ST. PAUL -- Minnesotans won't know for a while how much their property tax bills could be cut, but some legislators declared on the second day of the 2007 session that relief is on the way.
Senate and House leaders on tax issues are working on bills to increase state payments to schools, cities and counties with the theory that the increase would cut property taxes they collect from Minnesotans.
"I think it is safe to say that property tax relief is on the way," said Rep. Paul Marquart, DFL-Dilworth, chairman of the House property and sales tax division.
Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party senators introduced their property tax relief proposal Thursday as the first bill in the hopper this year.
"There is a pretty strong message in the fact that this is Senate File 1," said Sen. Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, Senate Tax Committee chairman.
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The House version of property tax relief will be among the year's first three bills introduced in that body Monday, Marquart said.
Democrats, especially, have complained that property taxes rose at an average of 7 percent annually in the past three years.
"The trendline is very, very disturbing," Bakk said.
Legislative proposals will not be complete until after a late-February report on how much revenue will be available to the state.
Gov. Tim Pawlenty and the DFL-controlled Legislature disagree on how to approach property tax relief.
The Republican governor frequently has said he would limit how much local governments can raise property taxes, which are a foundation of local funding.
However, Bakk and Marquart agreed that such limits are not the way to go.
Senate Property Tax Chairman Rod Skoe, DFL-Clearbrook, said he doesn't see a need to limit property tax increases. Local officials are responsible people and "they are not willy-nilly raising property taxes," he said.
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Republicans greeted Democrats' proposals with limited support.
"Certainly, it is a start and we will look at it," Senate Minority Leader Dave Senjem, R-Rochester, said.
He agreed with Democrats that local property tax levels should be left to local officials.
Besides increasing state aid to local governments, the Senate proposal would increase tax breaks given to agricultural land and homes.
One of the major reasons property taxes have gone up is a heavy use of tax levies over and above regular property taxes to fund schools. Bakk said the bill he will introduce addresses that by sending more state money to school districts.
Young homeowners and people on fixed incomes would benefit most from the bill, Bakk said.
Bakk would not say how much money the state might have available to increase local aid. Besides waiting for the February report, he said Senate committee chairmen must meet to decide how to divvy up whatever money is available among priorities ranging from education to tax relief.
The tax chairman did open the door to using some of about $1 billion available only this year to slow property tax increases. However, he had no details about how the one-time money could provide ongoing tax relief.
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Marquart has talked about using the one-time surplus as a beginning to permanent property tax relief.
