Politics & Government
California State Senators Co-Writing Presidential Tax Release Legislation
The bill would require Donald Trump & other presidential candidates to release their tax returns or not appear on the California ballot.

BAY AREA, CA -- Two Northern California politicians say they're authoring legislation that would prevent Donald Trump from appearing on a future presidential ballot in California -- unless he releases his tax returns.
California State Senators Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg) and Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) announced Dec. 16 that they're co-authoring legislation to require that any future presidential or vice-presidential candidate must make their tax returns public to appear on the ballot in the state.
The two Senators said they're offering the legislation in response to President-Elect Donald Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns to the American public, despite the fact that presidential candidates have voluntarily done so for decades.
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“Voters not only deserve full disclosure of their future leader’s tax returns, they should be entitled to them,” McGuire said. “This legislation will help make transparency great again.”
McGuire represents California's 2nd Senate District, which encompasses the North Coast region, from Marin County to Del Norte County. Before being elected to the State Senate in 2014, he was a member of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors.
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Weiner represents the California's 11th Senate District, encompassing San Francisco and parts of San Mateo County. Prior to his election to the State Senate in 2016, he served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and was a member of the regional Metropolitan Transportation Commission.
“The American people deserve honesty and transparency from their President. Unfortunately, we are getting lies and obfuscation from President-Elect Trump,” Wiener said. “The American public deserves to know that the individual they are selecting to be president will have their best interests at the heart of every decision, not the best interests of any business venture or investment fund. Requiring that this basic financial information be made available to voters will help build critical public trust.”
Prior to Donald Trump’s refusal to release any tax returns, every president since Jimmy Carter, who was elected in 1976, released at least one year of tax returns.
Similar legislation to what's currently being written by the California Senators has been proposed in New York by State Senator Brad Hoylman. McGuire and Weiner say they'll formally introduce their version in January.
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