Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Bill to limit property taxes backed

CARSON CITY -- With real estate prices rising rapidly in Southern Nevada, homeowners could face an increase of 20 percent to 50 percent in their property tax next July, experts say.

Clark County Assessor Mark Schofield says that's why he has proposed a change in state law to cap the increase in assessed valuation to 6 percent a year, and now Sen. Ann O'Connell, R-Las Vegas, has asked for a bill to be drafted to follow that recommendation.

"We're trying to keep people in their homes," said O'Connell, who noted that people on fixed incomes could be forced out of their homes if the values rose 20 percent to 50 percent.

Schofield said the value of raw land in some cases is expected to rise 200 percent to 300 percent in Southern Nevada. O'Connell's request was revealed Monday in the weekly release of new bills requested by lawmakers for introduction in the 2005 Legislature.

While the 2003 Legislature raised taxes $833.5 million over the biennium, this next session looks like it will include a focus on holding down the increase in property taxes.

Assemblywoman Sharron Angle, R-Reno, who was unsuccessful in circulating a petition to limit the increase in property tax, is asking for a bill to change the Nevada Constitution to restrict property tax increases. O'Connell's bill would change only the state law.

They were two of several bill drafts requested to address state taxes.

One requested by an unidentified legislator would provide for a lottery to pay property taxes owed by senior citizens. Another lawmaker, whose name was not disclosed, is proposing there be a limit on the taxation of older property.

Sen. Maurice Washington, R-Sparks, wants legislation to require that any surplus from the 2003 tax increase be returned to taxpayers. Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, has asked for a bill to "make various changes relating to taxation of real property."

Perkins said both he and Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus D-Las Vegas have asked for a bill to cap the increases in property tax.

If a property tax cap doesn't pass this year, many Nevadans will be hit hard with taxes next July, he said.

"That's why it's so crucial to get it done this session," he said.

Perkins said the tax cap should not put an undue burden on local governments.

"The growth will continue," he said. "They just may not realize huge increases in the revenue like 20, 30, or 40 percent."

He said that limiting property tax increases will be one of the top priorities of the 2005 Legislature along with improving education and making quality health care more accessible and affordable.

Schofield says his plan could be enacted by the 2005 Legislature and it would provide immediate relief. He noted a constitutional amendment, as proposed by Angle, would take five years to pass.

"This proposal will protect our young families and the elderly from market circumstances over which they have no control," Schofield said.

He said new construction or improvement to property would not be subject to the cap the first year they are added to the tax rolls. The 6 percent maximum would kick in after that.

Any legal change in use or zoning to the property that would result in the property's reappraisal would not be subject to the 6 percent cap the first year but would be applied after that.

O'Connell said capping the increase in assessed valuation would "not please local governments," which get a good share of their revenues from the property tax. But she said people cannot afford these major increases in their property tax bills.

Bob Hatfield, executive director of the Nevada Association of Counties, said the Schofield plan would affect schools, hospitals, local improvement districts, counties and cities. He said he knows there has been a dramatic increase in property values in recent years.

But he said a change requires more study.

"I'm not debating the merits of the proposal," Hatfield said. But he said the state needs to step back and take a look whether this is a one-time increase in property values before making any big adjustments.

There's been a surge of new buyers and the low interest rates have propelled the rise in value. But he said it may not continue for three, four or five years in the future.

He said his board of directors will meet in August and discuss the issue.

O'Connell noted that Clark County is the only county in the state that re-appraises property values annually.

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