[3] California voters passed temporary sales and income tax increases with Proposition 30 in 2012.

[4] During the temporary tax, California's top 1% of earners paid half of the state's income-taxes and contributed one third of its budget.

[4] Governor Jerry Brown, who was the primary proponent of the tax increase in 2012, remained neutral on Proposition 55.

[5] The measure was opposed by the editorial boards of the Los Angeles Times,[8] the San Francisco Chronicle,[9] and The Wall Street Journal.

[4] A September 2016 poll by the Public Policy Institute of California showed that 54% of likely voters supported Proposition 55, 38% opposed it, and 8% did not know how they would vote.