PROPERTY TAX ALERT– Important 2020 Ballot Measures
This upcoming 2020 Election is an important one, especially for California property owners. There are THREE (3) ballot measures that could greatly harm property owners, and we want to make you aware of them. We have reviewed the ballot measures and here is what you need to know before you vote:
Proposition 15. Tax on Commercial and Industrial Properties for Education and Local Government Funding Initiative
- This ballot measure is the “split roll” initiative which repeals Prop 13 base value protection for all commercial and industrial properties statewide.
- This measure will cause cyclical reassessments of commercial and industrial properties, leading to a large increase in property tax for property owners, which will likely lead to increased rents for businesses.
- Businesses will subsequently flee California en masse, leaving our economy decimated.
On August 4th, 2020, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 to support Proposition 15. This would be the largest tax hike in California history, during a global health and financial crisis, and only one supervisor thought it was a bad idea!
Proposition 19. Property Tax Transfers, Exemptions, and Revenue for Wildfire Agencies and Counties Amendment
- Since 1986, California residents have been able to transfer their principal residence and limited other property to their children without increasing their property taxes (Prop 58).
- This initiative will remove property tax protections for all properties transferred from parents to children except for a home if it is used by the children as their principal residence.
- This initiative makes the same changes to Proposition 193, a similar ordinance involving transfers from grandparents to grandchildren.
- Proposition 19 will ruin the opportunity to provide your children with financial stability, and take away a significant estate planning tool.
Proposition 21. Local Rent Control Initiative
- This ballot measure would change state law to allow any city in California to pass expansive rent control laws. This could lead to restrictive laws previously seen in Santa Monica and Berkeley, where a landlord couldn’t even raise an apartment’s rent to market rent when a tenant moved out.
- If rental housing is made less profitable due to rent control, less units will be built in the future.
- Allowing local rent boards to implement any rent control measures they want could lead to restrictions not just on Apartments but on Single Family Homes as well!
We would like to thank the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association for their insight on these ballot measures.
We would also like to thank the California Taxpayers Association for their insight on Prop 15.