Gigantor:
Here is the problem people - and its not being discussed. And I understand its too complicated for the left wing illiterates who have no sense of reality to know this. They are mostly uninformed on most issues, and usually speak out of emotion, not fact.
Most of peoples' property taxes go to fund schools, fire, police, etc. The property taxes are a function of a mill rate as well as an assessed value. During the boom years of R/E, most govts became flush with cash and grossly expanded their payrolls as well as the benes for public workers assuming, wrongfully of course, that prices would never go down. They used these bogus projections to justify crazy levels of spending that became a structural part of the budget. These costs and payrolls were unsutainable BEFORE the collapse, but as even worse now.
Obama and the Dems passed that bullshit stim bill, which at best was a temp band aid under the assumption that the "recession" would only last a short period of time and that tax receipts would recover. The same goes fo the localalities who got stim bill money and used it to mask their unsustainable budgets. They pissed the money away and refused to adjust to reality because they all guessed we would be out of this by now. THEY GUESSED WRONG! we are dealing with some of the most economically illiterate people i have have seen.
Now, back to assessments. Assessments are usually done 2 or 3 years behind, so that people are still paying property taxes based on the boom time prices which are now not a fraction of that. So the house hat was worth 300k during the boom is now worth 215k. Howver, the taxpayer is still paying taxesbased upon the assessment of thehouse being worth 300k. As soon as a reassessment is done, or if the homeowner chooses to challenge his assessment in tax certiori, KKKAAAAABBBBOOOOMMMM, that funds going to the govt from property taxes are going to collapse and be 2/3 of what they were unless there are massive tax hikes just to keep funding the current level of spending, which mostly goes to payroll, benes, and salaries for govt workers. And if they jack taxes any higher, people will leave and they will lose the tax base and make matters even worse.
The GOP Govs know this time bomb is ticking and are tryng to get ahead of it asap. Same with cities, towns, villages, everywhere.
This has nothing to do with plutocracy or the other bullshit and screaming from cry babies who seem to be living in an alternate universe. Its basic math. We are on the brink of collapse and its not changing for the better any time soon.