Just lowering that value won't necessarily result in lower taxes, she said. What cannot be forgotten is that schools and other local units of government rely on property taxes to pay for the services they provide, Lang said. But there are some things that can be done to address problems associated with property taxes, she said. If the taxpayer feels his property valuation was too high, he could go through the appeal process established to question that value. If the taxpayer feels that other types of taxes, like sales or income, should be used to fund services that get money from property taxes, then that person could tell lawmakers to provide more state aid for that area.
Taxpayers can take heart.
Initiatives undertaken by the Legislature in recent years to lower taxes are headed in the right direction, Lang said. She pointed out that property taxes statewide, after increasing by more than 7 percent in 1992 and 1993, increased around 4 percent the next three years and dropped by nearly 5 percent in 1997. Even though the property tax garners the most negative attention, it is more equitable than sales and income taxes, said George Kilpatrick, legal counsel for the Legislature's Revenue Committee. In fact, the Nebraska Constitution requires that people with similar property be taxed equally, he said. Sales and income taxes do not have that requirement.