Fed up with constantly rising property taxes, members of the Arizona Tax Revolt want to fix the entire system.

Published: April 8, 2008
BensonNews-Sun.COM

Marc Goldstone, chairman of the Arizona Tax Revolt, spoke to Benson residents last Thursday about the rapid rise of property taxes in Arizona. Arizona has the highest property tax rate of all the mountain states and has received only Band-Aid fixes for the past 28 years, he aid.

Citing examples of the current problems, Goldstone said the Daisy Mountain Fire District in Maricopa County had a 43.7 percent tax increase this year and has grown at an average of 33.3 percent each of the last seven years. He added the Bullhead City Fire District in Mojave County also had a 50.1 percent tax increase this year with an average of 78 percent over the last three years.

Goldstone said taxes and foreclosures have increased due to government overspending, and Arizona has one of the more complicated property tax systems in the United States, making a solution even more difficult. The Arizona Constitution defines the property taxation system in Valuation Limits and Levy Limits, which the group is trying to amend, he said.

Goldstone said the proposed Levy Rollback Amendment would become effective in 2009 and reduce the tax of each taxing entity to its average tax revenue over the last four years or its 2005 amount. Tax increases would also be limited to two percent, would require a two-thirds vote to exceed the levy limit and would let residents petition and vote for reductions in future property taxes, he said.

The Valuation Rollback Amendment would take effect in 2010 and would allow a rollout of new rules and calculation changes in the system, said Goldstone. The rollback would restore the taxable value of a property to its 2003 value, provide a significant tax reduction for those with large valuation increases since 2003 and taxable increases would rise to no more than two percent per year, he said.

"Everyone's property would be treated equally and fairly," Goldstone said.

If a taxing authority needs more money, Goldstone said voters can override it in November with a two-thirds vote. He said school funding K-12 will also not be impacted because of Proposition 301 passed in 2000.

Goldstone said the group must collect 230,047 signatures from registered voters by June 2008 to get the Levy Rollback and Valuation Rollback initiatives on the ballot. Fixing Arizona's property tax system would strengthen the economy and encourage economic growth, which would increase overall income, he said.

With the number of benefits they offer Arizona taxpayers, Goldstone believes people would vote for the initiatives and expects them to be on the ballot this November. They are all about giving the taxpayers the final say on tax increases, he said.

Goldstone said the Arizona tax system is in dire need of fixing and urged those at the meeting to spread the word and inform as many people about the tax initiatives as they could.

"Get involved and get your neighbors involved," Goldstone said.

For more information on the Arizona Tax Revolt, visit the group's website at www.arizonataxrevolt.org.