🧾 Taxes, Fees, Tariffs & Public Investment

Section 8 — Taxes, Fees, Tariffs & Public Investment

Section 8 Purpose

This section prevents taxes, fees, tariffs, and public funding decisions from acting as indirect inflation on housing, transportation, utilities, education, and essential services. It aligns property taxation with regulated value, enforces cost-based fee structures, limits tariff pass-through on essentials, protects public research and workforce stability, and treats waste management as a cost-control and energy resource rather than a profit mechanism.

Legal-Style Provisions

8.1 Property Tax Alignment

8.1.1 Assessment Cap

Property taxes must be based on the Regulated Assessed Current Value (RACV), not speculative market pricing.

Assessors and taxing authorities may not use nearby listings, investor transactions, or speculative comparable sales to inflate taxable valuation beyond RACV.

Any increase in taxable value must be supported by documented improvements, verified condition remediation, or permitted RACV adjustments under this Act, and must exclude purely speculative appreciation.

8.1.2 Anti-Secondary Inflation Rule

Property tax increases shall not be justified solely by market appreciation, resale listings, or neighboring transactions.

Where no material improvement, expansion, or condition correction has occurred, assessed tax value increases must be capped to prevent secondary inflation unrelated to actual property utility or livability.

Summary — 8.1 Property Tax Alignment

This subsection guarantees fair, predictable property taxation based on Regulated Assessed Current Value (RACV) rather than speculative market inflation, and prevents rate increases solely from phantom market spikes.

Examples

• A property’s tax bill rises significantly even though no improvements were made.
→ Violates the anti-secondary inflation rule.

• A home’s assessed value is updated based on condition and RACV, not resale bids.
→ Assessment cap protections apply.

Why this subsection exists

Property taxes tied to speculative values act like invisible inflation, increasing cost burdens without real value change or community benefit.

8.2 Marital & Household Equity

8.2.1 Neutral Tax Treatment

Tax burdens may not disproportionately penalize:

• single individuals,
• nontraditional households,
• individuals without dependents.

8.2.2 Access Equity

Marital status may not be used to deny or inflate access to:

• mortgages,
• housing programs,
• tax benefits.

Access to tax credits, deductions, housing programs, and affordability protections shall be evaluated on individual eligibility and economic need, not marital status, household composition, or dependent count.

No individual shall be penalized or excluded from affordability protections solely due to being unmarried, child-free, or living alone.

Summary — 8.2 Marital & Household Equity

This subsection ensures that tax treatment, access to housing programs, and tax-related benefits do not discriminate based on marital status, household configuration, or dependent status.

Examples

• A single person is taxed more heavily than a married couple for the same property and income.
→ Neutral tax treatment protections apply.

• An individual is denied first-time homebuyer credits due to household status.
→ Access equity protections apply.

Why this subsection exists

Tax systems that privilegize certain household types worsen economic inequality and unfairly increase costs for individuals without dependents or nontraditional households.

8.3 Fees & Administrative Costs

8.3.1 Cost-Based Fees Only

Government and quasi-government fees must reflect actual administrative cost.

Fees may not be used as general revenue tools, and may not exceed the documented cost of providing the service, processing the filing, or administering the program.

Where a fee is standardized, the issuing entity must maintain a public cost basis showing the components of the fee and must revise the fee downward when administrative cost decreases.

8.3.2 Prohibited Revenue Padding

Fees may not be used as indirect taxation or revenue extraction mechanisms.

Government entities may not use administrative, processing, filing, or convenience fees as indirect revenue generators.

Fees must be demonstrably tied to the actual cost of service delivery, and surplus fee revenue unrelated to service cost shall be prohibited.

Summary — 8.3 Fees & Administrative Costs

This subsection mandates that all government service fees reflect documented administrative cost only, and bans fees used as indirect revenue extraction or inflated charges beyond cost.

Examples

• A municipal fee is $150 despite the procedure’s documented cost being $20.
→ Cost-based fee requirement violated.

• An “administrative surcharge” is used to generate profit rather than cover expense.
→ Prohibited revenue padding applies.

Why this subsection exists

Fees serving as hidden tax mechanisms inflate citizen costs without transparency, interfering with affordability for basic governmental services.

8.4 Tariff Impacts on Affordability

8.4.1 Essential Material Exemptions

Tariffs on materials essential to:

• housing,
• vehicles,
• utilities,
• medical devices
  must be reduced or offset when they materially increase end-user costs.

8.4.2 Cost-Pass Restrictions

Entities may not automatically pass tariff increases to consumers without justification.

Tariff-related cost increases may only be passed to consumers when a direct, proportional, and documented increase in material input cost is demonstrated.

Blanket price increases justified solely by the existence of a tariff, without cost accounting, shall be prohibited for essential goods and services.

Summary — 8.4 Tariff Impacts on Affordability

This subsection limits economic harm from tariffs by requiring exemptions or cost offsets when tariffs on essential materials (housing, vehicles, utilities, medical) materially raise end-user costs and prohibits automatic cost-pass principles without justification.

