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Tesla’s move to Texas labeled ‘betrayal’ of California, a way to escape paying taxes

Credit: Twitter | Greg Abbott

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Upon moving from Silicon Valley to Austin, Texas, critics and fans of Tesla and its CEO Elon Musk have mixed opinions about the move. Tesla enthusiasts might have seen it coming all along, especially after California politicians spewed profanities in the direction of the CEO, whose company has already provided an influx of employment opportunities to its new Texas market. However, without darkness, there would not be light, and there are plenty of people who are widely skeptical of Tesla’s recent decision to move its Headquarters to Austin from Fremont. However, the reasons for the move are being labeled as a betrayal of California and its workers, even though Tesla has no intentions to move any of its facilities out of the Golden State. Additionally, a commonly spread myth about all billionaires attempting to avoid paying taxes is also being thrown into the mix, further adding fuel to a fire that doesn’t really need to exist.

A recent article from the San Antonio Express-News indicates that Musk and Tesla have betrayed its California workers who have built the electric automaker from a longshot success story to the most highly-valued car company on Earth. Despite the reasoning from the article’s author, which misses the point of Tesla’s move, the narrative that Elon Musk is some sort of evil super villain sitting in a large chair with excessive lumbar support sitting in a billionaire’s palace scheming new reasons to get ahead while squishing the “average Joe” seems to appear out of nowhere. Even though Musk’s entire vision was to help avert a climate crisis and revolutionize the automotive industry, some people still seem to be convinced he is a man with horrible intentions. Still, the South African-born CEO was essentially driven out of California by its own people of authority. They asked, he granted, and now Musk is still being painted as the bad guy.

The assumption that Musk is forcing Tesla and its several manufacturing plants, logistics facilities, design studios out of California and shoving them to the Lone Star State is a common misconception amongst those who genuinely believe his mission is to make money and avoid paying his fair share of taxes. The thing is: If Musk was someone with this sort of agenda, would he have sold many of his residences? Would he be living part-time in a $50,000 home in Starbase, Texas to help with SpaceX projects? Would he be making portions of the company’s Fremont facility in Northern California permanent? Probably not.

Musk has responded to inquiries in the past about his taxes, stating that most of his net worth is tied up in Tesla stock. He pays taxes proportionate to his time in California and has never cashed a paycheck from Tesla, which is the state-required minimum payment. “It just ends up accumulating in a Tesla bank account somewhere,” he said to the New York Times several years ago.

On top of the other accusations made in the San Antonio Express-News piece, let’s not forget about Musk’s treatment from Lorena Gonzalez, a California State Assemblywoman who famously Tweeted “F*** Elon Musk” in May 2020. Musk evidently took the message as an invitation to test Tesla’s appreciation elsewhere, and Texas was more than willing to invite the electric automaker to establish its new base in Austin.

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Before Musk is labeled a traitor and Tesla a medium of betrayal to California and its workers, let’s not forget that Telsa’s presence in California isn’t disappearing. Let’s not forget all that Tesla has contributed to the economy and environment in California. And let’s not forget that Musk was encouraged by California’s politicians to seek another place for work.

Don’t hesitate to contact us with tips! Email us at tips@teslarati.com, or you can email me directly at joey@teslarati.com.

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Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

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Elon Musk hits back at former Tesla employee who disagrees with pay package

Tesla is worth more than all other automotive companies combined. Which of those CEOs would you like to run Tesla?

It won’t be me.

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elon musk speaking
Credit: TED

Elon Musk gave a tough response to a former Tesla employee who spoke out on X about the structure of the CEO’s pay package, arguing that it is an overpayment and would not generate enough shareholder value.

Without a doubt, the biggest issue on the bill at this year’s Tesla Shareholder Meeting in November is that of the pay package that was proposed to CEO Elon Musk.

As the Shareholder Meeting approaches, Tesla is urging those investors to vote in support of Musk’s pay package. So far, the community has been overwhelmingly supportive of giving Musk his massive payday, which could give him $1 trillion in additional holdings if he completes each of the outlined performance tranches.

However, there are a handful of institutional and individual shareholders who have pushed back against the package, either because of its value or because they feel it does not benefit shareholders enough.

Last week, we reported that Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) advised voting against Tesla’s pay package for Musk. The firm said the payday would give Musk”extraordinarily high pay opportunities over the next ten years,” and it would “reduce the board’s ability to meaningfully adjust future pay levels.”

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Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s $1 trillion pay package hits first adversity from proxy firm

Additionally, it called the value of the pay package “astronomical.”

On Saturday, a former Tesla employee said on X that Tesla’s proposed pay package for Musk would “barely beat inflation and it would underperform the S&P 500 considerably.” Additionally, he said:

“Sorry, Tesla, some of us (and supposedly, ISS too) simply don’t think that underperforming the S&P 500 this much is worth paying somebody 20 billion dollars worth of company value.

As a fan, I love Tesla, I want it to succeed. As a shareholder, I don’t want Tesla to over-pay for its CEO I strongly believe that the 2025 pay package proposal would over-pay for its CEO, and that other competent CEOs could grow Tesla just as much with way less political drama and cost investors much less that this proposal.”

