by our opinion. How we place measures
The California Republican Party and the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, a taxpayer group, recommend Yes on Prop 42, while the California Democratic Party recommends No. GrowSF, an advocacy group, and the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, a business group, also support it. SPUR and the League of Women Voters of California, both good-government groups, oppose it. The largest donor to the committee supporting Prop 42 is Building A Better California, and the largest donor to committees opposing it is SEIU United Healthcare Workers West. 111210789131415
Endorsements
| Group | YES | NO | Neutral |
|---|---|---|---|
| Progressive slate | |||
| San Francisco League of Pissed Off Voters | No | ||
| Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club | No | ||
| Moderate slate | |||
| GrowSF | Yes | ||
| San Francisco Chamber of Commerce | Yes | ||
| Political parties | |||
| San Francisco Democratic Party | No | ||
| San Francisco Green Party | No | ||
| California Democratic Party | No | ||
| California Republican Party | Yes | ||
| Other groups | |||
| SPUR | No | ||
| San Francisco Women's Political Committee | No | ||
| Alice B. Toklas LGBTQ Democratic Club | No | ||
| Edwin M. Lee Asian Pacific Democratic Club | Yes | ||
| Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association | Yes | ||
| League of Women Voters of California | No | ||
Follow the money
YESTop donors
One donor gave more than half of this side’s money.
- Building A Better California$154.1M
- Peace Officers Research Association Of California Political Issues Committee (Porac Pic)$150K
Who is this?
Political committee named for the Peace Officers Research Association of California. Its website says the group has over 85,000 public safety members. 1
Their stake
The president of the Peace Officers Research Association of California signed the official rebuttal to the argument against Prop 42. It asks if politicians should have the power to tax “your personal property, including retirement and savings accounts.” 2
From public records, not their own explanation.
- Reform California With Carl De Maio - Ballot Measure Committee$22.5K
- Reform Local Government PAC$4,500
- The top 5 donors gave 100% of this side’s money.
- 0% came from outside California.
- Independent spending (not controlled by the campaign): $182.4K
Committees: Yes on 42 - Protect Retirement & Life Savings, a Coalition of Retirees, Blue-Collar Workers, Seniors, Veterans, Small Businesses & Taxpayers
NOTop donors
One donor gave more than half of this side’s money.
- SEIU United Healthcare Workers West (committees combined)$20.6M
Who is this?
Statewide local union of the Service Employees International Union in California. It had about 97,000 members in 2020. 1
What they’ve said
- Million More Voters, Sponsored by the California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO$500K
- Alan Davis$316.2K
- United Domestic Workers of America Issues PAC$250K
Who is this?
A committee of United Domestic Workers (UDW). The union's website says it represents more than 250,000 home care and family child care providers in California. 1
What they’ve said
UDW's 2026 voting page says Prop 42 makes it harder to raise new funding for programs like IHSS, Medi-Cal and child care. 2
- PACE of California School Employees Association - Issues$150K
Who is this?
PACE of CSEA – Issues is one of three committees for which the California School Employees Association is a primary funder. The union represents school staff who are not teachers, such as bus drivers and custodians. 1
- Saikat Chakrabarti$130.3K
Who is this?
Former Stripe engineer and former congressional candidate. Chakrabarti co-founded Justice Democrats, a PAC that works to elect progressive members of Congress. 1
- Ross Boucher$129.6K
- California Labor Federation AFL-CIO$129.6K
Who is this?
The federation's website says it represents over 1,300 unions in California. It says they have over 2.3 million union members in fields such as trucking, retail, construction and health care. 1
- California Federation of Teachers COPE PROP/
BALLOT Committee$100K - Hillary Perkins$64.8K
- The top 5 donors gave 96% of this side’s money.
- 1% came from outside California.
- Independent spending (not controlled by the campaign): $25.6K
Committees: Tax the Ultra-Rich Now, Yes on 3 & 40, No on 41 & 42; Working Families Say No to Propositions 41 and 42 Sponsored by Labor Unions; Yes on 40 - Billionaire Tax Now - No on 41 & 42, Sponsored by Service Employees International Union - United Healthcare Workers West
- Yes on 42 - Protect Retirement & Life Savings, a Coalition of Retirees, Blue-Collar Workers, Seniors, Veterans, Small Businesses & Taxpayers: added $26,300,000 of 24-hour late contributions dated after the Secretary of State's 2026-10-22 cutoff.
- YES side independent expenditures (Form 496) of $182,378, mostly by: Reform California with Carl DeMaio - Ballot Measure Committee $129,442; Ron Burkle $50,000; REPUBLICAN PARTY OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY $2,936. Separate from total_raised.
- Yes on 40 - Billionaire Tax Now - No on 41 & 42, Sponsored by Service Employees International Union - United Healthcare Workers West (FPPC 1484470) supports or opposes several measures; the Secretary of State attributes $21,249,723 of its $32,783,342 to this one. Donor amounts here are scaled by that same share (65%).
