Tax Constraint and Fiscal Policy: After the Property Tax. Volume 1: Substantial Findings

摘要

This report describes the research effort in fiscal policy and analysis undertaken in Boston, involving the assembly of an improved information base and analytic techniques to better cope with the burgeoning problem of high and inequitable property taxes and the pressures for tax limitation. The text reports the research effort, its findings, methods, and organization. It looks at what was wrong with the property tax in Boston, the related problems with the city's revenue base, the State role, the relationship to the fiscal needs of the city, and the role of city fiscal policy in economic development. The principal goal of setting up a broader information base and using improved analytic techniques was to spur tax modernization and reform Boston's economic development by assuring the flow of revenue needed to meet requirements for public services and facilities. The central information and analysis focus was on projecting the impact of revaluation on property values and tax burden shifts and on projecting how classification and equalization would work. Charts, graphs, and data tables are provided.