LAO commentary on Facebook IPO and state revenue forecasts

May 15, 2012 - Because the IPO will result in a market capitalization approaching or even exceeding $100 billion and well over $10 billion of income will be generat ed for California residents, it should result in the state ’s wages and personal income (a key economic statistic not  necessarily directly comparable to taxable income)  being higher than they otherwise would be, particularly in 2012, when the bulk of IPO-related income is projected to be received by taxpayers.
https://lao.ca.gov/Recommendations/Details/596

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

Because the IPO will result in a market capitalization approaching or even exceeding $100 billion and well over $10 billion of income will be generated for California residents, it should result in the state ’s wages and personal income (a key economic statistic not  necessarily directly comparable to taxable income)  being higher than they otherwise would be, particularly in 2012, when the bulk of IPO-related income is projected to be received by taxpayers.
https://lao.ca.gov/laoapp/budgetlist/PublicSearch.aspx?PolicyAreaNum=70&KeyCol=596&Yr=2012

Frequently asked questions concerning Facebook and California's General Fund

Aug 1, 2012 - Frequently asked questions concerning Facebook and California's General Fund Frequently asked questions concerning Facebook and California's General Fund Program: Revenues Finding or Recommendation: This item lists answers to frequently asked questions concerning Facebook's stock and California's General Fund budget for 2012-13.
https://lao.ca.gov/Recommendations/Details/618

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

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

May 18, 2012 - Figure 6 compares the LAO May 2012 revenue estimate related to the Facebook IPO with those in other recent forecasts. The IPO was announced in February and thus was not included in the Governor ’s January 2012 forecast. ( Additional information on our May 2012 Facebook IPO revenue forecast was published on this website on May 15.)
https://lao.ca.gov/Recommendations/Details/599

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

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

^[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

^[PDF] The 2012-13 Budget: Overview of the Governor's Budget

The Facebook Effect. Facebook Inc., a privately held company headquartered in Palo Alto, may proceed with an initial public offering (IPO) of its stock in 2012. Facebook reportedly is considering 2012-13 BUDGET 16 Legislative Analyst’s Office www.lao.ca.gov issuing $10 billion of stock in an IPO that would value the company at over $100 billion.
https://lao.ca.gov/reports/2012/bud/budget_overview/budget-overview-011112.pdf