In a few weeks, California voters will cast their ballots on Proposition Prop. This controversial proposition proposes to impose a one-time 5% tax on billionaires who still reside in California as of January 1, 2026.
Some billionaires, such as the CEO of Nvidia, Jensen Huang, have “no objections at all” to this proposal; however, some others left California before the deadline. One of them is Larry Page. This 53-year-old co-founder of Google has had a connection with California for decades, but began to gradually cut those ties after the wealth tax proposal emerged. Page currently has a net worth of $292 billion, so if he stayed in California, he would be expected to pay nearly $15 billion in taxes.
Fortune Reporters Sasha Rogelberg Previously reported that in December last year, the family office of Page Koop moved out of California and registered in Delaware. Rogelberg Analysis of state-level filing documents also found that other institutions related to Page, including Flu Lab LLC, One Aero, and Oceankind, also moved from California to Delaware in the same month. At the same time, Page made large-scale property purchases on the other side of the United States.
Earlier this year, The Wall Street Journal cited sources as reporting that Page purchased two mansions in Miami for a total of $173.4 million. One of these mansions is located in the Coconut Grove community and covers an area of 11,855 square feet, with a price of $101.5 million. Redfin reported that this transaction was the most expensive residential deal in December in the United States and also the fourth most expensive deal of 2025. County property records show that Page also purchased another nearby property for $71.9 million.
As states begin to levy taxes on the wealthy, Page is not the only tech billionaire to move from the West Coast to Miami. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos left Seattle for Miami at the end of 2023 and later sold his mansion in Hunts Point for a record $63 million. Today, he lives with his wife Lauren S, nchez, and Bezos in a mansion in Miami worth $237 million. Subsequently, Washington state passed a law imposing a 9.9% tax rate on income exceeding $1 million for families. Local voters will decide on November 3rd whether to repeal this tax.
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz also followed a similar path. In March, he announced his move from Seattle to Miami at a time when Washington state lawmakers were pushing for a "millionaire tax." It was reported that he paid $44 million for a penthouse apartment in Miami. It should be noted that Bezos stated that he moved to be closer to his parents; Schultz wrote that the couple "is enjoying the sunshine of South Florida, as well as its appeal to our children on the East Coast."
Google, the co-founder, also moved to Lake Tahoe on the Nevada side and purchased property in Miami; venture capitalist Peter Thiel also left California for Miami before the deadline of Prop. Florida does not impose personal income tax, capital gains tax, or wealth tax. Although a one-time levy might encourage people to move, the absence of income tax is equally attractive to super-rich individuals. Miami developer Robert Rivani told Fortune that this is a "huge benefit" for them. Rivani also moved from Los Angeles to Miami.
Some brokers suggest that super-rich individuals leaving California is actually out of necessity.
Compass Broker Michael Martirena to Fortune Journalist Marco Quiroz - Gutierrez said: "They want to stay in California because they like where they are, and they've never thought about moving away. But they've put a lot of effort into their money, so they say that, more than anything else, they value their wallets."
Nevertheless, the departure of these individuals has reduced the potential tax revenue that Prop could generate by 40%. Just Page, Brin, Thiel, and the former CEO of Uber, Travis Kalanick, together, should have paid approximately $29 billion according to the latest estimates from Fortune. This figure exceeds a quarter of the proposed fundraising target of $100 billion.
Opponents have spent over $187 million opposing the proposal, while supporters have spent approximately $32 million. Two counter-proposals supported by billionaires, Prop 41 and Prop 42, are also in progress; if either of them receives more votes, it could render Prop 40 invalid. Even if Prop 40 is ultimately passed, the California Budget and Policy Center believes that the residency date of January 1st is likely to be challenged in court. When determining whether someone is a resident of California, the state takes into account factors such as the length of time they have stayed in the state and their business connections.
