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Dean Preston

@deanpreston.bsky.social
4.2K followers 643 following 1.6K posts

Former legislator, democratic socialist, housing advocate, founder of Tenants Together. He/Him. Opinions my own, reposts not endorsements.

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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 3h
Oust every one of these fascists from power and hold them accountable
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Reposted by Dean Preston
Jake Grumbach @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
New working paper: the Norwegian wealth tax was a huge success. The "exodus" of wealthy people never happened (less than 100 individuals left). Tax revenue increased by 71.5%. No changes in business activity or investment. www.nber.org/papers/w35854
Taxing Entrepreneurial Wealth: Evidence from
Norway, 2021-2025
Marius A. K. Ring
WORKING PAPER 35854|
DOl 10.3386/w35854
ISSUE DATE October 2026
Whether imposing higher taxes on business owners adversely affects business activity by constraining investment and inducing capitalist flight is a central question in the ongoing debate on how to tax the ultra wealthy. To shed new light, I exploit a series of related Norwegian reforms during 2021-2024 that increased dividend tax rates, removed migration-related capital gains tax loopholes, and nearly doubled the effective marginal tax rate on business wealth. These reforms spurred international debate and, allegedly, an "exodus" of Norwegian billionaires (Financial Times,
2023). While I document clear effects on migration, these responses are concentrated among the top 0.1% of the wealth distribution and mostly confined to 2022 and 2023. My results indicate that at most 100 individuals left due to the reforms. I find no evidence of significant outmigration or reduced inflows of startup founders or inventors. I estimate that absent any outmigration, wealth tax revenues would have increased by 75% from 2021 to 2024. Reform-driven outmigration lowers the revenue gain to 71.5%. My findings further show that outmigrating owners' firms remain economically active and do not reduce investment. In a broader set of analyses, I examine whether business outcomes are affected, regardless of whether owners outmigrate, since firms may reduce investment both due to liquidity constraints or distortions to owners' savings decisions. I compare firms owned by Norwegian individuals subject to the wealth tax with firms owned by foreigners and other tax-exempt entities. By merging historical ownership data from Orbis with the Norwegian shareholder register, I perform these analyses on both Norwegian and foreign-domiciled firms.
Across settings, I find no evidence that Norwegian-owned firms pay out more dividends or invest less after the reforms,…
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Reposted by Dean Preston
CalMatters @calmatters.org · 16h
Gavin Newsom backs measure to kill the billionaire tax and ban future wealth taxes Gov. Gavin Newsom isn't just fighting the billionaire tax. He's backing Prop. 42, which would ban future wealth taxes in California, too.
cal.news
Gavin Newsom backs measure to kill the billionaire tax and ban future wealth taxes
Gov. Gavin Newsom isn't just fighting the billionaire tax. He's backing Prop. 42, which would ban future wealth taxes in California, too.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 11h
As for the claims around building, the measure details how funds are spent: 60% for building new affordable housing, 25% for preservation projects (like acquisitions and rehab), and 10% for rent relief & eviction defense. Prop I is crucial for meeting the City's affordable housing goals.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 11h
Thanks for sharing your concerns. Prop I dedicates the funds to affordable housing and they are administered by the Mayor's Office of Housing, just like any other city housing money, and same as the Prop C money. And Prop. I has additional oversight, requiring annual controller audit of the funds.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 16h
The ads against them don’t even engage on the merits of the measure. It’s just nonstop lies. They are throwing everything at the wall and hoping something sticks. Was there a particular claim in the ads you wanted to find a response to?
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 18h
I hope one day we will have a mayor of San Francisco who doesn’t just amplify right wing talking points about San Francisco for their own political advancement
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
GrowSF is GrossAF “Just days after Manny Yekutiel dropped out of the race in the wake of another set of sexual assault allegations, GrowSF, the billionaire-backed right-wing PAC, launched a poll asking people if they would vote for Yekutiel if he got back in the race.”
