Canvassers in Denver received petition packets as they prepared to gather signatures in support of a graduated income tax measure that will appear on the Colorado ballot in November. Colorado is one of at least nine states that will decide whether to cut, cap or raise taxes this fall.
This fall, voters in at least nine states will decide whether to cut, cap or raise taxes through ballot measures that will give them a direct hand in steering state tax policy in a conservative or progressive direction. Some states, such as California, will weigh whether to tax – or untax – their wealthiest residents. Others, such as Florida, are considering a myriad of mostly conservative-backed measures to cut property or income taxes.
“The California wealth tax is part of a broader conversation regarding the wealthy having to pay their fair share,” said Janelle Fritts, senior policy analyst at the Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan tax analysis and research organization. “Florida is reflecting the broader conversation about property taxes right now. “Any kind of tax elimination is going to require a lot of tradeoffs.”
Below is a rundown on the states where tax measures are on the ballot, and how they could reshape the money available for communities to spend on public services.
Taxing the rich California voters in November will weigh a measure no other state has tried: a one-time wealth tax on billionaires. Proposition 40 would take 5% of billionaires’ net worth in order to raise tens of billions to close budget holes the state’s Medicaid, food assistance, education and other programs. The measure is largely a response to the loss of federal funding from President Donald Trump’s 2025 budget law, the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act, according to the California Budget & Policy Center.
California’s 250 billionaires are collectively worth $2.3 trillion, equal to the entire income of all 20 million California taxpayers, according to a September letter written in support of Proposition 40 by a group of six Nobel Prize-winning economists. A billionaire wealth tax in California, they said, could “kickstart a movement to tax ultra-high-net-worth individuals in other states.”
A handful of other states, including Maine, Massachusetts, New York and Washington, already have a so-called millionaire tax that taxes earnings above the $1 million mark at higher rates. Earlier this year, Hawaii joined the group by passing a law that added a 13% income tax bracket for joint filers earning more than $1 million, while also preserving some income tax cuts for lower-income filers.
But California is going further with its one-time 5% tax. The state’s Democratic leaders are divided. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, is against the proposal, as are some state education and medical associations. Critics say the tax could push billionaires to leave the state entirely, leading to a dramatic loss in future income tax revenues and fewer business investments. Some say it would face myriad legal challenges. And because the tax is earmarked, some groups oppose it because the funds couldn’t be used to support programs including affordable housing and subsidized child care.
The state Democratic Party has narrowly endorsed it. Other supporters include some labor organizations, as well as California U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna, a Democrat. Billionaire opponents, including Google cofounder Sergey Brin, have funneled enormous sums into opposing the tax and supporting competing ballot measures.
Two constitutional amendments also on the ballot, Propositions 41 and 42, could undo parts or all of Proposition 40, as long as they receive more “yes” votes, according to California’s Legislative Analyst’s Office. One new poll found that just 45% of likely voters approve of taxing California’s wealthiest residents, according to polling from Politico and the University of California, Berkeley. California voters also will consider another measure, Prop
