In California, fate of tax hikes depends on who is asking

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — This 2020 election, California voters narrowly defeated a $12.5 billion statewide business property tax increase that would have benefited schools and local governments, offering a rebuttal to the state's reputation as a liberal paradise dominated by tax-and-spend Democrats.

But in that same election, voters approved at least 173 local measures that authorized more than $12.8 billion in new spending and borrowing that mostly benefits schools and local governments, according to an analysis by the California Taxpayers Association. That number could grow in the coming weeks, with another $2.9 billion in spending and borrowing proposals still pending as county election officials continue to count votes.

The results are a return to form for California, which in March rejected a surprisingly high number of new tax and borrowing proposals on the ballot, including a statewide bond to improve school facilities. Many viewed those results as a rebuke of the state's high taxes and predicted a similar revolt in November after coronavirus closures put millions of people out of work while damaging businesses.

Instead, voters opted to support the local governments that were closest to them, while narrowly rejecting a blanket statewide property tax increase endorsed by the governor and multiple state leaders that attracted strongly-funded opposition from business groups. Voters did approve a separate statewide property tax change that further protects some homeowners while eliminating a tax break for some inherited homes.

“The average California voter clearly trusts the policymakers in their own backyard far more than they do those in the state Capitol,” said John Kabateck, California state director for the National Federation of Independent Business, which opposed the statewide business property...