California Tripled Spending. Did Your Life Get 3x Better?
Per capita spending jumped from $4,350 to $12,940 while population grew just 11%. Where did all that money go?
Source: x.com
Source: x.com
TL;DR
California’s per capita government spending has nearly tripled in 20 years—from $4,350 to $12,940 per person—while facing its fourth consecutive budget deficit.
Chamath Palihapitiya just dropped a devastating chart that every California taxpayer needs to see:
Has your lived experience in California gotten 3x better in the past 20 years? Because your taxes and borrowing have gone up to triple spending in that same time. California Population: 2004: 35.6M 2024: 39.4M California Spending: 2004: $155B ($4,350/person) 2025: $510B ($12,940/person)
The numbers are staggering. In 2004, California spent $155 billion total—about $4,350 per person. Today? The state is burning through $510 billion, or roughly $12,940 per person. That’s a 197% increase in per capita spending.
Meanwhile, California’s population grew from 35.6 million to 39.4 million—just an 11% bump. So where exactly is all this money going?
The state’s own nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office has been sounding the alarm. They’ve called California’s fiscal situation “chronic” and raised “serious concerns about the state’s fiscal sustainability.” This is the fourth consecutive year the state faces a projected deficit—this time an $18 billion hole.
And what’s the response from Sacramento? Governor Newsom’s latest budget includes $600 million in new spending despite the shortfall. As Assemblyman David Tangipa put it, Newsom is “punting all of these issues to the next legislative session to the next governor of this state.”
The LAO also warned that California’s heavy reliance on capital gains tax revenue puts the state at serious risk. They noted that “several historically reliable signs suggest the stock market is overheated and at high risk of reversing course.” If the market tanks, California’s budget crater will only get deeper.
Three times the spending. Chronic deficits. Fraud and waste totaling $20+ million. And yet the roads are still crumbling, the schools are still struggling, and homelessness is still everywhere.
Has your lived experience in California gotten 3x better? Mine hasn’t either.
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Related Links
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Chamath's spending analysis (@chamath)
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Garry's retweet of Chamath (@garrytan)
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