Although there have been many strides taken at the state level to reduce the property tax burden, local governments’ incessant and reckless spending continues to drive up the bill. Key points: In May 2026, Texas voters considered 439 bonds. Of those, 233 were approved. The passage rate for bond propositions for the May 2026 cycle...
Imagine buying a piece of property, being ordered by the government to clear it of fire hazards, and then being handed a near-million-dollar bill by that same government for doing exactly what it asked. It sounds like a dystopian satire of bureaucratic overreach, but for Matthew Bernard and Lynn Warner, it is a harrowing legal...
Matthew Bernard wanted to build a home. He bought a small lot in Oakland, California, and began clearing several diseased and fallen trees that the local fire department had identified as hazards. The result was a $915,000 “mitigation fee” from the city of Oakland—nearly five times the value of the lot itself. Under Oakland’s tree ordinance,...