Law Commons^™

Difficulties In Achieving Coherent State And Local Fiscal Policy At The Intersection Of Direct Democracy And Republicanism: The Property Tax As A Case In Point, Mildred Wigfall Robinson

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Professor Robinson explores the uneasiness present when acts of "direct democracy" through means of voter referenda and ballot initiatives conflict with the ideals of representative government, using fiscal matters, such as the property tax, as an example.

Part I explores the changes that have taken place in the last two decades in voter strategy and in patterns of judicial interpretation, briefly reviewing the history of the property tax focusing on taxpayer reaction to long overdue attempts at administrative reform, and showing how that effort indirectly contributed to the "taxpayer revolt. "It further examines how and why broad-scale attempts to utilize …

An Error In Methodology: Inclusion Of External Costs Of Sales In Property Valuations, Joel L. Terwilliger

Akron Tax Journal

Ironically, courts have upheld the protectionist policies behind the counterpart to the sales tax-the use tax. The application of the use tax serves the dual purpose of preventing the out of state migration of purchases of tangible personal property and to ensure a steady flow of revenue to the state treasury coffers. This dual purpose is based on a primary goal: to prevent avoidance of the sales tax. However, unlike sales taxes, use taxes paid on items of tangible personal property are not added to the value of the property for property tax assessments. This dichotomy presents serious problems for …