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Villaraigosa Leads Push To Lift Prop. 13 Cap On LA Property Taxes

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — The mayor of Los Angeles on Tuesday called for changes to a law that limits how much the city can collect in property taxes.

KNX 1070's Pete Demetriou reports Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is taking his efforts to overturn Proposition 13 to the Sacramento Press Club.

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Villaraigosa has recently suggested that the time has come for the idea of a split property tax roll as well as rethinking how to fund at education at all levels.

He told Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez in July that he was considering calling for changes to Prop. 13 that would initially address commercial property taxes and ultimately residential taxes.

"He has said before that he is considering changes to Prop. 13, which we think would be political suicide," said Jon Coupal with the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association. "Prop. 13 continues to poll very popularly in California."

Despite the mayor's efforts, however, it remains unlikely that any changes to Prop. 13 will be enacted.

A 2009 attempt by the San Francisco County assessor to get an initiative for a split property tax roll on the ballot failed to get enough signatures, and odds are against two-thirds of the Legislature voting to putting the measure on the ballot.

Passed in 1978, Prop. 13 established the base year value concept for property tax assessments, limiting increases to the inflation rate or two percent, whichever is less, according to the California Board of Equalization.

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