48hills.org
District 8 supe race: The plot thickens - 48 hills
Big Tech PAC is looking for ways to help Yekutiel win, even after he dropped out
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
"Three San Francisco police officers allegedly beat a man so severely last year that he nearly lapsed into a coma, according to his public defenders, who also accused District Attorney Brooke Jenkins of trying to cover up the incident."
missionlocal.org
SFPD beat city resident into near-coma in 2025 and DA 'tried to cover it up,' public defenders allege
Public defenders say San Francisco police beat Kevon Gibson into near-coma after a SoMa resident called police on Aug. 17, 2025.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Meanwhile, the solution is no mystery. Implement the Four Pillars strategy successful in Zurich. We commissioned a report from the City’s Budget & Legislative Analyst which lays out how to do it. Mayor’s administration has no interest and refuses to implement it. They are allergic to real solutions
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
This article lays out who is funding the dishonest campaign against Prop I. Vote Yes on Prop I. Builds affordable housing and protects renters without raising taxes.
open.substack.com
Read the Fine Print
Why San Francisco should vote Yes on Prop I. The Chamber lost the fight over whether the wealthy would pay. Now it's fighting over where the money goes.
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Reposted by Dean Preston
Evan Urquhart @evanurquhart.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
As a technology it is an absolute blight and the companies that own and control it should be held fully responsible, including criminally responsible, for every single harm.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
The lock-everyone-up crowd is terrified we might have a supervisor with lived experience who prioritizes saving lives and advocates for real solutions to the drug crisis
sfstandard.com
Manny Yekutiel’s downfall may hand the Castro to SF’s loudest harm-reduction warrior
Gary McCoy’s rise puts his stance on drugs, recovery, and harm reduction under the microscope.
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Reposted by Dean Preston
Alex @alxlndomountain.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Wrote a little something. It's 1800 words which makes it divinely inspired
derspekter.org
Acknowledgement Without Accountability: Why San Francisco Progressives Are Right to Reject Scott Wiener
As some U.S. Democrats pivot on Palestine, San Francisco’s Congressional race shows why winning progressives’ trust requires more than empty gestures
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Reposted by Dean Preston
PUML @puml.media · 26/09/2026
Longtime service provider Hospitality House has fallen victim to the Mayor's plans to "revitalize" 6th Street, and has been ordered to close its 6th St. drop-in center by the end of the year.
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Reposted by Dean Preston
PUML @puml.media · 03/10/2026
"In Lurie, the nation’s elites think they may have found the answer. ‘The foil to the rising socialists might be found in a red state with conservative values. But perhaps he’s a Democrat in San Francisco Read the whole story puml.media/a-lifelong-r...
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Reposted by Dean Preston
Mission Local @missionlocal.org · 03/10/2026
Ho Yin Mo, the aide for San Francisco Assemblymember Catherine Stefani who was detained by ICE, has been freed. missionlocal.org/2026/10/ho-y...
missionlocal.org
Ho Yin Mo, California Assembly aide detained by ICE, is freed
Ho Yin Mo, a field representative in Assemblymember Catherine Stefani’s office who was detained by ICE on Sept. 17 at Harry Reid International Airport in
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Reposted by Dean Preston
Mike Hixenbaugh @mikehixenbaugh.com · 02/10/2026
Scoop: At a secret meeting this summer, an aide to Stephen Miller laid out Trump administration's plan to make it easier for states to round up and institutionalize mentally ill homeless people — by pushing a drastic policy change that would weaken the rights of millions of disabled Americans.
nbcnews.com
How Trump’s homelessness crackdown became a sweeping retreat from disability rights
After issuing a memo making it easier to institutionalize homeless people, the Justice Department began abandoning cases protecting disabled people’s right to live in the community.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Eviction of 87 year old woman sparked massive nationwide protests in Spain after the government failed to pass emergency legislation to protect tenants
bbc.com
Protesters across Spain demand action over housing crisis
More than 50 protests are taking place on Saturday after the government failed to get emergency legislation through parliament.
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Reposted by Dean Preston
The New Republic @newrepublic.com · 03/10/2026
The Trump coalition is fracturing due to his peculiarly terrible misrule. trib.al/VTjBU9r
trib.al
New Fox Poll—a Disaster for Trump—Rattles Fox Anchors: “Wake Up!”
