31 August 2021 — 1753mdt
Ballot Issue 8 withdrawn
Ballot Issue 9 would protect owners of primary residences
from unaffordable property assessments and taxes
Matt Monforton and Troy Downing have withdrawn Ballot Issue 8, which Flathead Memo described on 26 August, and submitted a substantially revised constitutional initiative, Ballot Issue 9, the full text of which is below.
Ballot Issue 9 excludes commercial property and applies only to primary residences, and does not contain its predecessor’s provision requiring tax increases to be put to the public and approved by a two-thirds majority. These are significant differences from California’s Proposition 13.
Here’s the proposed ballot statement, converted to bullet points:
- Limits ad valorem property taxes on primary residences to 1% of value.
- Establishes 2019 as the base year for valuations for calculating property taxes on primary residences.
- Limits annual increases in valuations of primary residences to either 2% percent or the inflation rate, whichever is lower.
- Provides for reassessment after transfer, construction, or significant improvement.
- Allows owner to carry forward base year valuation to new primary residence of equal or lesser value.
- Authorizes the Legislature to establish valuations of other real property based upon acquisition value.
Ballot Issue 9 (PDF) is in the review process, which could result in changes to the ballot statement above and the proposed constitutional initiative. Consider both as drafts.