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Arizona residents may be voting on tax caps similar to
California’s Proposition 13 this year. Two groups are gathering
signatures to get proposals on the November 2008 ballot and the
Arizona Legislature may draft tax cap legislation of its own.
Prop 13
Arizona
The tax limitation group,
Prop 13 Arizona, seeks to:
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Roll back valuations to 2003 assessed full
cash value or purchase price after December 31, 2003
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Cap total taxes at 1/2 of 1% for all
residential property and 1% for commercial property and land
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Limit tax increases to 2% a year
Arizona Tax
Revolt
Another group, calling itself
Arizona Tax Revolt,
is pushing for property tax relief with two separate initiatives
that would limit property tax levies and valuation increases:
Both Arizona Tax Revolt and Prop 13 Arizona are
required to collect more than 230,000 valid signatures by July
for their proposals to be placed on the ballot this fall.
Lawmakers
Weigh In
Another option is for the Arizona Legislature to pass a tax
limitation measure. Last month, Senator Jack Harper filed
SCR
1003,
a concurrent resolution that echoes the demands of Prop 13
Arizona.
It is yet to be decided how cities and counties
would make up for lost revenues if tax caps, levy rollbacks or
valuation rollbacks are ultimately approved by voters.
The Arizona Tax Research Association estimates
any one of the tax limitation measures could cut property taxes
by as much as $2.6 billion. ATRA President Kevin McCarthy said,
“There is not enough money in income taxes and sales taxes to
make that up, nor is there a willingness on the part of state
policy-makers to cut budgets in those dollar amounts.”
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