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LANDOWNERS ARE ON A NEVER-ENDING PROPERTY TAX MERRY-GO-ROUND! |
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Welcome to the Silicon Valley Property Taxpayers’ Association - Property Tax Merry-Go-Round portion of our Web Site. Most agencies of government fail to appreciate the fact local homeowners, whether or not residents, natural persons or citizens [who are all part of their constituency] are on an ever increasing property tax merry-go-round! Because “inadequate tax bases and competing demands for existing taxes [purportedly] make it hard for cities and counties to provide all the services their citizens desire, when residents or landowners want new services or higher levels of existing services they [look for creative ways]...to pay for them” which generally means forming special revenue districts. Statewide there are [at least as of fiscal year 2002-03] 4,763 different special revenue districts [such as fire and police protection; waste (sewer), water and irrigation; parks and recreation; libraries; hospitals; cemeteries; airports; marinas; zoos; veterans’ memorial; vector control; open space; etc.]! And given counties, cities, school and redevelopment districts are not technically considered special revenue districts [and California boasts 58 counties, 551 cities (468 municipal corporation and 83 charter cities), 1,055 K-12 public school districts, 72 community college districts and over 340 redevelopment districts], in reality there are nearly 7,000 special revenue fiefdoms and more than 10,000 formal revenue district boundaries which according to the State Controller, all have “substantially the same general powers as most local governments. [Therefore, for instance, each]...may...issue bonds” and levy special taxes. To get a feel for the onslaught landowners are experiencing, let’s examine just one city [e.g., Saratoga] in one county [Santa Clara] in California [although the precise special districts in which the propert(ies) you own are located will likely differ, the fact there will be similar other districts will not]. In Saratoga there are nineteen different revenue assessing districts. Can you imagine being a Saratoga homeowner specially taxed by each and every one of these different revenue districts in addition to paying your regular county ad valorem property taxes? If you think this prospect is farfetched, we urge you to examine your most recent property tax bill [if you don’t have a copy, go to the “View/Pay Current Secured Taxes” portion of the Santa Clara County Tax Collector’s web site and type in your address or Assessor’s Parcel Number (“APN”). When the summary appears, click on the highlighted portion under “APN Suffix”]. There you will discover a breakdown which identifies most [but likely not all] of the add-ons assessed by each of your various local governments. Therefore in addition to regular ad valorem taxes, most homeowners [again, the example given is for Saratoga homeowners] are paying for: 1. Retirement benefits for County employees; 2. Retirement benefits for County Library District employees; 3. The repayment of City Bonds [in Saratoga’s case, for its Library]; 4. The repayment of [two sets (see below) of] Elementary School District Facilities Bonds; 5. The repayment of High School District Bonds [yes, typically your home is located in both an elementary and separate high school district]; 6. The repayment of Community College District Bonds [yes, typically your home is located in a community college district]; 7. Retirement of County Water District Bonds; 8. State Water Project Special Taxes [“grand fathered” in before adoption of Proposition 13]; 9. The repayment of Fire Protection District Bonds; 10. Two sets of special assessments to the County Vector Control District [mosquito eradication]; 11. Special taxes to the County Library District; 12. Special assessments to the County Water District for “Clean, Safe Creeks;” 13. Separate special assessments to the County Water District for “Flood Control;” and, 14. Special assessments to West Valley Sanitation District for “Sewer Sanitation.” Some homeowners [depending upon location] are specially assessed a 17th exaction which appears on their property tax bills as a special assessment for “Streets and Lighting.” Some homeowners [such as those in Los Gatos and Palo Alto] are paying an 18th exaction to the County Water District for City Storm Drains [actually, it may be another assessment paid to the County Water District which acts as the City’s “collection agent”]. Many county homeowners are paying additional [a 19th and sometimes 20th] exaction[s] which appear on their property tax bills as special tax[es] to school districts [to determine if your school district is specially taxing your home, go to the State Department of Education’s Ed-Data site; click the district reports link; select the year, bond & parcel tax elections and district menu options offered; and finally, your particular school district]. Therefore for example properties in the Los Altos Elementary School District are paying an additional $597 annually. Those in the Mountain View-Whisman School District