Our View: Credit for property tax reform starts with him

Somewhere, Ron Rankin is smiling.

Rankin didn’t live to see property tax reform take hold in Idaho. But he helped establish the anti-tax climate that kept the pressure on politicians to do something. In the late 1970s, he pushed the One Percent Initiative that was approved by voters and then neutered by legislators. In the 1990s, his attempts to resurrect the One Percent Initiative and a third-party run for governor prompted Gov. Phil Batt to ease the burden on property tax payers – somewhat.

Gov. Jim Risch finished the job in August by calling a special session of the Idaho Legislature to reform property tax.

The fruit of Rankin’s crusade was harvested this week in Kootenai County when Assessor Mike McDowell and Treasurer Tom Malzahn announced that property taxes would fall significantly this year despite rapidly increasing values. They credited several factors for the amazing news, including, most importantly, the vote by the 2006 Idaho Legislature to shift funding for school maintenance and operations from the property tax to the sales tax. Also important, they said, was the fiscal restraint by local taxing districts and the additional tax revenue provided by new construction.

Rankin stands alone in terms of individuals who brought this day to pass. He drove thousands of miles, manned dozens of fair booths, and collected hundreds of thousands of signatures to finally win statewide property tax relief. But others deserve their share of applause, too.

Idaho would be waiting for property tax relief again next year if Dirk Kempthorne had remained governor. In his disappointing State of the State address in January, Kempthorne gave passing mention to the No. 1 issue in North Idaho, dismissing property tax reform as a problem for local government. Risch, his successor, proved Kempthorne wrong by calling the Legislature back into session to take advantage of a huge budget surplus to shift school costs. At Risch’s bidding, lawmakers cut property taxes about one-fifth statewide by shifting school costs onto the state sales tax, which was raised from 5 cents per dollar to 6 cents. They also designated $50 million of the surplus to replace additional lost revenue and established a $100 million fund to underwrite school expenses in lean years.

Risch, who will serve only seven months before relinquishing his office to the next governor, ensured his legacy with his bold insistence on tax reform.

North Idaho legislators deserve their due, too.

State Sen. Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint, and Reps. Frank Henderson and Bob Nonini, both R-Post Falls, and others fought for property tax relief despite tough resistance from retiring House Revenue and Taxation Chairman Dolores Crow and her reluctant committee. Not only did the North Idahoans help to pass several property tax relief bills, including one that raised the homeowners exemption from $50,000 to $75,000, but they raised the visibility of the issue. By the time the Legislature adjourned, it was on the brink of reforming the system. All it needed was the push that Risch provided.

Most local taxing districts, including Kootenai County, deserve credit, too – for declining to increase their budgets by the full 3 percent allowed by law.

Rankin was right: You don’t have to win every election battle to win the war.