OC Register: Beware the split-roll attack on Prop. 13

For many years, public employee unions and other big-government types who want to spend more money on government programs have tried to chip away at Proposition 13’s property tax limitations. The most recent effort is Senate Constitutional Amendment 5, introduced last week by state Sens. Loni Hancock, D-Oakland, and Holly Mitchell, D-Los Angeles. It would allow commercial and industrial properties to be taxed more than under the current Prop. 13 limitations. In 1978, nearly two-thirds of Californians approved Prop. 13, which caps property tax rates at 1 percent of assessed value and limits increases to 2 percent per year thereafter. Reassessments are made upon change of ownership or significant improvements to the property. (The Orange County Register, June 14, 2015)