are paying between an additional $75-$600 annually. And since many properties are located in both a separate elementary and high school district, they are specially taxed by both. Therefore for example properties in the Campbell Union High School District are paying an additional $85 annually. Those in the Fremont Union High School District are paying an additional $98 annually. Some properties are located in a unified school district and are assessed a single additional special tax for both K-12 and high schools. Therefore properties in the Palo Alto Unified School District are paying an additional $786 annually. Most homeowners in the County are paying an additional 21st exaction which appears on their property tax bills as an Open Space Authority assessment. And others will soon be paying an additional 22nd exaction which will appear on their property tax bills as repayment of El Camino Hospital District’s bonds. Now if the foregoing were not sufficiently daunting to the typical homeowner, can you imagine being additionally taxed some multiple number of times by some or all of these revenue districts? This is what all county homeowners must pay to the County Vector Control District; what Palo Alto homeowners must pay to the Palo Alto Unified School District; what Cupertino homeowners must pay to the Cupertino Union School District; what Saratoga homeowners must pay to the Saratoga Union School District; and, what some San Jose homeowners must pay four times [if you can believe] to the Franklin-McKinley School District! And given passage of 1999 Measure E and 2006 Measure C, this is what the Foothill-De Anza Community College District assesses for Mountain View, Cupertino, Palo Alto, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills and Sunnyvale homeowners! And given passage of 1999 Measure C and its proposed November 7, 2006 Measure G, this is what the Campbell Union High School District proposes assessing Campbell, San Jose, Saratoga and Los Gatos homeowners! One cannot appreciate the extent of the problem unless and until he/she is able to take a step backwards and view what is happening statewide. After adoption of Proposition 13 and prior to 2001, both special tax and bond measures required ⅔ voter approval. In November of 2000 voters approved Proposition 39 which reduced the ⅔ approval requirement for certain school/community college district bonds to just 55%. To demonstrate the effect of Proposition 39, “of the 288 districts choosing this option between 2001 and November 2005, 249 [86%] succeeded. Of the 927 elections [held] under the ⅔ requirement from 1986 through November 2005, [only] 511 [55%] succeeded.” For the last several years Senator Joseph Simitian of Palo Alto has championed a constitutional amendment like Proposition 39 which if approved, would reduce the ⅔ voter approval requirement to 55% for new special taxes against property making it easier for school and community college districts to pass new special tax measures. Recently the County was successful in convincing the State Legislature to pass a new law that allows Bay Area transit districts to specially tax homeowners within ½ mile of a VTA or BART station for transportation related improvements. For the last several years the Santa Clara County Office of Education has lobbied the State Legislature to pass a new law that would allow the Office of Education to further specially tax all county homeowners [in addition to the special taxes so many individual school districts have been levying] for public education. Although so far these efforts have been unsuccessful, Senator Simitian continues the quest. Now he and others are championing a permanent statewide special tax for education [see Proposition 88 on November, 2006’s ballot] which will additionally tax every property in the State! To demonstrate the effect of the special tax/bond merry-go-round, in November of 2004 there were FOURTEEN such special measures proffered in just one California county [Santa Clara], and for all the reasons your particular revenue district claims to need the money, each proposed another homeowner ONLY tax! As Jon Coupal, President of Howard Jarvis Taxpayers’ Association observes, the deck really is stacked against homeowners who truly are on a never-ending parcel tax merry-go-round. Thus we ask: how many different “creatively labeled” homeowner ONLY taxes does it take; how many multiple number of times; and, at how low an approval rate? When is enough, enough, and when does the rest of society start paying its fair share of the general costs of local government? Whatever the merits of the special tax/bond/assessment measure which has brought you to this web page, at some point they must take a back seat to what revenue districts are doing to local homeowners [and no, the sky won’t fall if their particular measures fail]! If you agree local government funding which disproportionately impacts homeowners is out-of-control, we urge you to VOTE NO on the new special tax/bond/assessment measure[s] that have brought you to this web site! Should you have questions or comments, please address them to Silicon Valley Property Taxpayers’ Association at: |