Examples

• A federal steel tariff sharply raises new home construction costs without cost justification.
→ Essential material exemptions apply.

• A supplier passes tariff costs directly to consumers without demonstrating material input cost changes.
→ Cost-pass restrictions apply.

Why this subsection exists

Tariffs can act as hidden inflation drivers, raising affordability costs for essential goods; rational, limited tariff treatment protects consumer budgets and housing costs.

8.5 Public Investment & Affordability

8.5.1 Infrastructure as Cost Control

Public investment in infrastructure is recognized as a method of reducing long-term consumer costs.

Public investment decisions shall account for long-term affordability impact, including reduction of recurring consumer costs, stabilization of service pricing, and mitigation of future infrastructure scarcity.

Infrastructure projects that materially reduce household expenses shall be prioritized as affordability measures, not discretionary spending.

Summary — 8.5 Public Investment & Affordability

This subsection recognizes that sustainable public investments — especially infrastructure — lower long-term consumer costs, and ensures these investments are factored into affordability planning.

Examples

• Public investment in broadband infrastructure reduces resident subscription costs.
→ Infrastructure cost control applies.

• A transportation infrastructure project is funded in a way that reduces commuter costs.
→ Public investment benefits apply.

Why this subsection exists

Long-term investments in infrastructure and public goods reduce ongoing expenses and promote economic stability, improving affordability for all.

8.6 Public Research, National Capacity & Workforce Stability

8.6.1 Research as Infrastructure

Public research institutions and programs (including NASA, NSF, NOAA, NIST, EPA, USGS, and similar bodies) are classified as national affordability infrastructure.

8.6.2 Funding Stability Requirement

Research funding may not be reduced without considering:

• workforce displacement,
• educational pipeline disruption,
• downstream cost increases.

Public research institutions and federally funded programs shall not be subjected to abrupt or cyclical funding reductions that destabilize workforce continuity, educational pipelines, or long-term research initiatives.

Funding changes must include transition planning sufficient to prevent sudden job loss, program collapse, or forced commercialization.

8.6.3 Workforce & Program Protection

Agencies may not rely on:

• tourism,
• merchandise sales,
• inflated user fees
  to replace withdrawn public funding.

8.6.4 Education & Job Pipeline Protection

Funding decisions must account for impacts on:

• internships,
• fellowships,
• early-career employment.

8.6.5 Transparency & Return on Investment

Agencies must publish affordability-related outcomes of public research investment.

Summary — 8.6 Public Research, National Capacity & Workforce Stability

This subsection classifies public research institutions and programs (NASA, NSF, NOAA, NIST, EPA, USGS, etc.) as national affordability infrastructure and prohibits destabilizing reductions in funding that would disrupt workforce, innovation, or educational pipelines.

Examples

• A major research institution’s funding is slashed, forcing reliance on tourism fees.
→ Funding stability and workforce protection apply.

• Internships and early-career roles are cut due to decreased federal research investment.
→ Education and pipeline protections apply.

Why this subsection exists

Public scientific and technical research underpins innovation, job creation, and economic resilience; destabilizing these investments reduces future affordability and competitiveness.

8.7 Waste Management, Recycling & Energy Recovery

8.7.1 Tiered Recycling Responsibility

Recycling infrastructure responsibility shall be assigned in the following order:

1. local municipality,
2. county authority,
3. state authority.

Where a lower level lacks funding or facilities, responsibility automatically escalates upward.

8.7.2 Mandatory Recycling Access

Residents shall have access to recycling services without excessive fees or restrictive conditions.

Where local municipalities lack capacity, responsibility shall escalate to county or state authorities to ensure compliance without shifting cost burdens onto individual households.

8.7.3 Domestic Waste Processing Requirement

Export of waste to foreign entities for disposal shall be prohibited except where no domestic processing alternative exists.

Where feasible, waste shall be:

• recycled domestically, or
• processed through waste-to-energy systems for fuel and power generation.

8.7.4 Landfill Reduction & Energy Offset

Waste-to-energy output may be credited toward:

• local energy supply,
• grid stabilization,
• public utility cost offsets.

Summary — 8.7 Waste Management, Recycling & Energy Recovery

This subsection sets a mandatory hierarchy of recycling responsibility from local to county to state, bans punitive recycling fees, prohibits overseas waste export, and promotes domestic recycling and waste-to-energy systems to reduce landfill costs and subsidize utility needs.

Examples

• A municipality fails to provide affordable recycling services.
→ Tiered responsibility escalation applies.

• Waste is shipped overseas rather than recycled or used for energy.
→ Prohibited export and domestic processing requirements apply.

Why this subsection exists

Exporting waste hides costs, consumes land, and raises energy prices. Domestic processing and waste-to-energy infrastructure stabilize public costs, cut landfill pressure, and add controllable utility resources.