California could pay over $800 billion in reparations to black residents, economists say

California may end up paying more than $800 billion in reparations to black residents, economists told a state panel considering reparations, but the cost could be even more if lawmakers decide to include the panel's recommended $1 million per older black resident with health issues.

The $800 billion also does not include the reparation board's proposed compensation for property taken by the government or black businesses that were devalued, The Associated Press reported Thursday.

The proposed reparations would still need to pass the state legislature and the governor's office before going into effect, but the economists' projections place the cost of reparations at over 2.5 times higher than California's annual budget of $300 billion.

The California state reparations panel met Wednesday, and activists came to the meeting and demanded millions of dollars in payments as compensation for slavery and subsequent discrimination. 

"I believe that $5 million in reparations is too little for the work that foundational black Americans have done for this country and as well for other countries," one speaker said at the meeting, Fox News reported. "I believe that 7.6 million [dollars] is a number that can be used very wisely in our foundational Black American communities."

The issue comes as the San Francisco Board of Supervisors is considering giving $5 million payments to qualifying black residents, among other proposals.