Do we own our homes and lands if they require us to pay annual property taxes? It could be argued that we’re leasing our properties from the government if we have to pay property taxes on them every year.
The movement to abolish property taxes is growing.
Fiscally conservative leaders are pushing for the elimination of property taxes in several states as Tax Day approaches. One Pennsylvania lawmaker claims that homeowners should not have to “pay rent” (rent to government) to the government.
Russ Diamond (R-Lebanon), state representative, spoke with Fox News Digital on Thursday, ahead of his latest attempt to stop the collection of these taxes in the Keystone State.
Diamond will file a resolution titled HB 900, which Fox News Digital exclusively learned will be filed shortly. He hopes to present a draft constitution amendment on Election Day. It is not a piece of legislation that requires gubernatorial consent.
In many jurisdictions, property taxes are used primarily to fund local government or school activities. This raises the issue of how to replace these funds.
Diamond said in a recent Substack post that “people get all twisted up over how they are going to pay for things these taxes currently pay- honestly, they are missing the point.”
He said, “If you want to fulfill the promise of freedom, it’s impossible without owning real property.”
Here are some interesting points to consider. The first is the philosophical question that Mr. Diamond raises: Do you own your property, or do you pay a rent fee to the county to use it? The government is not only involved in this matter. There are restrictions on the use of property in many places. In some cases, the government is responsible, as in the case with zoning laws or building codes. It can be a voluntary agreement like a homeowners’ association.
To have to pay a government office a check every year to keep our home, it seems like we do not own the house.
The second angle is the “funding essential services”. Local governments can legitimately distribute community interests by doing certain things. The borough here maintains local side roads and funds equipment and training to local emergency responders and volunteer firefighters. They also fund the local schools. The borough should fund these things in some way. Government works best when it is as close as possible to its citizens. Regular citizens find it difficult to meet their congressman, or even one of their senators, face-to-face. What about your local officials, though? I have spoken to the representative of our borough. I know his address. I emailed the Borough Mayor to express my concerns, and she replied.
DeSantis, the Governor of Florida, is also taking a stand:
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis asked a similar query in his State of the State address last week.
Is this property yours, or do you rent it from the government?
“You pay off your mortgage, buy a house, and still write a government check every year to live in it?” DeSantis noted that Florida home values had risen, and escalating assessment created a “gusher” of revenue for municipalities.
The property tax reform will happen, one way or another.
