| Last night, the Associated Press reported that California voters have narrowly approved Proposition 19. Some voters may not have been aware that this measure repeals Proposition 58, the 1986 constitutional amendment that families have relied upon to protect their property from reassessment and higher taxes when it is transferred between parents and children. Prop. 19 is a billion-dollar tax increase on California families. The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association is saddened that family business properties and family homes that will not be owner-occupied within a year will be reassessed to market value when inherited. This will wipe out an important source of economic advancement for California families that work hard to provide a better life for the next generation. If voters were unaware of this consequence of passing Proposition 19, they should contact their state representatives and urge them to restore the important protections of Proposition 58. California residents can look up the names and contact information of their state representatives at findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov. ### |
Jon Coupal
Jon Coupal is the President of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association (HJTA). HJTA, with offices in both Los Angeles and Sacramento, is the largest taxpayers association in California with a membership of over 200,000. Founded by the late Howard Jarvis, the author of Proposition 13, HJTA’s name is synonymous with tax relief and the uncompromising defense of the California homeowner.
From 1991 to 1998, Coupal served as Director of Legal Affairs for HJTA, overseeing the organization’s litigation and lobbying efforts. He is a recognized expert in California fiscal affairs and has argued numerous tax cases before the courts. Coupal also successfully defended Proposition 140, the state's term limit initiative, before the California Supreme Court. In 1995, he won a major ruling before the Supreme Court when it upheld the validity of Proposition 62, an HJTA sponsored initiative guaranteeing the right to vote on local taxes. He is also the principal drafter of Proposition 218, the Right to Vote on Taxes Act, a measure passed by the voters in November 1996. He has served as chairman of several initiative campaigns representing the interests of taxpayers including his most recent battle against Proposition 88, the statewide parcel tax initiative, defeated by the voters in November of 2006. Coupal is also Chairman of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayer Foundation which provides funding for taxpayer rights litigation and educational studies.
Coupal is a graduate of the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William and Mary, where he received his J.D. degree in 1982. After law school, he was an attorney with Pacific Legal Foundation for nine years, specializing in tax issues and political law. He resides in Sacramento, California with his wife Catherine, daughter Elena and son Adam.
View more of Jon's writing in California Commentary.