Frequently asked questions concerning Facebook and California's General Fund

Aug 1, 2012 - Why Were Facebook Revenues Included in State  Revenue Estimates? Under the State Constitution, the Legislature determines the revenue estimate upon which the annual state budget is based. Our office 's budgetary revenue projections, as well as those of the Department of Finance, are used by the Legislature  for this purpose  and in determining the amount of funding required to be provided to schools and community colleges under Proposition 98.
https://lao.ca.gov/Recommendations/Details/618

LAO commentary on Facebook IPO and state revenue forecasts

May 15, 2012 - In particular, there will be localized increases in property and sales and use tax bases that otherwise would not have occurred. Such increases could be noticeable for some localities in the Bay Area, but they are not likely to be significant for the state as a whole.
https://lao.ca.gov/Recommendations/Details/596

Summary of LAO Findings and Recommendations on the 2012-13 Budget

In particular, there will be localized increases in property and sales and use tax bases that otherwise would not have occurred. Such increases could be noticeable for some localities in the Bay Area, but they are not likely to be significant for the state as a whole.
https://lao.ca.gov/laoapp/budgetlist/PublicSearch.aspx?PolicyAreaNum=70&KeyCol=596&Yr=2012

Background information on LAO's May 2012 economic and revenue forecasts

May 18, 2012 - Figure 5 compares the LAO May 2012 sales and use tax forecasts for 2011-12 and 2012-13 with other recent forecasts. Figure 6 compares the LAO May 2012 revenue estimate related to the Facebook IPO with those in other recent forecasts.
https://lao.ca.gov/Recommendations/Details/599

How Have Past Stock Market Downturns Affected Income Tax Revenue? [EconTax Blog]

Mar 9, 2026 - The Nasdaq composite, which includes the California headquartered companies Nvidia, Google, Facebook, Apple, AMD, and Broadcom, has doubled since 2023. The meteoric rise in the value of these companies has led to sizable gains for their investors and their employees via stock options, which has led income tax collections to grow at double-digit rates.  
https://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/Article/Detail/852

How Have Past Stock Market Downturns Affected Income Tax Revenue? [EconTax Blog]

Mar 9, 2026 - The Nasdaq composite, which includes the California headquartered companies Nvidia, Google, Facebook, Apple, AMD, and Broadcom, has doubled since 2023. The meteoric rise in the value of these companies has led to sizable gains for their investors and their employees via stock options, which has led income tax collections to grow at double-digit rates.  
https://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/article/Detail/852

The 2012-13 Budget: Economic and Revenue Update [Publication Details]

Feb 27, 2012 - Like the economic data, reports concerning state revenues have been mixed recently too, with weakness in income tax payments accompanied by speculation concerning a future bonanza of tax revenues due to the possible offering of stock by Facebook, Inc.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/2578

Fiscal Outlook: Estimating Wages and Salaries [EconTax Blog]

Nov 14, 2018 - We expect workers in technology sector jobs —which includes firms conducting data processing, software development, and web search, like Google and Facebook —to see strong growth in both average wages and jobs.
https://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/Article/Detail/321

^[PDF] The 2012-13 Budget: Overview of the May Revision

What Will Happen With Facebook and Capital Gains? Both our forecast and the administration’s assume that California will experience a revenue boost due to the Facebook IPO of about $2 billion spread across 2011-12 and 2012-13, assuming passage of the Governor’s tax measure.
https://lao.ca.gov/reports/2012/bud/may_revise/overview-may-revise-051812.pdf

California revenues on track to be over $2 billion under administration target for April

Apr 25, 2012 - Moreover, the administration has said, its January estimates did not anticipate  the likely revenue effects of an initial public offering of stock by Facebook, nor the Governor 's revised tax measure.
https://lao.ca.gov/Recommendations/Details/588