Monthly Archives: March 2015

30-40-30

For any state to prosper, it has to be economically balanced:

  • Too much capitalism and the state tends towards monopolies, oligarchies, and politicians chasing the powerful.
  • Too much socialism and the state tends towards an ownership state, crony capitalism, and the powerful chasing politicians.

For any state to prosper, it has to be asset balanced:

  •  Too much private land and money, then privileges and land ownership migrates to the few. When the owner is hungry, he over produces and tends to pillage the land. When the owner is not hungry, he tends towards reserves, preserves and the lands are set aside for private use only by the privileged.
  • Too much public land, then we have inefficient producers, dependent on other people’s capital, and the common man is eventually prevented from access to those lands. Those lands tend towards reserves, preserves and are set aside for private use only by the privileged. [More]

As-Was Property Taxes

Alaska’s version of Prop 13

Economic development, growth and government efficiency are key goals of most boroughs and municipalities in Alaska including those that levy a property tax.

The premise of this white paper is that the current practice within the state to annually assess property tax on the full and true value of real property and improvements is a disincentive to economic development and community growth due to increased costs of ownership. It is an expensive use of government manpower, adds a subjective element (assessment) into the taxation process, and there are more efficient ways to value and tax property.

PDR Alaska proposes that property be taxed “As-Was”, or in other words, at the price when title last changed hands. -MORE-