Property Taxes Los Angeles County

The state Supreme Court on Thursday rejected Los Angeles County's challenge to the state government's shift last year of $2.6 billion in property tax revenue from local governments to schools. The county, which lost $681 million, argued that the shift violated local authority over property tax money and the financing of local government. The revenue transfer was upheld by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Diane Wayne and by a state appeals court. The Supreme Court denied review of the case.

With a host of made-for-media statewide initiatives on Tuesday's ballot, little has been made of Proposition AA, a relatively obscure local measure that embodies the ongoing debate over raising taxes. Proponents say Proposition AA, which seeks $205 million to improve landscaping and lighting at the nine campuses of the Los Angeles Community College District, is a frugal and fair use of the property tax assessment.

With a host of made-for-media statewide initiatives on Tuesday's ballot, little has been made of Proposition AA, a relatively obscure local measure that embodies the ongoing debate over raising taxes. Proponents say Proposition AA, which seeks $205 million to improve landscaping and lighting at the nine campuses of the Los Angeles Community College District, is a frugal and fair use of the property tax assessment.

The state Supreme Court on Thursday rejected Los Angeles County's challenge to the state government's shift last year of $2.6 billion in property tax revenue from local governments to schools. The county, which lost $681 million, argued that the shift violated local authority over property tax money and the financing of local government. The revenue transfer was upheld by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Diane Wayne and by a state appeals court. The Supreme Court denied review of the case.

The City Council has approved tax increases to help pay for fire services, landscaping and lighting, but property owners will have the chance to reject the new taxes by mail. Property owners will have 45 days from the date notices of the new taxes are mailed out to send a letter of protest. The increases will be overturned if a specified percentage opposes. The City Council unanimously approved the lighting and landscape assessment district tax. City officials hope the tax will raise $1 million.

Monday is the deadline for paying the first installment on 2001-02 property taxes in Los Angeles County. Payments must be received by 5 p.m. Monday, or property owners will be charged a 10% late fee. Payments can be made in person from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration, 225 N. Hill St., Los Angeles. For more information, call (888) 807-2111 or visit http://http:// ttax.co.la.ca.us/main.htm.

Annexation of 1,162 uninhabited and unincorporated hillside acres on the city's northern perimeter, and the subsequent exchange of property taxes with Los Angeles County, was approved by the City Council on Tuesday. The council has been planning to take control of the area since 1981, when its Hillside Plan was adopted. Originally, the council asked the county's Local Agency Formation Commission for permission to annex 1,962 contiguous acres.

City officials, barred by a technicality in state law from collecting $1.2 million in property taxes, have asked Assemblyman Charles Bader (R-Ontario) to sponsor a bill that would help bail out their newly incorporated city. Council members are pushing for legislation requiring county governments to provide services until new cities are legally allowed to collect property taxes.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday directed county auditors to conduct a comprehensive review of Bell's finances to determine whether the scandal-plagued city is solvent. "Bell residents know their civic house is in disarray," said Supervisor Gloria Molina. "There is no way order can be restored in Bell until residents there have an accurate picture of the city's finances. " Since the enormous salaries of top administrators and elected officials were revealed in July, the city and its finances have been under growing scrutiny.

It is difficult to tell whether Peter King's diatribe against the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors (July 18) is deliberate misinformation or simply a case of willful ignorance. Balancing the L.A. County budget is not a matter, as King suggests, of paring "a few hundred million dollars from a $13 billion budget." The actual working budget is only about $3 billion, because $10 billion of our expenditures consists primarily of federal or state subventions for health and welfare.

The City Council has approved tax increases to help pay for fire services, landscaping and lighting, but property owners will have the chance to reject the new taxes by mail. Property owners will have 45 days from the date notices of the new taxes are mailed out to send a letter of protest. The increases will be overturned if a specified percentage opposes. The City Council unanimously approved the lighting and landscape assessment district tax. City officials hope the tax will raise $1 million.

The disastrous Northridge earthquake is providing some of the region's more enterprising property tax consultants with what could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to shake up business. Law firms and brokerages, including giant CB Commercial, have turned earthquake property tax relief into a new product line, charging up to $500 to help clients prepare simple, one-page relief applications--a practice government officials frown on.