They were freaking out on Fox News Friday morning over a new Texas poll. A look at the internals shows they had every reason to.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Seems like Lurie thinks the housing emergency is that he might not be able to deliver the tax break he promised billionaires on their sales of skyscrapers and mega-mansions. Passing Prop I would preserve the transfer tax on property sales over $10m and dedicate the funds to housing. Vote Yes on I
yesonisf.com
Fair Housing, Yes on I - San Francisco Ballot Measure | Join the Movement
Prop I dedicates existing tax revenue to its intended purpose of funding affordable housing, social housing, and eviction defense.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Voters passed the transfer tax on sales over $10 million with the clear intent to fund housing and rent relief. City Hall has refused to follow the voters' will and is trying to give billionaires a tax break. Don't let them get away with it. Vote Yes on I to fund affordable housing and rent relief.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
False Claim #7: "Prop I is written to confuse voters." False. Prop. I preserves an existing tax on the ultra-rich and dedicates the money to affordable housing & rent relief as voters intended when we originally passed the tax. The opposition is desperate because polling shows 67% support for Prop I
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
False Claim #6: "A never ending flow of money with no accountability." The money goes to the Mayor's Office of Housing, just like the other housing measure on the ballot. The only difference is that Prop. I requires an additional annual audit by the controller while other measure does not.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
False Claim #5: "Majority of money goes to experimental housing communes." Another lie. They are taking out of context a requirement that for 30% of the new affordable housing, "Residents shall have the right to participate in decision-making concerning the operation and management of the project"
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
False Claim #4: "Gives millions of dollars to nonprofits to buy up our apartments to take homes off the market." False. They are lying and apparently attacking the City program (run by Mayor's Office) that saves at risk tenants from eviction by helping them acquire their own buildings as land trusts
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
False Claim #3: "There's no requirement they actually build housing." Another lie. Again, the ballot measure dedicates the money for building housing, administered by the Mayor's Office. Is the Mayor saying his office would violate the measure and refuse to use the funds to build housing?
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
False claim #2: "It's a nonprofit slush fund." False. The funds all go to the Mayor's Office of Housing which administers through competitive bidding. This is the same way other housing ballot measures works, including the one the Mayor is backing (Prop. C).
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
False claim #1: "It's not an affordable housing fund." False. The ballot measure dedicates an existing tax on transfers of property worth over $10 million to affordable housing--60% to new construction, 25% to preservation & rehab projects, and 10% to rent relief and eviction defense.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
I hesitate to share the disinformation our opponents are putting out about Prop I, but it needs to be rebutted. They are spending a fortune in a bad faith attempt to block affordable housing and rent relief. The authors of the latest attack mailer know their claims are false.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Today was an unusual day in SF, in which a well-connected, billionaire-backed candidate was held politically accountable. Those who continued to endorse after Brad's allegations have some explaining & apologizing to do. Brad, Ryan, and Ryan's partner showed tremendous courage speaking out
48hills.org
Yekutiel drops out of D8 race after new sexual assault allegations - 48 hills
With endorsements gone and support crumbling, front runner had to drop out—but what about his supporters who ignored earlier accusation?
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Daniel Lurie is trying to do to the Mayor’s Office of Housing what Donald Trump is doing to the Department of Education. Lurie is smearing his own housing department, calling it a slush fund, and defunding it. His cynical approach threatens to undermine affordable housing in SF for years to come.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Today, the billionaire’s mailer against Prop I arrived. This anti-affordable housing piece is wild. They are flailing around with nonsensical arguments to kill a measure that dedicates funds to affordable housing. Vote Yes on I to use an existing tax on billionaires to fund affordable housing.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Maybe, just maybe, there's a reason they are trying to buy control of D10 and maybe, just maybe, it isn't to benefit the people of D10. ⚠️ Crypo-billionaire Larsen: $500K ⚠️ Conservative techbros at GrowSF: $79,000 ⚠️ Lurie's brother: gentrify Bayview! ⚠️ AI data center proposed for D10 🤔
sfexaminer.com
SF blockchain tycoon drops $500,000 on D10 race
Candidate Theo Ellington has also raiseed the most money by far.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Everyone who continued to support Manny after Brad’s allegations owes Brad a public apology
missionlocal.org
Manny Yekutiel drops out of S.F. supervisor race after sexual assault claim
Most of Manny Yekutiel's endorsers pulled their support after two new people accused him of sexual assault.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Nurses are badass. This one is literally named Freeman
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Packed house at Club Fugazi for Gil Duran and Emily Mills!
