The coronavirus pandemic already has wiped out tens of thousands of jobs in California. And that’s just the first act.
Even after the “stay at home” orders are eased and life starts getting back to normal, COVID-19 will likely inflict a second wave of economic misery on the state.
This second shock would come when wealthy Californians, their stock portfolios battered by coronavirus, file their income taxes next spring. Unless the stock market stages a major recovery over the next few months, income tax payments in 2021 are expected to decline by tens of billions of dollars. The drop-off in revenue could persist for several years, in fact.
