Sergey Brin Donated Millions Ahead of California’s Wealth Tax Vote

Google cofounder Sergey Brin is one of the many California-based billionaires pouring millions into donations ahead of the state’s proposed wealth tax.

Brin, along with other tech executives, venture capitalists, and philanthropists, donated a combined $35 million to ballot measure committees in January, supporting affordable housing ballots in California, per a disclosure seen by Business Insider.

The disclosure was filed by the coalition “Building a Better California.”

Brin was the largest contributor in the filing, donating $20 million. Others donated large sums on various days in January, like former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and PayPal CEO Max Levchin, who donated $2 million and $1 million, respectively.

Others in the list include DoorDash CEO Tony Xu, Stripe CEO Patrick Collison, and Kleiner Perkins Chairman John Doerr.

Brin’s multimillion-dollar donation comes ahead of California’s vote on a measure that would levy a one-time, 5% tax on billionaires in the state. The tax, due in 2027, would be imposed retroactively from January 1 this year.

Groups like the one Brin donated to are part of a concerted push by billionaires to negate the need for the wealth tax, either by funding alternative programs or by funneling money into political action committees opposed to the measure.

Reactions to the potential tax have been mixed. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said he’s “perfectly fine” with it, saying this month that Silicon Valley’s talent pool was worth any taxes.

However, other executives have taken a more defensive stance. Brin and Google’s other cofounder, Larry Page, moved an LLC they are both tied to from California to Delaware in December.

LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman said the tax would be “horrendous” for innovation. White House AI czar David Sacks said the tax, if enacted, would be akin to an “asset seizure.”

The New York Times reported that Palantir’s chairman, Peter Thiel, donated $3 million to the California Business Roundtable in December, which has directly opposed the wealth tax.

Representatives for the executives did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.