By Brian Massie, A Watchman on the Wall, A Populist
My Christian brother, Leonard Gilbert, and I are continuing to grow our “army” of informed, engaged citizens in the State of Ohio. We can easily see that property is slowly, but surely, being taken from the citizens of Ohio by an ever-expanding State and local government. There were two incidents that have happened recently that raises our warnings to the citizens to our highest levels.
- When I spoke to the State Committee on Property Tax Review and Reform at the State Capital, my speech was undeniably censored by the Committee. When I asked why was that done, the response was that there was a computer “glitch”. Sadly, when I reached out to our elected Representatives and Senator there was no response or assistance to “right a wrong”. Our representative government is merely an illusion. Free speech is coming under attack!
- The recent mandatory sexennial property revaluation in all eighty-eight counties has tipped the scales for us. What we see at the local level is a “money grab” by all taxing authorities to the detriment of an overwhelming majority of citizens, be they homeowners or renters. Property values have drastically increased throughout the State. The largest residential valuation increase we have heard of in Lake County is 84%.
The statement we made many years ago was that “if we stay on the path of ever-increasing property taxes, we will price seniors and those on fixed income out of their homes that they have worked all their lives to achieve”. We understated the problem. We now see that ALL age groups, homeowners or renters, and all economic levels are being negatively impacted by an out of control taxation system.
Our property tax system is so complex not even our legislators, and top-level elected State officials understand it completely. Incredibly, only a handful of people in the entire State understand how to calculate the “20 mil floor”! The Ohio Constitution and Ohio Revised Code have been written to deceive the public into thinking that the maximum inside millage that can be collected is ten mills. That is a HUGE LIE!
To understand this complex system you will need to know about Inside millage, outside millage, market value, true value, assessed value, HB 920, 20 mill floor, emergency levies, replacement levies, bond levies, general levies, renewal levies, joint vocational school levies, residential class, agricultural class, industrial class, business class, public utilities, 10% rollback, 2.5% owner occupancy credit, homestead exemption. continuous levies, and “c.p.t.” levies. Need we say more?
What is the problem? In our humble opinion, it is the use of property taxes as a means of funding our ever-expanding government, at all levels, which will turn all of the U.S. citizens into serfs depending on a tyrannical government for their existence. Our freedoms and liberty will be lost, and the United States that was formed in 1776 will cease to exist.
Benjamin Franklin made a profound statement after the signing of the Declaration of Independence from Great Britain.
Benjamin Franklin’s response to Elizabeth Willing Powel’s question: “Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?”….“A republic, if you can keep it.”
The following article, written on February 1, 2019 summarizes the efforts of a Texas legislator named George Lavender to eliminate the collection of property taxes in the State of Texas.
Eliminating Property Tax is NOT an
Hallucination
01 FEB 2019 – We are not handing a problem to the Legislature telling them, “Go
fix it!”
We’re presenting a solution. It’s the only comprehensive solution ever proposed
to the Legislature. And it’s a solution that secures both our liberty and our
property while still helping Texas to prosper.
In 2013, George Lavender sponsored HB3742, a 224-page bill that resulted from a
detailed, 159-page fiscal analysis that Economist/Attorney Rick Cunningham did
in 2010. Harvey Hilderbran, Chair of the Ways & Means committee sent HB3742 to
the Legislative Budget Board and Legislative Counsel for review. Unfortunately,
time ran out, the 83rd session ended, and we saw it shelved with no one
returning to carry it forward.
Here is its simplest distillation.
“Abolish 60+ taxes (including property tax) and replace them all with a 7%
consumption tax.”
This is not adding “another new tax.” Nor is it attempting a temporary
workaround that like every past reform for the last 80+ years, would fail. Instead,
it restructures the Texas tax system into a simple and efficient, consumption-
based tax.
On the simplest, macro-level, here’s how it works.
We need $80B to replace all revenue that HB3742 would abolish. Texas GDP is
$1.6T. A tax rate of 7% on the whole economy would capture $112B. We assume
up to 25% would be exempt, the net is the $84B, and that’s more than sufficient.
We’re advocating HB3742 because Property Tax Relief and Reform schemes
have always failed. They’ve been tried over and over and over.
During the nationwide property tax revolt of the “Great Depression” politicians
created the Homestead Exemption to provide relief. They implemented Sales Tax
to provide reform and halt rising property taxes.
Did that stop property taxes from rising?
In more recent times, there have been three major attempts. 20 years ago, the
Homestead Exemption was increased but school district property taxes
continued to rise. Ten years ago, a new tax, called the Business Franchise Tax
swap was supposed to bring reform. Instead, it brought Texans an increase in
both local property and state taxes. Three years ago, the Homestead Exemption
increased again.
