California's public health tax plan hits roadblock A ballot initiative that would have raised taxes on California millionaires and billionaires to fund public health programs and pandemic prevention is dead, for this year at least. The initiative would have imposed an additional tax “at the rate of 0.75% on that portion of a taxpayer’s taxable income” that exceeds $5m. It would generate as much as $15bn over 10 years, according to a state government analysis of the measure. Initiative backers said they had gathered the roughly 1m signatures needed to qualify the California Pandemic Early Detection and Prevention Act for the November ballot, but intentionally missed a June 30th deadline to submit them to the California secretary of state. They instead submitted the signatures one day later, on July 1st, making the initiative eligible for the ballot in November 2024, although the secretary of state’s office would still have to validate the signatures before placing it on the ballot. “Voters may feel better about the economy in two years, and turnout is likely to be higher in a presidential election year — so it may be a more hospitable environment,” said Dan Schnur, a California political strategist. Los Angeles Times