Google co-founder Larry Page leaves California ahead of billionaire tax vote

With Californians set to vote in just a few weeks on Proposition 40 – a measure proposing a one-time 5% wealth tax on the state's billionaires – Google co-founder Larry Page has emerged as the wealthiest tech titan to sever ties with the state should the measure pass. His departure is likely to deal a significant blow to California's revenue projections as he will be the richest techie to leave the state. The initiative specifically targets billionaires who were state residents as of January 1, 2026. While a few prominent executives, such as Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, have stated they are "perfectly fine" with the proposal, multiple ultra-wealthy residents chose to exit before the January deadline.Chief among them is the 53-year-old Page. Holding an estimated net worth of $292 billion, Page had deep roots in California spanning decades, Fortune reported, adding that had he remained a California resident past the cutoff date, he would have owed an estimated $15 billion under the one-time tax levy.Moving entities to Delaware and buying big in MiamiState filings have revealed that Page began unwinding his operational and personal presence in California late last year. According to an analysis of corporate records reported by Fortune, Page’s family office, Koop, was transferred out of California and officially incorporated in Delaware in late December. Multiple associated entities, including Flu Lab LLC, One Aero and Oceankind, followed the same route, moving their registrations from California to Delaware during the same month.Simultaneously, Page redirected significant capital toward luxury real estate on the East Coast. The Wall Street Journal reported that Page acquired two premier estates in Miami for a combined $173.4 million, which includes Coconut Grove Estate ($101.5 million, 11,855-square-foot property) and a neighboring parcel purchased for $71.9 million.The $29 billion dent in Prop 40’s targetThe departures of top-tier billionaires have already weakened the potential financial yield of the ballot measure. Prop 40 was projected to generate roughly $100 billion for the state. However, according to an estimate by Fortune, just four departed tech leaders – Larry Page, Sergey Brin, Peter Thiel and former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick – would have collectively owed approximately $29 billion. Their relocations before the residency cutoff mean the state has effectively lost out on more than a quarter of the measure's total projected revenue pool before ballots are even counted.Elon Musk, the richest person in the world, moved to Texas in 2020. Meanwhile, Jeff Bezos who recently but briefly secured the second richest person spot, departed Seattle for Miami in late 2023, eventually selling his Hunts Point home for a record $63 million to live in a $237 million Miami compound with his wife, Lauren Sánchez Bezos.