A proposed 5% one-time wealth tax on California billionaires has qualified for the November ballot, framed here as a serious threat to the state's economy and a dangerous precedent.

• California voters will decide on a one-time 5% tax on billionaires' assets — stocks, bonds, art — to raise $100 billion for schools, health care, and food aid.
• It's a wealth tax, not an income tax, so people would have to sell assets and pay capital gains tax just to cover the bill — making the real hit far above 5%.
• Backers are unions and progressives like Ro Khanna; Gavin Newsom has gone quiet and is now cast as protecting 250 billionaires.
• The worry is precedent: if it passes, New York and other states copy it, then the threshold drops from billionaires to $100 million.
• Some billionaires are expected to leave the state or shift assets into trusts before it takes effect, taking jobs and investment with them.

Outlook: If it reaches the ballot it's expected to pass easily, setting off legal fights and a wave of wealthy residents moving or restructuring their assets.