OpinionJanuary 1, 2004

When Tim Eyman began his initiative campaigns against Washington taxes, he at least had a fat target. A state government financing itself without an income tax had driven its annual car tax to colossal proportions. But this latest initiative from Eyman, slashing 25 percent from all local property taxes, other than school levies and other voter-approved taxes, is something else.

It is something without rhyme or reason.

Eyman is continuing to offer tax-cutting initiatives because that is what he does. Some people build things. Some fix things. Eyman cuts taxes. It makes no difference to his latest campaign whether those taxes finance local parks or police, water treatment or weed control, libraries or lifesaving paramedics. Cut them by a quarter, he says.

He can't do any of this on his own, of course. And that's the problem. Enough Washingtonians have been willing to aid and abet his meat-ax approach to public financing that he thinks he doesn't need a target like the bloated car tax any more. He can sell any initiative by simply claiming it will cut taxes. In this case, it's the property tax.

"The biggest culprit causing our property tax problem has been these local taxing districts," Eyman says.

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Well, duh. The property tax being the primary source of revenue for cities, counties and other local taxing districts, it does follow that those districts would be the biggest culprits in its use.

But where exactly is the property tax being misused? Is Anacortes wasting electricity on too many streetlights? Is Vancouver buying too many books for its library system? Is Colville overdoing it on snow removal? Is Clarkston overspending on parks?

Eyman doesn't say. He just says cut them all 25 percent.

And who knows? When he's finished, he might say cut them all another 25 percent.

One thing you can be sure of: He will have to say something. Cutting taxes is his vocation, and he's a long way from retirement age. -- J.F.

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