On November 6, 2012, Proposition 30 was passed in the state of California. Proposition 30 contains two tax provisions, one which may affect you and one which will definitely affect you.

Additional income tax rates for 2012

Yes, you read that correctly, Proposition 30 adds additional income tax rates retroactive to January 1, 2012. However, if you are affected by this provision, it’s important to understand that the proposition also contains a waiver of underpayment penalties for this retroactive assessment.
If your California taxable income for 2012 is less than $250,000 ($500,000 for a married couple filing jointly) you are not affected by the increased rates under Proposition 30. The marginal rates for all taxpayers up to the previous highest rate, 9.3%, were not changed by this new law. If your California taxable income for 2012 is over $250,000 ($500,000 for MFJ) your marginal rates on income over the thresholds will be:

Increased statewide sales tax rate for 2013
Proposition 30 also increases the statewide sales tax rate by 1/4% beginning January 1, 2013. If you are contemplating a purchase in the near future, you may want to complete the transaction before year-end in order to avoid the higher sales tax.