Associated Press reports on California governor Jerry Brown’s proposed tax increase, which will be on the ballot in November.
Brown also defended calling his proposal a “millionaires tax” on his initiative campaign website, even though the income threshold would be $250,000.
“Anybody who makes $250,000 becomes a millionaire very quickly if you save it. You just need four years,” Brown said. “It is a millionaires tax. It taxes millionaires, right? And it’s for schools. And it protects public safety.”
Of course, the governor is assuming that people with an annual income of a quarter million do not buy any goods or services (including food, clothing, and shelter) and do not pay any federal, state, or local taxes. Apart from that minor caveat, it’s a perfectly reasonable assertion.