Plan to increase tax breaks could be on 2018 ballot

The measure would boost a state tax credit for homeowners and renters to $500 a year.

SACRAMENTO — California homeowners and renters could receive more tax breaks under a proposed initiative for the November 2018 state ballot.

The measure would increase a state tax credit for homeowners and renters to $500 a year, which would continue to go up as housing costs rise. The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn., the anti-tax group behind Proposition 13’s property tax restrictions, is sponsoring the initiative.

Currently, homeowners receive a $70 annual credit and renters $60. Neither figure has increased in more than 25 years, according to the association.

Jon Coupal, the association’s president, contrasted its approach to rising housing costs with the recent package of bills passed by the Legislature to spend more on low-income housing construction and ease local home building regulations.

“While the government seeks to address the housing crisis with more regulations, more government costs and more debt, we believe this is the most efficient way to provide immediate tax relief for every Californian who has to pay for a roof over their head,” he said.

Coupal said his organization plans to conduct polls to test the initiative’s viability before deciding if it will finance a signature-gat hering campaign. The association also is considering an effort to repeal the gas tax hike that lawmakers approved in the spring.

The proposal is one of many housing-related measures that could appear on the November 2018 ballot. The California Assn. of Realtors is considering an effort to expand Proposition 13’s property tax breaks. And Gov. Jerry Brown is expected to place on the ballot a $4-billion bond to finance low-income housing construction and provide home loans for veterans after lawmakers approved it last week.