Written by Diego Estrada
Last month, the California State Assembly voted on the Assembly Constitutional Amendment (ACA-1), which would have altered the long protected Proposition 13. As it currently stands, in order to raise property taxes there must be a two-thirds majority vote on a ballot initiative. If ACA-1 had been passed, it would have lowered that standard to just a 55 percent majority.
This comes as a major threat to property owners and small businesses. If the ACA-1 had passed with the necessary two-thirds vote from both chambers of the state legislature, it would have gone on the 2020 ballot—only requiring a simple majority of California voters to pass it into law. While everyone would vote on such a proposition, only property owners and their workers would be affected.
ACA-1 would then make it possible for anything labeled as “infrastructure” to have an increase in property taxes with the approval of 55 percent of voters. To clarify, ACA-1 would’ve only needed a simple majority of California voters had it passed both legislative chambers. Any subsequent proposition to increase property taxes would’ve required 55 percent of California voters to pass.
Thankfully, the attack on Proposition 13 fell flat, receiving 44 votes—10 below the necessary number to pass. This occurred because, shockingly, 17 Democrats either voted no or abstained from the vote.
The supermajority of Democrats in the State Assembly has created a dangerous atmosphere for Californians looking to actually retain some of their income. Yet the situation with Proposition 13 has brought some hope for the state.
There still are many attacks on the rights of the citizens, however. Many new bills will surely attempt to break down our rights. If you support having affordable homeownership, cheap local businesses, or any of the other benefits guaranteed by Prop 13, you can click here to sign up to protect it.
