Proposition 13 and Proposition 58
Our discussion with Taxpayers Association CEO Jon Coupal continues, focusing on the 1978 California Proposition 13 tax relief benefits for home owners and commercial property owners – and critics of real property tax relief throughout the state, whose efforts to destroy or water down Proposition 13 and Proposition 58 appear to be faltering, although they continue their efforts nontheless, despite vast popular support of these property tax relief and property transfer tax shelter protections…
Property Tax Transfer: Other than that one example of a wealthy show business family being able to rent out a secondary property they own, with the ability to keep parents property taxes in CA low, and transfer parents property taxes while avoiding property tax reassessment – is that the only robust example they have that interests the public.
Jon Coupal: Of course. Any other example they have either puts people to sleep or is just based on generalities and disinformation. One wealthy family saves on property taxes and makes a profit by renting out a luxury Malibu home, therefore all wealthy people in California are doing the same thing. And Of course this is largely untrue.
Property Tax Transfer: Absolutely. We couldn’t agree more. Thank you so much Mr. Coupal, for your time with us today. We greatly appreciate it.
Jon Coupal: My pleasure.
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The realtors that Mr. Coupal mentions, that are committed critics of the original 1978 California Proposition 13 and our ability to keep parents property taxes in CA, frequently conduct interviews with California mainstream newspapers and online media. They repeatedly point out that California state and local city government pensions are vastly under-funded… due mainly, they insist, to the 1978 California Proposition 13 tax shelter.
However, many economists have looked at this, and have stated repeatedly that city municipal workers and state government employees throughout California are actually at a higher overall income rate than equivalent government workers in other states are.
California state and city employee base salary rates, medical benefits, raises and, in particular, pension plans and retirement benefits – are, reportedly, a great deal higher and far more comprehensive than equivalent programs in other states, counties, cities and towns. According to financial researchers, their pension plans are by far the most expensive pension plans in the country.
State budgets consistently surpass state spending records – and the California educational system is now enjoying a 66% increase, reportedly over the next six years. When you peel back the layers, and really examine the facts and statistical data, it seems that public services are inferior in California, not because of the mega popular 1978 Proposition 13 property tax relief benefits for residential and commercial, as well as industrial, property owners. Not because of the ability to keep parents property taxes in CA, or the right to transfer parents property taxes when inheriting property and therefore inheriting property taxes that go along with it… Not because of property tax transfer or avoiding property tax reassessment during parent to child transfer, known as parent to child exclusion – but because of political preferences, special interest groups, and over-spending on those interests.
The facts appear to be pointing at apparent cycles of overspending, year after year on specific items such as local government employee salaries and bonuses, generous pensions, retirement perks, and reportedly “very generous” benefits, and other seemingly related areas.
These specific expenditures certainly do seem to be the reason certain popular programs created to help the general public are now severely under-funded. When you look closely at the facts, it certainly does seem that over-spending in certain areas are causing under-spending in other areas.