Did that stop property taxes from rising?
We’ve been trying this for the last 80 years. Yet Governor Abbot’s proposal is like
an Oncology Doctor telling us, “We’re only going to slow the growth of that
tumor that’s killing you.”
You know trying the same thing over and over is futile. You know it will never
produce a different result. But here’s the most important reasons why we must
Eliminate Property Tax.
– Because private property ownership is central to a free society.
– Because property taxed is not owned at all.
– Because no tax should have the power to leave us homeless.
Did our founders pledge their “lives, fortunes and sacred honor” to secure their
rights to roads, schools, and public services?
You know they didn’t. Our founders considered property ownership an
inalienable right, just like life and liberty.
“Among the natural rights of the colonists are these: first, a right to life; second, to
liberty; third, to property; together with the right to support and defend them in
the best manner they can…” – Sam Adams, “The Rights of the Colonists”
November 20, 1772
“Property is surely a right of mankind as real as liberty.”- John Adams, “Discourses
on Davila”
Property must be secured or liberty cannot exist. – John Adams, “Discourses on
Davila”
“Now what liberty can there be where property is taken away without consent?”
– Sam Adams, “The Rights of the Colonists”
Our founders believed that if government can take it away “without consent”
then we don’t own either our property or our liberty.
That’s why in the 2018 Spring primary, voters passed Proposition One to “replace
the property tax system with an appropriate consumption tax equivalent.”
That’s why that same summer 94% of the 8,000 Texas Republican Party
convention delegates voted to Abolish Property Tax.
That’s why, for the last 10 years, the Republican Party of Texas Platform has
resolved to “replace the property tax system….”
So, why aren’t we talking about how we can Eliminate Property Tax?
Here are a few pragmatic objections and resolutions.
- “Not happening without major new revenue source and the infrastructure
ready to take it.”
In Rick’s research, he found nothing “that looked in detail at every taxing
jurisdiction of the state” (and there are thousands). So he did his own study to
find out “what does the picture look like if you tried to tinker with sales tax?” He
concluded that by using sales tax, “there was no way… to do a wholesale
replacement of the property tax.”
That led Rick to ask, “What would happen if instead of looking at what we have
and trying to figure out how we fix it, suppose we didn’t have anything?”
Using that approach, he started with three key objectives.
A. Generate sufficient revenues to fund the government the electorate has
chosen.
B. Distribute taxes equitably so all taxpayers bear a reasonable, fair share.
C. Create an efficient and transparent collection process.
He concluded that a value-added tax would best meet all the criteria (at an
acceptable rate of 7%).
HB3742 replaces the revenue from the taxes it eliminates. As for infrastructure,
it’s already there in the collection of sales tax and distribution of revenues by the
state.
“How will you fund counties cities, school bonds, and public services?”
Once Rick had completed his analysis down to every taxing jurisdiction he found
HB3742 would fully fund 95% of the counties in Texas. The remaining 5% still
have their school maintenance and operations funded. So, worse case, you have
a very small percentage of services left to be funded by additional means.
“How many legislators have actually said they support it?”
Only half a dozen that I know. So, do we have to replace 5 or 6 dozen of them to
make this happen? Or could enough Texans who start demanding they
Eliminate Property Tax change their minds?
How long did it take our abolitionists to eliminate slavery? How long did it take
William Wilberforce to abolish the slave trade in England? It didn’t take years, it
took DECADES.
Every time they got close, governments maneuvered in some underhanded way
to defeat the cause of right. But that evil was overthrown. And it wasn’t gradually
or incrementally through “relief and reform.” Yet isn’t this what we’ve kept trying
(and expecting a different result) with property tax for the last 80 years?
George Washington delivered the following message to the Continental Army.
While looking out into New York Harbor, they saw, forming against them, the
largest British expeditionary force in that nation’s history until the First World
War.
“The time is now near at hand which must probably determine whether
Americans are to be freemen or slaves; whether they are to have any property
they can call their own; whether their houses and farms are to be pillaged and
destroyed, and themselves consigned to a state of wretchedness from which no
human efforts will deliver them.
The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage and
conduct of this army. Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the choice
of brave resistance or the most abject submission.
We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die.” – Battle of Long Island 27 Aug
1776
No Relief. No Reform. #EliminatePropertyTax
In Lobbyists for Citizens’ preliminary study, we have determined that the $10 Billion in revenue collected from local property taxes to fund all Ohio local schools could be replaced by a 4.48% State sales tax. Would you rather pay the State sales tax or continue to be taxed out your home?
If you are interested in joining us to stop the attack on our liberties, please send an email with your contact information to:
stoppropertytaxes@gmail.com
Categories: Community Activism, Real Estate Taxes, Uncategorized