A New Property Tax Revolt

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.

The new property tax revolt aims to correct the flaws in current state and local property tax laws. Well-designed property tax limitations must address two problems: they must limit the amount of property tax revenue that a state and local jurisdiction can collect and spend; and they must cap the amount of property taxes imposed on individual homeowners and businesses.

Just as in the 1970s the new property tax revolt is being led by grassroots organizations in each state. The Prosperity for Us Foundation has launched a campaign to restore property rights in the states. The Foundation will work with state and local officials to help design effective property tax limitation measures. These measures will require voter approval for any new tax or change in existing tax levies.

The Foundation will engage states to ensure enforceable property rights protection and prompt judicial resolution for any form of government takings, including regulations and egregious crippling taxes. This means prompt judicial remedies for full compensation, including court costs and attorneys’ fees, against any state or local government act that either takes or works to devalue real or intellectual property.

The new tax revolt aims to not only complete the property tax revolt launched half a century ago, it aims to restore property rights to that envisioned in the Constitution. John Adams, the second American President, said that “property must be secured or liberty cannot exist.” The Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments protect property owners, both individuals and corporations, against government takings.

During the Great Depression the Supreme Court reinterpreted the due process clause, setting property rights at a lower standard for judicial review. Under this interpretation of the due process clause, if a state or local government has a reasonable objective in passing any measure, including ones that violate individual property rights, the courts must sanction the measure. However, the new Supreme Court has returned to the original concept of property rights as part of the bundle of personal and economic liberties protected under the due process clause. This means that state and local property tax limitations will likely pass muster in a judicial review. There is light at the end of this tunnel; meanwhile, we must keep paying higher property tax bills simply because the government has failed to stabilize prices.   Author: Barry W. Poulson is professor emeritus at the University of Colorado, Boulder Colorado, and on the Board of the Prosperity for US Foundation Image: Pix4Free/Nick Youngson *This article was originally published on https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2025/02/a_new_property_tax_revolt.html