Benton files
bill to give property owners $1.4 billion in tax relief
February 9, 2007
OLYMPIA…Sen.
Don Benton, R-Vancouver, is sponsoring a bill to give 75 percent
of the state’s $1.9 billion surplus back to citizens in property
tax relief.
“This bill recognizes that
the surplus was created primarily by Washington’s booming real
estate market and that higher home prices mean higher property
taxes,” Benton said. “We need to talk about who the money really
belongs to, not about how many different ways we can spend it.”
Under the provisions of
Benton’s measure, Senate Bill 5998, the state property tax would be reduced in
2008 by 40.07 percent and by 39.13 percent in 2009 – giving
taxpayers $1.4 billion in needed tax relief.
Benton said recent tax
increases, especially the increase in the state gas tax and the
revival of Washington’s estate tax in 2005, have been accepted
by the majority of citizens because they believe money is needed
to fix roads and to help fund education. In November 2005,
voters rejected a ballot measure to repeal the gas tax. In
November 2006, voters defeated a ballot measure to repeal the
estate tax.
“Even with the huge tax
burden in this state, our citizens accepted these tax
increases,” Benton said. “Now that the state has collected more
in general fund taxes than we need, the citizens should be the
ones to reap the benefit.”
Benton said the most onerous
tax of all is the property tax because it hits families and
senior citizens the hardest of all the taxes.
“We have a chance to help
people where they need the most help,” Benton said. “It would be
very, very wrong not to give most of the current surplus back in
property tax relief.”
Benton is co-sponsoring a
similar measure, Senate Bill 5893, which would give property
owners $500 million in tax relief in 2008 and 2009.
“This bill is a little too
timid for me, but it has the same message as my bill,” Benton
said. “The more we say people need property tax relief, the more
chance we have of being heard.”
Benton also noted that during
the 2006 session the Legislature increased taxes by $400.5
million. These tax increases included the estate tax, an
additional tax on cigarettes and liquor, and a new tax on
extended warranties.
Benton is sponsoring several
bills this year to ease the property tax burden on families,
senior citizens and veterans. They include:
Senate Joint Resolution
8216 – This measure is a proposed
constitutional amendment that makes property values on Jan. 1,
2008, the base from which to calculate reassessments, which are
limited to 1 percent annually. Once a property is sold, it can
be reassessed at its selling price; and the true and fair market
value can be applied to new construction and improvements.
Senate Bill 5001 –
This measure preserves the voter-approved 1
percent cap on state and local property tax collections enacted
by Initiative 747. I-747 was thrown out by a King County
Superior Court judge; that decision is currently being appealed
by Attorney General Rob McKenna.
Senate Bill 5458
– This measure allows veterans to deduct any
compensation for service-connected disabilities and special
monthly compensation payments from the allowable income to
qualify for property tax exemptions for persons retired on
disability.
Senate Bill 5707
– This measure allows senior citizens with incomes too high to
qualify for property tax exemptions to have their property’s
value set back to what it was in 2001 for purposes of taxes. In
addition, their property value growth is limited to 5 percent
per year.
Senate Bill 5708 –
This measure eliminates the income
limit for senior citizens to qualify for the property tax
deferral program, thus making all persons over age 60 eligible
to defer taxes due until their home is sold.
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Additional contact Penny Drost at (360) 786-7522
or
penny.drost@leg.wa.gov
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