New Seminar Explores the Tax Revolt You May Have Missed

One of the biggest stories in government right now comes from town halls and state legislatures across the country, according to Professor David Schleicher.

That story is the call on officials to cut or even abolish property tax. But unless you live in one of the states where property tax challenges are underway, chances are you haven’t heard much about them.

“If this were happening at a different moment, this would be on the front page of every newspaper,” said Schleicher, the Walter E. Meyer Professor of Property and Urban Law.

Schleicher focuses on the tax that has long been the building block of local government budgets — and the movement to get rid of it — in a new seminar this fall. “Property Tax Revolt” looks at why local governments tax property, how they tax it, and which governments get to levy that tax and use that revenue. Schleicher and students examine those questions as voters in several states are deciding whether the property tax should exist at all.

In 2024, at least 10 states had property tax reforms on the ballot. Voters in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, New Mexico, Virginia, and Wyoming approved measures that will cut taxes for some or all property owners. The most sweeping proposal was in North Dakota, where a measure would have completely repealed the property tax. That measure failed, but movements to repeal property taxes have since gained momentum in Texas, Florida, and Ohio. 

This is not the first time a wave against property taxes has swept the country, however. In the 1970s and 80s, factors like inflation and general distrust of government galvanized an antitax movement that led to laws capping property taxes in California and Massachusetts. Schleicher notes that today’s revolt is similar in scale to the earlier one, yet the revolt happening now barely makes ripples in the national news.

“It has been a little lost in the popular conversation, but it is a huge thing happening in the country,” Schleicher said. “And if you talk to any political figure, anywhere in the country other than maybe New York or Los Angeles, they’ll tell you that property tax reform is one of the biggest political issues in their state or locality.”

The implications are profound, Schleicher stressed. Taxes on property have long been the largest source of revenue that most local governments raise themselves to fund services like schools, public safety, and public works. To emphasize how ingrained the tax is, Schleicher includes history showing forms of property taxation as far back as ancient Rome and Egypt.

“There is this extraordinary historical lineage, which makes the calls for repeal so much more dramatic,” he said.

Post-pandemic shifts in the real estate market helped create the conditions for the anti-property tax movement to take off, Schleicher explained. Residential property values soared while commercial real estate values fell. That resulted in bigger tax bill for many homeowners and a growing frustration from some that services haven’t kept up with their tax increases. 

Lauren Taylor ’26, a student in the class, also harbors some bad feelings about property taxes. From her time in Yale Law School’s Housing Clinic, which represents low-income renters and homeowners, Taylor has the impression that property taxes disproportionately harm the people she’s worked to help. Among her frustrations: households struggling to make ends meet can be foreclosed on for outstanding property taxes. Yet, she points out, cities sell property tax debt at a discount to private bidders. Those bidders can collect interest on that debt and still foreclose. 

“So, the property tax frustrates me, but I don’t think it’s the same frustration that motivates the property tax revolters,” Taylor said. “The revolters seem frustrated that the property tax exists at all. I’m in favor of having property taxes, and I was interested in Professor Schleicher’s class as a way to think about what reforms could look like.”

Liz Brown ’26, another student in the seminar, appreciates the balance of theory and real-world examples in course readings. One class discussion was on the Tiebout theory, the economic model says that people who can afford it move to communities that offer both the services and the tax rate they want. Schleicher illustrated that idea with news stories from Carmel, Indiana. Residents in that perennial powerhouse of high school swimming spent $55 million to build a new natatorium so advanced that it has hosted international competitions.

“These materials, along with Professor Schleicher’s conversational approach to class, have made digging into and really debating the subject matter both fun and rigorous,” Brown said.

Some oddball examples have come up in class. Schleicher said they show both the different ways communities can approach local government in the U.S. and how inequality is built into some tax laws.

“There are a bunch of unbelievably strange issues, and sometimes they are weighty and very unfair,” Schleicher said.

There are a bunch of unbelievably strange issues, and sometimes they are weighty and very unfair.”

—Professor David Schleicher

One example is why Los Angeles golf courses pay so little in taxes despite occupying some of the country’s most expensive real estate. The reason, explored by author Malcom Gladwell on his podcast, is two California laws. The first one, passed in 1960, assesses the value of golf courses without considering how valuable they could be if developed as housing or commercial buildings. The other is Proposition 13, which freezes assessments at their 1976 levels and limits annual increases to 2%. But those conditions only apply while the property stays with the same owner. That produces a modern-day Ship of Theseus question: does a gradual changeover of golf club members constitute a change in ownership? A court ruled that it does not, and so California golf courses continue paying taxes at the 1976 rate.

Though the course covers specifics like how local governments go about assessing property for taxation, it also takes a wider view. Class readings and discussions include the economic studies that ground policy positions and the politics that fuel popular feelings about taxes.

Schleicher, who also teaches courses on local government, said he wants students to come away with a broad understanding of local governance. He said too few policy experts think through the issues at the center of city and state governance, so students who understand these areas stand to make a real impact.

“What I hope is that they become active contributors to our debates on these subjects and improve not only public policy but also public understanding of the stakes of local decisions,” he said.