System Failure: California’s Loophole- Ridden Commercial Property Tax

The link to "System Failure.." should be required reading for all elected officials in California, especially at the State level.  It's an excellent examination of the effects of Prop 13, more specifically it's failure due to loopholes.

From the summary:  
"As California faces a severe fiscal crisis at the state and local level, all aspects of our tax system, including the property tax, must be examined. This report provides an examination of the property tax system as it applies to commercial property, and provides significant new data which comes to two clear and related conclusions:

1. In virtually every county, commercial property is paying a far smaller share of the
property tax since Proposition 13 passed in 1978.

2. Commercial property is able to exploit huge loopholes in the law to avoid
reassessment upon a change in ownership as required by current state law.

The first part of the report, “Who Pays the Property Tax?” provides county-by-county data on the shifting property tax burden between residential and non-residential property since the passage of Prop. 13.....

The data is consistent throughout the state: in virtually every county in the state, the share of the property tax borne by residential property has increased since the passage of Proposition 13 in 1978, while the share of the property tax borne by non-residential property has decreased. Some examples: in Contra Costa County, the residential share of the property tax went from 48% to 73%. In Santa Clara County, the residential share went from 50% to 64%, despite massive industrial/commercial growth. In Los Angeles County, it went

from 53% to 69%. In Orange County, it went from 59% to 72%."

It's very interesting that, for some unexplained reason, there has been virtually no change in San Diego County.  Nevertheless, statewide there has been a significant shift in the burden of property taxes from corporations to individuals.  The basic premise of Prop 13 should definitely be preserved, at the same time the loopholes for commercial property desperately need to be closed.  See the link for the full report:
System Failure.....