The Personal Property Tax

Abstract

This chapter examines the policy and administrative issues associated with the personal property tax. It describes the tangible personal property tax base in the United States property tax system, and the administration of the tax. The chapter considers the property tax with respect to overall tax policy. In early colonial America the property tax was a broad-based tax on wealth, and personal property was nearly always included in the tax base. Changing business practices also help explain the declining role of personal property in the property tax base. Intangible personal property has also been excluded from the tax base in the majority of the states. The removal of personal property from the tax base has been significant in terms of the revenue consequences and the shifts in the tax burden. Considerable differences exist between the administration of a property tax on real property and a property tax on personal property.