Letter: If Prop 13 is so great, why the exodus to here?

Sunday, Nov. 27, 2005 | 8:07 a.m.

Having read the Nov. 22 letter to the editor from Graydon Jones, "Proposition 13 was needed in California," I wanted to respond as a former Californian with a different take on this famous tax initiative.

California's Proposition 13 has achieved iconic status over the years, symbolizing tax reform. The unfortunate truth is that Proposition 13 is so flawed that it has created a multitude of unintended consequences that has caused even higher taxation to the average taxpayer than had the original initiative not passed at all.

Proposition 13 caused an unprecedented shift in taxation from local control to the state government, which has over the years done a miserable job of managing tax dollars. Besides, most essential services provided to the public are local in nature and not delivered by the state government. Because of the void left by Proposition 13, local governments -- at the behest of their constituents for increased police, fire and health services -- established myriad local user fees and special tax assessments in order to meet the public demand.

As a result, Proposition 13 has created a tangled web of local taxation that it is nearly unintelligible to even the most experienced scholar of government. But forget all of the complex arguments that surround this issue and ask the simple question: If Proposition 13 is so effective, then why are so many Californians moving to Nevada? The truth is that if Proposition 13 were not so symbolic, many political leaders in California of every stripe would like to be rid of it in favor of a more rational tax policy.

As for the assertion that prior to Proposition 13 people were losing their homes right and left, I am afraid that this is just a myth created by the political advocates in support of Proposition 13 many years ago. To my knowledge, as a former Californian, I am unaware of any research that has ever supported this claim with verifiable data.

James C. Sida

Mesquite