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Billionaires have an unlimited supply of two things: lies & money. They’re deploying both against Prop 40 (wealth tax on 250 billionaires to fund health care) and SF’s Prop I (tax on real estate billionaires to fund housing). Tax billionaires to deliver the things people need. Yes on 40. Yes on I.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Lying under oath is impeachable
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
The billionaire controlled SF DCCC is so corrupted. The latest: “The same month she blocked a resolution calling for restrictions on Flock Safety, the chairperson of the SF Democratic Party accepted a $10,000 donation from a tech mogul bankrolling the police department’s surveillance deployment”
sfstandard.com
SF Dem Party chair who blocked key Flock vote got donation from surveillance backer
Nancy Tung spoke at a conference hosted by the camera company in the weeks before the vote.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Prop I (2020) raised funds for affordable housing and rent relief. Dan Lurie refuses to spend the money on housing. Prop I (2026) forces Lurie to spend the money on housing. Vote yes on Prop I.
fairhousingsf.com
Fair Housing, Yes on I - San Francisco Ballot Measure | Join the Movement
Prop I dedicates existing tax revenue to its intended purpose of funding affordable housing, social housing, and eviction defense.
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Reposted by Dean Preston
PUML @puml.media · 23/09/2026
District 10 Supervisor Shamann Walton has introduced a 45-day moratorium on approvals of new data centers in San Francisco, co-sponsored by Jackie Fielder and Chyanne Chen.
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Phil Lewis @phillewis.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Sen. John Fetterman says he's a "lifelong Republican" before Major Garrett has to correct him
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Phil Lewis @phillewis.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Several protesters just interrupted the pro-data center party, flipped everyone off while yelling “thank you for using all of our water!”
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
“D10 is not for sale” — DJ Brookter at Unity Rally at SEIU 1021
Photo of D10 candidate DJ Brookter at SEIU 1021 rally
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Pass Prop 40 to finally tax billionaire wealth and then work to continue taxing their wealth. Have to start somewhere
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Two measures on the Nov ballot are exposing hypocritical politicians: Prop I preserves an existing SF tax on billionaires and dedicates the $ to affordable housing and rent relief. Prop 40 creates a one time state wealth tax on billionaires and dedicates the $ to health care. Vote yes on both.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
The guy promising to clean up City Hall is getting millions from the worst billionaires in the planet to run his anti-democracy package. “Mayor Lurie's three charter measures have raised a mind-boggling $11 million so far” Only thing missing is a Trump cameo promising to help Lurie drain the swamp
missionlocal.org
Mayor Lurie’s charter measures raise stunning $11M, more than all others combined
Fundraising for the ballot measures is staggering: Over $19 million is going toward the 10 measures on the ballot.
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
"Two of the committee’s current members — Lily Ho and Trevor Chandler — work for Flock.... Neither Ho nor Chandler offered to abstain from voting on Wednesday." You read that right. No better than the US Supreme Court in terms of members casting votes despite blatant conflicts of interest.
missionlocal.org
S.F. Democratic Party stands behind Flock surveillance cameras in sweeping vote
Two Democratic committee members work for Flock, but were allowed to vote regardless
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Dean Preston @deanpreston.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
While the nation turns against Flock and mass surveillance, SF’s Democratic Central Committee—a body with two Flock employees on it—just voted to double down on Flock and mass surveillance. SF Democratic Party leadership is a disgrace right now. Completely captured by conservative tech oligarchs.
sfstandard.com
Flock is under fire. SF’s moderate Democrats are doubling down on the cameras
Flock has lost contracts in many blue cities, but San Francisco leaders are largely defending SFPD’s use of surveillance devices.
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