CA seniors could choose to opt out of property taxes under proposed initiative
If you’re a Californian who is at least 60 years old, Rishi Kumar thinks you should be able to choose whether to pay property taxes.
The former city councilmember in the San Jose area is hoping enough voters will agree so he can place a measure calling for that change on the November ballot. He pitches it as a way to provide relief to older residents and to help address California’s struggles with high housing costs and the large number of people living on the street.
“This has been brewing in our heads for the last two or three years,” he said in an interview, “but it’s come together quite fast in the last year.”
Kumar, running as a Democrat, finished sixth in a 2024 primary race for a congressional seat that covers parts of Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. In December, he also lost a runoff election to become Santa Clara County’s assessor. He filed the ballot proposal during that most recent campaign.
Last week, supporters of the measure were allowed to begin collecting the more than 874,600 signatures needed for it to qualify for the November election. They have to gather them in the next six months.
Cities, counties, schools and special districts impose taxes on properties and in recent years those levies generated more than $88 billion annually, with over half going to schools. If passed, the new exemption would apply to most property taxes.
California’s Proposition 13, the watershed measure passed by voters in the 1970s, caps tax rates, requires the levies to be set based on the purchase price of a property and only allows the taxable value of homes to increase by a maximum of 2% every year. That is regardless of a person’s age.
Seniors in California, with certain incomes and home equity, are allowed to postpone their property taxes. But Kumar points to other states that provide an array of exemptions for older residents, and argues “it’s time for us to do this in California.”
A person would be eligible for the proposed exemption if they have lived in their primary home for at least five years or have been a California resident for 10 or more. Spouses of people who are 60 years or older would also be able to receive the break.
Kumar, who served on the Saratoga City Council, declined to reveal his age and would only say he worked for an artificial intelligence company in Silicon Valley.
While the possible exemption may appeal to many, it is also expected to face strong opposition by those who rely heavily on the revenue. The Legislative Analyst’s Office, which analyzes ballot initiatives and also advises legislators, estimated schools and local governments would lose at least $12 billion a year.
Graham Knaus, CEO of the California State Association of Counties, said in a statement: “This ballot measure would obliterate county funding for emergency response, public safety, homelessness, and elections. It’s just not a serious proposal.” That said, the association has not officially opposed the measure.
Other major organizations have also not yet taken formal positions, including AARP California, the California Association of Realtors and the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.
Neither has the California School Boards Association, said spokesperson Troy Flint. But, he added: “Any proposal that stands to significantly reduce the resources available for public education when school districts are struggling to meet student needs and teacher contract demands will warrant scrutiny.”
Kumar downplayed the effect that the potential revenue losses would have and added that he “would love to see belt tightening in the public sector.”
At the same time, he acknowledged it will take a “massive effort” to collect all the signatures needed to put it on the ballot. Signature gathering is often an expensive task and the campaign is trying to recruit volunteers to help.
“The idea is to get it going as quickly as we can,” he said, “we don’t have time.”
This story was originally published February 10, 2026 at 5:30 AM with the headline "CA seniors could choose to opt out of property taxes under proposed initiative."
