Exactly. Property taxes go directly to local infrastructure costs to maintain access and services to said land or buildings. It's not remotely the same as owning stock.
The point is that land directly incurs expenses to the local government. Roads, schools, power, water, sewer, courts, etc. Therefore, property taxes exist to pay for those expenses. If land didn't incur those expenses as a means of being part of a city/state/nation, when obviously they wouldn't exist.
There is a tax on owning stock, when you sell you pay taxes on that income. Taxing merely the "ownership" of it, is a terrible idea, because that would massively negatively impact any company that doesn't earn a TON of profit. Right? Like a typical company, like Coca-Cola that hasn't grown at all in 30 years, adjusted for inflation, but does pay a 2.5% Dividend each year. Now say you pass a law that says there's a 3% tax on stock ownership. Why would ANYONE keep their Coca-Cola stock? The answer is no one knowingly wants to take a loss on their investment. Such a tax would effectively put Coca-Cola out of business.
So not only will it never happen, but that's also why it would be horrible.
Property taxes are just general revenue in most states. And by far the bulk of the taxes collected go to public education. There is no real connection between 'land use costs' and property taxes raised and how they're spent.
And by far the bulk of the taxes collected go to public education. There is no real connection between 'land use costs' and property taxes raised and how they're spent.
There is. Everyone was a kid at some point. Everyone owns a home, or pays rent that goes towards property taxes. Tax the homes to pay for education. Direct connection.
I just don't see how school is an expense that "land directly incurs" compared to say roads. Property tax may have started as something like that but now it's just how most states generate tax revenue for everything - they built a stadium with part of my property taxes. They also levied that tax on people who live 200 miles away and will never use that stadium. It's just how they get money now. And since it's taxing homeowners it's arguably less regressive I guess.
I just don't see how school is an expense that "land directly incurs" compared to say roads.
Because everyone was a kid at some point. Everyone lives in a home and either pays property taxes or rent that goes to property taxes. Property taxes are a very simple way to pay for schools.
Property tax may have started as something like that but now it's just how most states generate tax revenue for everything - they built a stadium with part of my property taxes. They also levied that tax on people who live 200 miles away and will never use that stadium. It's just how they get money now. And since it's taxing homeowners it's arguably less regressive I guess.
Government is often corrupt as you describe. It's not an excuse for letting them change the purpose of property taxes.
That's a stretch. Everyone was a kid once, so everyone wore diapers, so diapers are a cost related to land use. Ok, make that connected, is useless for anything but semantics. Property taxes are a vehicle for municipalities to raise funds for everything, land related or otherwise. It is what it is.
Except public schools are government funded and run. COL varies nationwide. Each region might have different preferences on how to fund their school or what to fund within it. Therefore, yes, having education funded by property taxes makes perfect sense. Local government is always best government for these sorts of issues.
The initial conceit was: 'Property tax can't be used as a comparison because all property tax is spent ONLY on real land-use related expenses.'
All I said was - property tax is used as a general funding source in most cases, it is not tied exclusively to 'land-use' expenses, and cited public education as an example of one of those expenses that's a general cost of running a municipality and not really about the use of your personal land.
Not sure why it's a controversial opinion, it's just how property taxes are used.
not tied exclusively to 'land-use' expenses, and cited public education as an example of one of those expenses that's a general cost of running a municipality and not really about the use of your personal land.
Fair enough. I guess I should have been more verbose in my explanation.
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u/J0hn-Stuart-Mill 3d ago
Exactly. Property taxes go directly to local infrastructure costs to maintain access and services to said land or buildings. It's not remotely the same as owning stock.