I-747 Misconceptions
It may not be what you thought
By Paul Dossett
posted 01/28/02
There seems to be a few misconceptions among many people that have been reinforced by radio and television regarding the effects of Initiative 747. This article is offered to assist in understanding the initiative.
I-747 does not limit a property owner's property tax increase to 1 percent per year nor does it limit tax assessment increases to 1 percent.
Initiative 747 passed by voters at the general election last November limits the amount of property tax revenue a taxing district is allowed to increase each year to 1 percent. The 1 percent limit is a restriction on total property taxes that may be levied by a taxing district without a vote of the people. The property tax growth limit applies to the regular (non-voter-approved) levies of each taxing district which includes the state, county, cities, port districts, fire districts, library districts, hospital districts, cemetery districts and emergency medical service districts.
In some cases, such as library districts, fire districts, cemetery districts and emergency medical service districts, the only revenue source is property tax.
The limit does not apply to excess or so-called "voter approved" levies such as local school maintenance and operation levies and levies to retire bonds for capital improvement projects.
To reiterate, I-747 does not limit the growth in the assessed value of a particular parcel of property. State law requires that all property, shall be valued at 100 percent of its true and fair value in money and be assessed on the same basis unless specifically provided by law (RCW 84.40.030). In short, this means that there is no limit on the amount or the percentage that the assessed value of property can increase as long as there are comparable sales of similar properties to justify the increase to reflect fair market value.
The passage of I-747 will limit the increase in the amount of total tax dollars that are collected each year for the various taxing districts. This will help slow down the ever-increasing property tax burden on all of us. However, individual property owners may see property tax increases greater or less than one percent per year depending upon individual circumstances.
Paul Dossett
San Juan County Assessor
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