On 8/5/2014 12:02 PM, Danny D. wrote:
CRNG wrote, on Mon, 04 Aug 2014 05:59:06 -0500:

I thought Prop-13 passed in the mid 1970s limited property taxes to 1%
of the owner's purchase price with a *very small* increase allowed
every year? Did that change or did the politicos find a way around
it?

What California does, is raise the price of the property up to 2% every
year (invariably), & they constantly add additional "assessments",
which all seem to past the ballot procedure out here (Californians
don't seem to feel that they're taxed enough yet).

The 2% limit is a good thing! Prior to that they were basing the
property tax on the actual value, not the the purchase price plus a
maximum of 2% per year.

But Prop 13 should have applied to one, owner-occupied, residential
property, not to commercial property or rental property.

They have Measure A, Measure B, Measure C.... Measure F, etc. all of
which are assessments such as the most recent $17/100,000 of assessment
just for the open space that you don't even live on.

All of which pass.

Our schools must have the most amazing restrooms since every parcel tax
for schools seems to mention "provide safe, clean, restrooms."

In addition to that, they add cleverly crafted "fees" (which aren't
taxes but in all ways, are exactly like taxes, down to the fact they
can take away your house if you don't pay them), which only need a
50% majority (instead of a super majority) to pass.

True. But here's why I kind of like the fees and parcel taxes. There's a
great many people making high incomes that are paying extremely low
property taxes either because of the loopholes in Prop 13, or because
they are living in their parent's house, or because they have turned a
former personal residence into an income property. They can't escape the
parcel taxes and fees and as these become a larger percentage of the
total tax burden it becomes fairer.

For example, on the street next to me, one family is living in the
wife's parent's house. They are probably paying about $1000 per year in
property taxes. If the house was taxed at the assessed value it would
bring in about $18,000 per year. If it were assessed at the value when
they moved in, plus 2% annual increases, it would probably be taxed at
$6000-7000. They send their kids to the same public schools as the kids
of parents paying $8000-16,000 in property taxes. They are free-loading.

These taxes and fees usually have an exemption for seniors (but
ironically seniors still get to vote to impose them) so the argument of
"taxing seniors out their homes" doesn't work.