California appellate court turns back challenge to Proposition 13

[Newsjock]

Source: Sacramento Bee

Proposition 13, the landmark property tax limitation passed by California voters in 1978, has survived another legal assault.

The 2nd District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles on Tuesday denied, without comment, an appeal of a lower court decision rejecting a challenge to the measure from Charles Young, the former chancellor of the UCLA campus.

Although Proposition 13 was upheld by the state Supreme Court shortly after its passage, Young contended that by requiring a two-thirds legislative vote for imposing new taxes, the measure constituited a "revision" of the state constitution that could not be enacted by voters.

... The appellate court refused to entertain the case, however, and it's uncertain whether Young will try again with the state Supreme Court. Norris has said he and Young were inspired to launch the indirect challenge to Proposition 13 by the wording of a state Supreme Court decision dealing with Proposition 8, the equally controversial measure that barred same-sex marriages.

Read more: http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2012/07/california-appellate-court-turns-back-challenge-to-proposition-13.html

[bayareaboy]

1. Bring it up here to the SF ...

and see how it withstands the 21 century.

Just saying.

[NYC_SKP]

2. Prop 13 is a horrible horrible community killing RW dream machine.

What a disaster.

[jaysunb]

3. +1 n/t

[still_one]

4. I disagree. People were losing their homes because the property taxes were too high. If the state

needs revenue there are a lot of ways to to it including increasing state income tax, gasoline, sales tax.

Arnie helped make the situation in the state worse by reducing the registration fees.

and of course we had the faux energy crisis created by enron and the republicans which really helped us over the edge

With the housing crisis the way it is, getting rid of prop 13 would even make things worse

[bayareaboy]

9. Well I disagree with you!

I never saw anybody lose property during this time because of tax indebtedness. I did see lots of business not paying a damn thing after this abortion.

Besides that lots of folks had to pay a tax penalty that their, parents did not have to pay after Prop 13 passed. Business did very well and if you wanted to live in California and weren't old and rich, you had to move to the valley and do long ass commutes.

Yeah I remember Prop 13.

[still_one]

12. ok, older folks on fixed income were not forced out of their homes because of prop 13. However, if

the foreclosure mess isn't bad enough in California, it would be worse if they got rid of prop 13

Right now if a house is sold in California, not including special circumstances, the property tax on the new buyer is about 1%

So it could be looked at that it penalizes new buyers, but helps those who have been in their houses a long time.

Maybe there could be a compromise, but I seriously doubt that they will be able to repeal prop 13

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

5. Prop. 13 kept California from being depopulated of the working class

and every industrial site within fifty miles of the coastline from being turned into subdivisions.

[NYC_SKP]

6. Howard Jarvis and Paul Gann were the Grover Norquists of the day.

That some relief was felt by many cannot be argued, but the effect on schools and services is still being felt.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

8. That is due to the cowardice of the political leadership on both sides

[bayareaboy]

10. I ain't buying that one either ...

It was the same thing that is happening now in the nation. How do you deal with RePUGs. We are not used to this shit now or what was it 30 years ago. We would have to be either as craven as those assholes and it really takes a while to find out how low they can go.

They have no cowardice because they don't need any, because in this case as well as others the Democratic party will not know what to do, so they set the rules.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

11. After 13 passed, local governments started to charge fees and such to get around Prop 13

The result was Prop 4 which put a top line on Gov. It passed by over 70% IIRC. Then the state started to play funding games, and became the prime funding source for the cities. That was a losing game in the long run, but every Gov and legislature was unwilling to say anything and kicked the can down the road.

Sounds like political cowardice to me

[bluestateboomer]

7. Prop 13 started the long slow demise of California.

Maybe property taxes were getting to be a problem, but I think history has shown that Prop 13 wasn't just a measure to protect property owners. What it was was an all out attack on the ability to fund government. Jarvis and Gann convinced Californians that we could have all the benefits we had become used to, but didn't have to have the resources to pay for them. I was a fairly young, lower information voter at the time and I voted for Prop 13. Knowing what I know now, it's something I definitely would not do again.