Property Tax

Seattle voters will decide on Prop. 1, a $985 million transportation levy known as Move Seattle, unanimously endorsed by the City Council and strongly backed by Mayor Ed Murray. However, the bus and bike priorities attracted a well-funded opponent.

October 27, 2015 - King 5 News

Housing often costs a literal fortune in California, and Governor Jerry Brown doesn't see an easy fix. Demand to live in the state is high, but there are local factors at work impeding housing construction.

October 12, 2015 - San Francisco Business Times

An organization tasked with oversight of the accounting methods of government agencies will require local governments to report the value of property, sales, and income tax breaks.

August 6, 2015 - The Wall Street Journal

Over one half of Detroit's foreclosed homes are blighted or abandoned. Buyers who purchased the homes for as little as $1 have little incentive to keep them in good shape—or pay taxes.

July 6, 2015 - The Detroit News

The annual "50-State Property Tax Comparison Study" offers a thorough resource for understanding the role of property taxes in fiscal responsibility at the municipal level.

May 27, 2015 - At Lincoln House

A debate over a special property tax assessment to fund a James Corner-designed redo of Nicollet Mall in Minneapolis raises questions about public benefit and value capture.

May 11, 2015 - MinnPost

Maine trails only three states in total acreage of land protected by conservation. A new plan to end the property tax exemptions for nonprofits, however, could make that work much more difficult.

January 25, 2015 - Portland Press Herald

The Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority—one of the last agencies in the country to fund transit with property taxes—is unable to keep up with the times, according to an editorial arguing for a change.

January 20, 2015 - The Toledo Blade

A California state law that allowed temporary property tax reductions to homeowners during the housing crash is now swinging back the other way. Some homeowners have seen 20 percent increases in property tax bills.

May 10, 2014 - Capitol Alert (Sacramento Bee blog)

Calling the property tax, "probably the most controversial tax in the United States," the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy and the Minnesota Center for Fiscal Excellence have released the "50-State Property Tax Comparison Study" for 2013.

May 1, 2014 - Lincoln Institute of Land Policy

It's a pattern seen as recently as two years ago in metro Atlanta: a crucial transit measure wins in the central city but dies in the more populous suburbs. The fix is to craft a city-only transit initiative—just what advocates in Seattle will do.

April 28, 2014 - KUOW

With 55 per cent of the vote, King County voters on April 22 opposed increasing their sales tax by one-tenth of one per cent and increasing an annual auto registration fee by $60. 72 Metro Transit bus routes will be eliminated.

April 24, 2014 - Q13 Fox News

Given the unprecedented nature of the gentrification occurring in American cities, many cities have had to respond swiftly to the pressures of changing neighborhoods. A new article surveys cities using property tax relief to support urban homeowners.

March 5, 2014 - New York Times

A Detroit-based maker of "crowdfunding and social mapping systems," has developed an interactive map of the tax status of every property in Detroit. In bright yellows, oranges, and reds, the city's property tax "black hole" is brutally clear.

January 31, 2013 - The Atlantic Cities

In Minneapolis, and cities across the country, surface parking lots are an enduring blight on urban landscapes; their presence often incentivized by existing tax structures. Could a new approach to property taxation maximize the productivity of land?

December 10, 2012 - Streets MN

As a special election gets underway to determine whether 10,000 downtown L.A. residents support taxing property owners to build a new streetcar system, the editors of the Los Angeles Downtown News offer their qualified support for the project.

November 13, 2012 - Los Angeles Downtown News

Jeff Jamawat looks at the promise of a nuanced approach to tax reform being tested in 17 local jurisdictions in Pennsylvania to head off the spiral of rising prices and displacement instigated by the construction of transit infrastructure.

October 18, 2012 - Smart Growth Network: National Conversation Blog

A New York state law on the books since the 1980s undervalues property tax rates on multimillion dollar residential buildings, providing astonishing discounts to New York City’s wealthiest homeowners.

October 16, 2012 - The New York Times

Arts programs across America have not been immune to the effects of the Great Recession. With institutions across the country struggling financially, Terry Teachout looks at whether the voter-approved bailout of the DIA can serve as a national model.

August 18, 2012 - The Wall Street Journal

Dowell Myers pens an opinion piece for The Sacramento Bee arguing that it's time to reform California's infamous property tax cap - Proposition 13 - in order to solve the challenges facing the state today, and in the future.

July 18, 2012 - The Sacramento Bee