During the last few weeks of the last year’s state legislative session, Governor Pawlenty negotiated hard for – and won – a concession from the State Legislature to include local property tax levy limits in the 2008 tax bill. The property tax levy limits limited the growth of local property taxes by limiting the amount a local government could increase its property tax levy (i.e – the amount of property taxes imposed by a local government) from one year to the next. That limit was agreed to be 3.9%. We increased our levy 0.0%, well under the Governor’s levy limit.
The levy limit was painful for many cities. Many city officials contacted their State Legislators to try and change or eliminate the levy limit during this year’s legislative session. They received support from a powerful ally – Sen. Tom Bakk. However, earlier this week, Sen. Bakk dropped the provision to eliminate levy limits from his tax bill. Here’s how it read in the Star Tribune on Monday:
Rollback of levy limit no longer on table
It had been in a bill easing local government mandates and perhaps help save money. The new version got preliminary Senate approval Monday.
Some red tape would be cut for cities, counties and school districts under a bill that received preliminary approval Monday in the state Senate.
But a provision that would have repealed caps on how much local governments can levy in property taxes was removed from the bill.
Faced with deficits and cuts in state aid, local governments had been clamoring for relief from what they saw as onerous mandates from state government. Legislators have been struggling to oblige, particularly if the changes add no costs to the state.
“We can, without having any impact on our budget, give relief to them,” said Sen. Linda Berglin, DFL-Minneapolis, the author of the bill, during debate.
The measure would allow such things as cremation in lieu of burial for the destitute and eliminate the need for separate Truth in Taxation hearings, as long as taxpayers still have a scheduled day to register concerns over budgets and proposed levy rates.
The bill also would relax other mandates and paperwork demands. Reports on pay equity would be required every five years instead of every three, for instance. School districts would not be required to publish an annual report on curriculum and student achievement but would be allowed instead to publish a summary.
One of the more politically contentious provisions — repealing a 3.9 percent limit on levy increases — was removed from the bill. The three-year limits were agreed to as part of a 2008 tax bill compromise with Gov. Tim Pawlenty in exchange for increases in the state-provided local government aid. Pawlenty took away $110 million of the state aid to address a short-term budget deficit late last year and has recommended cutting $400 million more. Repealing the caps on the property tax would have given local governments leeway in filling the gaps left by the loss of LGA.
But Senate Taxes Committee Chairman Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, who had criticized Pawlenty for imposing the LGA cuts, nevertheless removed the provision after receiving reports that the repeal would actually cost the state’s property tax refund program about $5 million because of the expected increase in property taxes.
A final Senate vote on the bill could come this week.
Mark Brunswick • 651-222-1636
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The provision could always make its way back into the final tax bill during the expected conference committee negotiations. After all, that’s where the Governor introduced the levy limit provision during last year’s session. So while it’s too early to pronounce the end of levy limits, it’s also just a wee bit too early to give up the effort to repeal them. As long as the State Legislature is in session, anything can happen.
