CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : CALIFORNIA : Petitions Submitted on Tax Initiative

Voter Revolt says it has submitted 842,119 signatures in an attempt to qualify its multibillion-dollar property tax “split roll’ initiative for the 1990 statewide election ballot. Under the measure, business and residential properties would be placed on separate, or “split,” tax rolls and the levy on businesses more than doubled, from 1% to 2.2%. County officials will verify the petitions to determine if there are the required 595,485 valid registered voters’ signatures to earn the proposal a spot on the June ballot. Voter Revolt is the group that sponsored the 1988 insurance rate measure, Proposition 103. Business groups have long opposed efforts to tax their property at higher rates and have already begun organizing an opposition campaign.