The pressure began with California’s proposed Proposition 40, a one-time 5% levy on the assets of billionaires who were state residents on Jan. 1, 2026. For Zuckerberg, whose wealth was estimated at roughly $247 billion, that could mean a bill approaching $12.5 billion—and selling his existing supervoting Meta shares could reduce his voting control from 60.6% to 53%, according to company filings.¹

By July, Zuckerberg was negotiating with Meta’s board over how to manage that risk. The discussions turned urgent at a Sept. 9 dinner, when he told directors he would list his Palo Alto home publicly within days unless an agreement was reached—a move that would have underscored the possibility of his departure from California.¹

The board’s special committee took the opposite view: keeping Zuckerberg close to Meta’s Silicon Valley base was “critically important,” especially for Meta Superintelligence Labs. It secured his agreement to remain in California, or another jurisdiction hosting Meta’s headquarters, for eight years except in unforeseen circumstances.²

Meta’s answer, disclosed Wednesday, is a new non-voting Class C share class due to be issued in January. The structure would give Zuckerberg as much as $20 billion in immediate liquidity to cover a tax liability without eroding his command of the company; it does not increase his ownership or net worth.²

The maneuver is about more than one founder’s tax exposure. Meta says the stock distribution effectively acts as a two-for-one split for existing shareholders and preserves its ability to finance growth, as it pours money into AI and data centers. The company reported $34.91 billion in third-quarter capital expenditures. Its explicit rationale is blunt: Class C shares will preserve the “founder-led model” that Meta says has driven its success since inception.³