Sherman Wants to Amend Uniformity Clause

This is a bad idea. 

Madison – Rep. Gary E. Sherman (D-Port Wing) reintroduced legislation last week to address the rising property tax burden on Wisconsin homeowners.

Under the State Constitution, taxation systems like that in place in Minnesota, which protect homeowners from rapidly escalating property values, are forbidden. A provision called the Uniformity Clause bars treating some classes of land differently from others.

“It seems that every special interest group in Wisconsin has found a way around the Uniformity Clause, while homeowners have been left bearing the largest burden of property taxation,” Sherman said. “It is time that those who are struggling to hang onto their homes were given the support that they deserve.”

Sherman’s proposal, AJR 8, would amend the Constitution so that it becomes possible to target property tax relief directly to homeowners. Constitutional amendments require passage through both houses of the legislature in identical form in two successive sessions and then passage in a statewide referendum.

Here’s a good refresher on the Uniformity Clause if you aren’t familiar with it.  Basically, it requires that taxation be levied uniformly.  The government can’t impose different levels of taxation for different kinds of property.  They can make a class of property exempt, but if it is taxed then it must be done at the same level as everyone else.  There are a few exceptions, but that’s the meat of it. 

It’s a bad idea to gut the uniformity clause because it would make the property tax ripe for abuse.  There have been proposals in the past to do things like give senior citizens a lower property tax rate or exempt the first few thousand dollars of a primary residence.  While these may sound like good ideas, politicians have a way of using the tax code to reward and punish people.  I could easily see such latitude being abused. 

For example, Democrats might want homes over $400,000 or secondary homes to pay a higher property tax rate.  After all, those property owners must be rich, right?  Or perhaps Republicans would want to make people in high crime neighborhoods pay a higher property tax rate because the cost of police services is higher in those neighborhoods.  Maybe it would be a good idea to grant people who vote a discount on their property taxes because as a way to encourage voter turnout.  The possibilities are endless and politicians have a knack for screwing things like this up.  Exhibit A: the federal income tax code. 

While perhaps well-intentioned, gutting the uniformity clause would leave the door open for rampant abuse and sets Wisconsinites up for an even more complex and unfair tax system.