Is CA Proposition 13 Property Tax Relief Under Attack?
California taxpayers are in particular danger due to the fact that the CA State Legislature and real estate plus other special interests are looking to continue efforts to unravel property tax relief in California simply to accelerate real estate sales and commissions, plus increase overall property tax revenue to state coffers. Just for the record, Proposition 13 has saved California taxpayers $528 billion.
If critics of property tax breaks unravel Proposition 13 any more than they already have, real-estate-business owned politicians can accelerate property taxes on homeowners by 400%, or north of that figure, by destroying Proposition 13 protections that keep restraints on increases of sales tax with new property tax relief law in California that could add hundreds of billions of dollars, going forward, of new tax revenue from new rules for property tax transfers in California — costing every middle class and working CA family a small fortune in increased property taxes!
The Proposition 13 bullet-proof “2/3 vote requirement” to protect Californians from greedy, careless or arbitrary property tax hikes has been watered down and severely weakened by those who oppose property tax relief in California, and can easily be further unraveled during this upcoming year.
Could California See the End of Crucial Property Tax Breaks?
Lifting the 1% or 2% cap on the maximum property tax rate is their next objective. After that, Proposition 13 and $528 billion could be stolen from California taxpayers forever. Needless to say, this would not be healthy for the state. We could possible see the end of CA Proposition 13 property tax relief — possibly the demise of the parent-to-child exclusion… most damaging of all. How these politicos and certain members of the real estate community could support such irresponsible tax hikes on the backs of middle class Californians, is almost impossible to ascertain or understand.
Yet it’s entirely possible that in the state of California we could actually begin to see the unraveling of third-rail protections supporting low tax rates from parent-child transfers — the end of laws allowing homeowners to avoid steep property tax reassessment when inheriting property taxes… for so many decades protected so well by Prop 13 and Proposition 19 (formerly Proposition 58).
These were once unchangeable built-in property tax breaks protecting parents and their children when they be easily able to transfer parents’ property taxes and keep parents property taxes basically forever, in perpetuity. when inheriting a home from Mom or Dad.
Proposition 13 has forced local governments to manage their finances better — one reason the initiative had such overwhelming popular support. Most cities and counties have been very successful under Proposition 13. If some have failed, the problem was not Proposition 13. It was mismanagement, lack of sensible planning… and reckless spending.
A Second California Tax Revolt
A Second Tax Revolt will take time, energy, resources. Funding. Organizations such as the Commercial Loan Corporation; the Cunningham Legal law firm; Kevin Kiley’s ACA-9 initiative; and the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association are all providing planning and backing for the support and rescue of Property Tax Relief in California… Proposition 13; and the possible return to Proposition 58 with unlimited parent–Child Exclusion rights for homeowners and beneficiaries inheriting property from parents.
Simply some of the reasons the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assoc. is launching their “Second California Tax Revolt”, to build and protect property tax relief measures for all Californians, regardless of age, station, or net worth.
It took four million Californians to pass Proposition 13. HJTA hopes to mobilize as many to defend Proposition 13, because that’s what may be needed to keep $528 billion in our pockets — our honest, hard working California property owning pockets. And not flowing into mercenary state and county tax collectors’ pockets.