California Comes Out on Top of Estimated Tax Revenue

Who says California isn’t doing well financially? When it comes to taxes, it appears that the Golden State is doing just fine. California is definitely one of the worst locations to live if you want to keep your tax bill low. With the latest report from the state’s Controller, Betty Yee, it’s no wonder that taxpayers wonder why they lose so much money to the government.

According to recent reports, the month of February was a very good month for the state treasury. That’s because Ms. Yee reported that California beat it’s tax revenue for the month of February by about $1 billion. In fact, the state received about $6.6 billion in total tax revenue in February, which beat Governor Jerry Brown’s estimates by close to 18 percent.

Of that amount, $2.6 billion came from tax receipts from personal income taxes. That was 26 percent more than expected. Meantime, taxes for retail and use were up about 16 percent. As for the fiscal year, revenue for the general fund is already 1.4 percent higher than forecasted.

While the news is good for the state, the extra money could be gone fast. That’s because with all the extra cash, many expect that democratic lawmakers will encourage the governor to increase spending.

Posted in
Tax Showdown

The Great Estate & Gift Tax Showdown of 2026

1. Background Current Law (2025): As of 2025, the U.S. federal estate tax imposes a 40% tax on the value of estates and lifetime gifts exceeding a unified lifetime exemption of about $13.99 million per individual (double for a married couple using “portability”)[1]. This exemption – also applicable to the generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax –…

Redefining Wealth With Purpose

How Brad Connors Is Redefining Wealth With Purpose From Tragedy to Triumph When Brad Connors speaks about financial purpose, he’s not reciting a corporate mantra—he’s reliving a lifetime of lessons. At just two years old, Connors lost his father in a car accident that also left him hospitalized with a collapsed lung. That tragedy, coupled…

Marc Henn on Building True Wealth: Beyond Portfolios and Toward Purpose

When Marc Henn launched Harvest Financial Advisors nearly two decades ago, he wasn’t trying to reinvent the financial-services wheel. He was trying to realign it. After more than 35 years in the industry, Henn had seen what he calls the “black marks” of the profession—transactional mindsets, one-off sales, and the steady erosion of authentic client…

Beyond the Exit: Alex Bean on Why True ROI Means Return on Impact

Beyond the Exit: Why Divvy’s Alex Bean Believes True ROI Means Return on Impact For most entrepreneurs, selling a billion-dollar company would be the final chapter—the ultimate validation of long nights and relentless ambition. For Alex Bean, co-founder of Divvy, that milestone became only the beginning of a deeper journey. In 2016, Bean and longtime friend Blake Murray launched…