The assessment lid proposed by the initiative would shift the property tax burden from owners of rapidly appreciating property to owners of slowly appreciating property. The exemption shrinks the property tax base, which will probably lead some local governments those not at their statutory maximums to increase tax rates to capture the desired revenues. In addition, the effect of the limit would be to make the property tax more regressive, as properties that have experienced rapid assessment increases in recent years have been those located in higher-income areas around the Puget Sound. State law currently limits annual increases in property taxes. I-722 would repeal this provision.
Opponents argue that it creates the potential for excessive tax increases by local officials.
To do so requires a supermajority vote of the council. I-722 drops the six percent to two percent. The signatures qualifying I-695 for the November 1999 ballot were filed July 2, 1999. I-722 proposes to roll back and refund all taxes imposed by local governments without a vote of the people between those dates. Fiscal Implications Property Tax Measures.