Forty years ago this week, voters passed Proposition 13, the most consequential act of direct democracy in California history. This taxpayer revolt of June 6, 1978 amended the state Constitution, carrying 65% of the vote and all but three counties. Its backers can boast one enduring success: Proposition 13 has, as promised, protected homeowners from sharp increases in their property tax bills.
As for its other goals … well, turning 40 is a good time to take stock.
Proposition 13 was a multipronged attack designed by businessman-activist Howard Jarvis and his supporters to do two things: ease the overall tax burden and protect a stable culture of homeownership. To that end, it set tax rates at 1% of a property's sale price and capped annual increases at no more than 2%. Then it required future tax hikes of any form to pass the state Legislature by a two-thirds vote. “The most important thing in this country is not the school system, nor the police department nor the fire department,” Jarvis declared after his ballot box victory. “The right to have property in this country, the right to have a home in this country, that's important.”
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