- NO side: $7,292 given by one committee on this side to another was counted once.
- NO side independent expenditures (Form 496) of $25,586, mostly by: ACLU California Action Issues Committee $8,989; Million Voter Project Action Fund, Sponsored by Social Justice Organizations $5,299; ACLU Foundation of San Diego & Imperial Counties $5,206. Separate from total_raised.
- Committee totals are the Secretary of State's per-measure 'Total Reported Contributions' through 2026-10-22 (secretary of state page), plus later 24-hour reports from the Cal-Access bulk export built 2026-10-28. Donors, geography and independent expenditures come from the itemized Cal-Access filings. Contributions to committees that back several measures are credited pro rata to the share the Secretary of State assigns to this measure.
- Source cutoff: the Cal-Access export used was built 2026-10-27 (UTC) and the Secretary of State's per-measure totals run through 2026-10-22. as_of is the latest filing from this measure's own committees, which can be earlier.
- Money given to a committee by another committee is shown as that committee, not the money's original source (e.g. a union's issues PAC, not its members). Donor type is inferred from the name; check the filing for sponsors.
Sources: CA Secretary of State: Proposition 42 contribution totals · Cal-Access raw campaign finance data export · FPPC Top 10 Contributors, November 2026 General Election
Related and competing measures
Conflicts with Prop 40
Prop 42 would cancel taxes enacted after January 1, 2026 that conflict with it. Prop 40 would put a one-time 5% tax on the net worth of billionaires who lived in California on January 1, 2026. Prop 42 says some measures on the same ballot conflict with it. These are measures that tax owning personal property, or tax past conduct or status. Prop 42 says such a measure is void if Prop 42 gets more yes votes. The LAO says that if Prop 42 gets more yes votes than Prop 40, courts could find the two conflict. Then Prop 40 could be stopped from becoming law, even if most voters vote yes on it. 31625
If two conflicting measures both pass, the one with more YES votes takes effect.
The strongest case for and against
Each side’s best argument, written as its supporters would make it. Neither is our view.
Strongest case for
Supporters include the California Professional Firefighters, the State Building and Construction Trades Council of California and AMVETS, Department of California. They say California is the third most expensive state to retire in. They argue the state Constitution now lets lawmakers tax the value of retirement funds and savings. They say people already paid income tax on that money. Supporters call this double taxation. They say lawmakers and special interests have put forward six plans in recent years to tax retirement and savings accounts. Supporters argue people need stable tax rules. They say the rules should not change after years of saving. They say Prop 42 protects pensions, 401ks, IRAs and personal savings. 14
Strongest case against
Opponents include US Senator Bernie Sanders and SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West. Opponents say Prop 42 is not really about protecting retirement savings. They argue it was designed to undo Prop 40. They call Prop 40 the California Billionaire Tax. They call Prop 42 a redundant and expensive trick. Opponents say Prop 40 applies only to billionaires. So, they say, ordinary people's retirement and savings are not at risk. They say billionaires funded Prop 42 so they can keep avoiding taxes. Opponents say the billionaire tax is a chance to keep hospitals open and health care affordable. 41
Sources
Every fact on this page links to one of these sources.
- Ballot label: title (table of contents) and summary (Quick Reference Guide), Proposition 42 (en edition), CA Official Voter Information Guide, Nov 3, 2026, p. 3, 10
- Proposition 42: Official Title and Summary (prepared by the Attorney General), CA Official Voter Information Guide, Nov 3, 2026, p. 1
- Proposition 42: Analysis by the Legislative Analyst, CA Official Voter Information Guide, Nov 3, 2026, p. 1-2
- Proposition 42: Arguments and rebuttals, CA Official Voter Information Guide, Nov 3, 2026, p. 3-4
- Proposition 42: Text of Proposed Law, CA Official Voter Information Guide, Nov 3, 2026, p. 1-4
- Proposition 40: Analysis by the Legislative Analyst, CA Official Voter Information Guide, Nov 3, 2026, p. 1-2
- GrowSF: recommendations for the November 3, 2026 election
- San Francisco Chamber of Commerce: recommendations for the November 3, 2026 election
- SPUR: recommendations for the November 3, 2026 election
- California Democratic Party: recommendations for the November 3, 2026 election
- California Republican Party: recommendations for the November 3, 2026 election
- Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association: recommendations for the November 3, 2026 election
- League of Women Voters of California: recommendations for the November 3, 2026 election
- How endorsers line up on Prop 42: this guide's coalition groupings (endorsement method 1.0, data as of 2026-10-27)
- Campaign finance filings as of 2026-10-26 (compiled by this guide from CA Secretary of State: Proposition 42 contribution totals; data/money/ca-2026-11-p42.json, main@0dcbec8)