Independent California Gubernatorial Candidate Ethan Penner Announces Revolutionary Tax Plan

Committed to Returning the California Dream, Penner Pledges A Revenue Neutral, Single Consumption Tax to Replace All State Taxes

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Ethan Penner, the renowned financier and independent candidate for Governor of California, today announced a revolutionary tax plan that would replace California's state taxes with a single consumption tax.

For five consecutive years, California has ranked last in the nation in net migration, with businesses and taxpayers choosing to leave the state. Penner believes that the solution is in his bold reform. Penner's plan, known as the Penner Tax Plan, would simplify taxation, reduce burdens on working families, and attract businesses back to California.

The esteemed Tax Foundation, the premier authority in the country on state tax policy, which ranks all states by tax policy, has reviewed the Penner Tax Plan and concluded that it would move California from the bottom of the list to third in the nation, signaling that California is "open for business."

Plan Highlights:

• One clear tax: A single 15% consumption tax on all goods and services will replace all state personal and corporate income, sales, gas, gift and estate taxes
• Protecting families: Structured to ensure that lower-income households are positively impacted by creating an annual pre-bate designed to offset any potential impact of this consumption tax.
• Revenue security: Phase in carefully with revenue triggers so state and local services stay fully funded.

The Penner Tax Plan will deliver immediate savings to Californians, including a nearly 40% reduction in gasoline taxes. The plan will also provide protection to the families who need it the most. Families earning at or below the poverty line will receive a yearly check that will approximate 15% of their annual income. This simpler, fairer system lifts the burden off struggling Californians and opens the door for everyone to succeed.

Implementation Timeline:

• Year 1: Current taxes cut in half.
• Year 2: Taxes cut in half again, as revenue benchmarks are met.
• Year 3: Full transition into the new taxation system.

"The current tax system is broken, unfair, and driving people out of California," said Ethan Penner. "The Penner Tax Plan lifts the burden off of struggling families, restores fairness in our tax system, and sends a clear message that California is once again a place of opportunity."

About Ethan Penner
Rising from humble beginnings, Ethan Penner rose to the top of the business world, renowned for innovation and rebuilding large broken systems. Raised by a single mother who was a public school teacher in Yonkers, New York, Ethan grew up with the same existential challenges that too many Californians face today.

Ethan began his career in the home mortgage industry, quickly rising to lead mortgage credit trading and finance at Morgan Stanley. He learned how markets move, how economies bend, and how to navigate systems when they fail. He managed large teams and oversaw billions in financial activity – experience that would prove vital.

In the early 1990s, with the real estate market in crisis, Ethan had a unique vision for changing the entire industry and he built the largest real estate financier in U.S. history from the ground up. He restored stability to a collapsed industry and built a new system of finance that democratized access to real estate capital.

Over decades in business, he's launched and led multiple investment firms including Capital Company of America, Nomura Asset Capital, CBRE Capital Partners, Mosaic Real Estate Investors, and Hill Street Realty. He's been named one of the Real Estate Forum's "65 Living Legends" and is internationally recognized as an innovator of real estate finance.

Ethan has authored two books, publishes an influential biweekly newsletter, and has been teaching graduate-level business courses at the USC School of Business and Pepperdine University.

Ethan and his wife Marisol – a proud immigrant from Venezuela – live in Calabasas. They have five children, including two adopted sons from Ethiopia and Venezuela. Their family reflects the same diversity, grit, and spirit of possibility that defines California itself.

Media Contact:
Jami Schlicher
JConnelly
973-647-0655
[email protected]

SOURCE Ethan Penner for Governor