Google Co-Founder Sergey Brin Donates $500,000 To California Group Fighting Against 'Overpaid CEO Tax'

Last Updated:May 22, 2026, 09:39 IST

Campaign finance filings show Brin made the donation to the political committee titled “Yes on C, No on D to protect San Francisco’s small businesses and economic recovery.”

Google co-founder Sergey Brin has donated $500,000 to a campaign opposing a proposed expansion of San Francisco’s controversial “overpaid CEO tax," giving a major financial boost to business-backed efforts ahead of the city’s June ballot vote. Campaign finance filings show Brin made the donation on Tuesday to the political committee titled “Yes on C, No on D to protect San Francisco’s small businesses and economic recovery."

The group is supported by prominent business organizations, including the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce and the advocacy group Advance SF.

The funding arrives at a crucial moment as San Francisco voters prepare to decide between two competing ballot measures — Measure C and Measure D — on June 2.

Measure C, backed largely by the city’s business community, would accelerate a planned increase in the existing “overpaid executive gross receipts tax," commonly referred to as the “overpaid CEO tax," by moving the scheduled 2028 hike up to 2027. At the same time, it would also expand tax exemptions for smaller businesses.

Under the proposal, the threshold for exemption from the city’s gross receipts tax would rise from $5 million to $7.5 million in annual gross receipts. Supporters argue that the change would provide relief to smaller companies still recovering from economic challenges and help maintain business activity in the city.

According to data from the San Francisco Ethics Commission, the campaign supporting Measure C and opposing Measure D has already raised more than $5.6 million and spent approximately $1.5 million on advertisements and voter outreach efforts.

Meanwhile, Measure D — backed by labor unions and progressive groups — seeks to retain the current tax structure while significantly expanding the CEO pay-ratio tax. Supporters of Measure D say the proposal is aimed at increasing accountability for corporations with large pay gaps between executives and workers, while generating additional public revenue.

What Is the ‘Overpaid CEO Tax’?

San Francisco’s “overpaid CEO tax" was approved by voters in 2020. Officially known as the “Overpaid Executive Gross Receipts Tax," it imposes additional taxes on companies in which top executives earn substantially more than the average employee.

The tax is based on a company’s CEO-to-worker pay ratio. Businesses where executives earn hundreds of times more than their median employee salaries are required to pay a higher tax rate. The policy was introduced as an effort to address income inequality and encourage fairer compensation structures within large corporations.

News world Google Co-Founder Sergey Brin Donates $500,000 To California Group Fighting Against 'Overpaid CEO Tax'

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