AI Cash Buoys Newsom Budget as He Pitches New Software Tax

California Governor Gavin Newsom unveiled a revised budget that shows no deficit for this year or next, as the state draws another boost from the technology and artificial-intelligence boom.

The budget proposal released Thursday shows revenue running $16.5 billion above projections. Of that, $13.6 billion comes from personal income tax, helped by a 2025 spike in capital gains that has already shown up in $11.9 billion of higher cash receipts through April. The improvement gives Newsom, a Democrat, more room to protect programs popular with the party’s voters as he prepares to leave office after next year’s election and weighs a potential presidential run in 2028.