Hearing on Nevada tax plan cancelled

A settlement has resulted in a judge canceling a scheduled Tuesday hearing on an AFL-CIO challenge of former Assemblywoman Sharron Angle's latest ballot proposal to limit property tax increases to 2 percent a year.

A Carson City District Court spokeswoman confirmed today that the hearing on the challenge was canceled. Lawyers involved in the case reached an agreement to modify the description of the effect of the proposed ballot question " Angle's fourth to limit property tax increases.

Andy Kahn, one of the attorneys representing the AFL-CIO in the dispute, said the wording change ends the union's concern that the description was misleading, but doesn't alter the overall scope of the plan.

The union maintains that Angle's proposal would result in residents living in similar homes in the same neighborhood paying widely disparate tax bills. Angle acknowledged that differences could occur, but the U.S. Supreme Court allows such disparities under a 1992 decision upholding California's Proposition 13.

The idea behind Proposition 13, approved in 1978, was to tax home buyers based on purchase prices, and to keep property taxes low for longtime residents, some of whom were in danger of losing their homes.

Angle has failed three times to place her California Proposition 13-style petition before Nevada voters. Twice, she failed to secure enough signatures.

Last October, she withdrew a similar petition before a judge could hear a lawsuit from the AFL-CIO that also challenged its accuracy. This time, Angle needs to collect 58,836 valid signatures on petitions by May 20.

The new Angle petition, if approved by voters in November and again in 2010, would replace a law that limits property tax increases to 3 percent a year on owner-occupied properties and 8 percent a year on commercial and other property.