February 15, 2025

A New Property Tax Revolt

By Barry W. Poulson

It has been half a century since Howard Jarvis launched the first property tax revolt with Prop 13 in California. Since then, forty-six states and the District of Columbia have enacted some form of property tax limitation. Some of these measures have proven to be effective, but others are poorly designed and ineffective.

It is not surprising that a new property tax revolt has been launched. Many property owners had sticker shock this year when they got their property tax bills. I am one of the unfortunate sods in Colorado who have seen the property tax on their homes more than double in recent years. Many less fortunate souls on fixed incomes have literally been taxed out of their homes.

The explanation for the discontinuous increase in property taxes today is the same as that during the first property tax revolt in the 1970s. In those years double-digit inflation was accompanied by discontinuous increases in property taxes. Inflation rates recently peaked at 9 percent and have remained well above the target inflation rates set by the Federal Reserve. Increased housing costs are one of the major contributors to this higher rate of inflation. Higher home prices today also reflect the expensive and time-consuming regulations imposed by state and local governments on home construction.

Even in a state such as Colorado, with an effective tax and expenditure limit, homeowners have not been protected from the ravages of inflation. Colorado has experienced one of the highest rates of increase in home prices in the nation. Colorado’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) limits the amount of property tax revenue that local governments can keep and spend. TABOR also requires voter approval for any new tax or increase in tax rates; but it does not cap the amount of property taxes that individual homeowners must pay. TABOR has not shielded homeowners from increased property taxes due to rising property values and other state and local measures designed to increase collections. The Colorado Legislature will hold a special session this year to address the problem of higher property tax burdens.

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