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Musk responded bluntly:

“Tesla is worth more than all other automotive companies combined. Which of those CEOs would you like to run Tesla? It won’t be me.”

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It seems the worry about Musk’s potential involvement in politics still looms to many, based on the responses to Musk’s post, which frequently mention that as a downside of his last year as Tesla CEO. However, Tesla’s Board confronted that directly.

In its proxy filing after announcing the pay package, Tesla said that it had three commitments, one of which was that the company would “receive assurances that Musk’s involvement with the political sphere would wind down in a timely manner.”

Tesla Board takes firm stance on Elon Musk’s political involvement in pay package proxy

Musk’s previous pay package was approved by shareholders twice, but it never made it to the CEO because of a lawsuit with the Delaware Chancery Court brought forth by a small-time shareholder.

The response from Musk does seem to show that if this time is no different, he will inevitably step down as CEO in the coming years.

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Tesla rivals are lagging behind alarmingly in this crucial EV necessity

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tesla supercharger
Credit: Tesla

Tesla rivals are lagging behind the company in alarming fashion in this crucial EV necessity: charging.

Tesla has had a long-standing reputation for having the most expansive electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and even as other companies have launched their own as part of the vehicle manufacturing, nobody seems to keep pace with the EV leader.

A report from Paren exhibited this trend in Q3, showing that Tesla overwhelmingly dominated EV charging stall installations over the past three months. This data is based on U.S. installations, where Tesla has long held a dominating position as the leader in overall electric vehicle sales for many years.

In Q3, Tesla installed 1,820 new chargers in the United States, bringing its total presence to 34,328, an all-time market share of 53.2 percent of all charging stalls in the country.

What’s alarming is the fact that all other networks — ChargePoint, Red E, Electrify America, EV Connect, EVgo, Ionna, Blink, Pilot Flying J, and Rivian Adventure — only installed 841 chargers collectively in Q3. That is nearly 1,000 units behind Tesla, despite there being nine companies contributing as competitors.

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These nine networks have 10,055 stalls in total, the data from Paren shows, accounting for 15.6 percent of the chargers in the United States.

EV charging is such a crucial part of the ownership experience, and also a part of the ongoing expansion of EV adoption in the United States.

As more people buy EVs and they become a more prominent form of passenger transportation, more chargers are needed. Many owners charge at home, but charging options in public are important to have for traveling, commuting, and for those who do not have access to residential charging.

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Tesla ownership without home charging: Here’s how it’s done

With Tesla opening its Supercharger Network to the majority of EV brands over the past two years, things have gotten better.

It has been alarming to see so many companies involved in EV infrastructure essentially accept the gap between Tesla and themselves; not a single company has tried to up its pace to catch up to what Tesla has.

When it comes down to it, as long as there is charging, the manufacturer does not truly matter.

However, it would be nice to see Tesla have some competition in the space, but with its domination and head start in the infrastructure division, it seems the company will have this competitive advantage for years to come.

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Tesla updates fans on its plans for the Roadster

Earlier in 2025, Musk said Tesla would host the “most epic demo” for the Roadster in late 2025. We’re in Q4, so time is running out, but we finally got the update we’ve been waiting for from von Holzhausen on the Ride the Lightning podcast yesterday.

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Tesla Roadster and Semi at Tesla Battery Day 2020 Credit: @GuyTesla | Twitter

Tesla has finally updated fans on its plans for the Roadster after stating earlier this year it would host the “most epic demo,” showcasing the vehicle’s capabilities.

The Roadster is amongst the most highly anticipated automotive releases in the entire industry, and was set for release in 2020 initially. However, Tesla got so caught up with scaling up the Model Y and focusing on autonomy that the project took a figurative backseat.

Elon Musk teases Tesla’s “most epic demo” by end of year

In the years since its planned release, we have not seen much of the vehicle. Company executives like Elon Musk and Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen have hinted at things about it and teased us with potential release dates, but each time, it has been delayed.

Last year, Tesla planned to show something, but Musk saw what improvements had been made from the original design unveiled back in 2017 and figured the company could go a step further, only delaying the project another year.

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But what’s another year, right?

Earlier in 2025, Musk said Tesla would host the “most epic demo” for the Roadster in late 2025. We’re in Q4, so time is running out, but we finally got the update we’ve been waiting for from von Holzhausen on the Ride the Lightning podcast yesterday.

Confirming the demo was still on for this year, he also teased some new features that the Roadster will have, like new paint options.

Von Holzhausen said:

“I’m excited to showcase the Roadster for a lot of different reasons. The wait will be worth it.”

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Additionally, he said the capabilities of the Roadster are truly something, and they have gotten the vehicle to a point that it seems to test the “limits of physics.” Franz added that Tesla has “really gotten to a point where we are going to be achieving that standard that we set out.”

Obviously, the Roadster is not a major contributor to Tesla’s mission or to its future, which mostly leans on artificial intelligence and Robotaxi or autonomy. However, it is still a product that Tesla needs to offer, as many have put massive $250,000 downpayments on the vehicle in an attempt to purchase one.

Tesla has not yet announced a date for its demo of the Roadster, but based on Franz’s interview, it seems the company is still on track to hold that by the end of the year.

The full episode with Franz von Holzhausen on the Ride the Lightning podcast is available here.

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