Property taxes, which leveled out in the 1970s as a result of antitax protests, have been rising since the end of that decade. Total property taxes paid by Americans were 58 percent higher in 1991, after adjusting for inflation, than they were in 1980. Property taxes are the bread and butter of local government, providing 75 percent of their revenue. Of property taxes collected:

• School districts claim the largest amount, 40 percent.

• County governments receive 22 percent.

• Municipal governments receive 21 percent.

County government tax collections have grown faster than those of school districts or mu-nicipal governments every year since 1982. County governments have grown because their pop-ulations have increased, their spending on health and social services has risen sharply and their areas of responsibility have expanded.

Still, the growth in property taxes from 1980 to 1991 varied greatly. The national average per capita was 122 percent, after adjusting for inflation. However:

• The largest per capita increases were 329 percent in the District of Columbia, 207 percent in Florida, 197 percent in New Hamp-shire, 171 percent in Virginia and 164 per-cent in South Carolina.

• The smallest per capita increases were 15 percent in Montana, 35 percent in Alaska, 50 percent in Massachusetts, 56 percent in New Mexico and 65 percent in Wyoming and South Dakota.

The District of Columbia now averages $1,475 per person in local property taxes, the highest in the nation. Five states also average more than $1,000 per person in property taxes. They are New Hampshire $1,341, New Jersey $1,257, Alaska $1,213, Connecticut $1,138 and New York $1,101.

Source: Tax Features, Vol. 37, No. 7, September 1993, Tax Foundation, 1250 H Street, NW, Suite 750, Washington, DC 20005, (202) 783-2760.

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