Port: This may explain why property tax measure is struggling to get signatures

MINOT — There are few political issues in North Dakota as perpetual as consternation over property taxes. This is why it surprised me to learn that signature collection efforts for a ballot measure proposal that would remove the property tax from state law have apparently been a bit of a struggle.

During an interview earlier this month for an obscure podcast, former state

Rep. Rick Becker,

who is chairing the ballot measure campaign,

admitted that he doesn’t have as many signatures as he’d like.

“I hate to give a number of only what I have in hand because…people will be disheartened maybe because it’s not as much as what we want,” he said.

He estimated that the campaign has about 15,000 signatures so far, a pace that would have the campaign missing the deadline for the June primary ballot next year but would possibly be enough for the November ballot.

But given how consistent and widespread complaints about property taxes are, shouldn’t signature collection be a slam dunk?

Maybe not.

A recent survey from the North Dakota Poll indicated that, while angst about property taxes is high in our state, it’s not necessarily translating into support for getting rid of the tax.

The survey,

which was conducted Nov. 5-7, showed 49% of respondents said property taxes should remain a matter of local control, while 38% said property taxes should be eliminated.

Is this relatively lackluster support, as measured both by the survey and the underwhelming signature numbers, evidence that the property tax issue isn’t as pressing as many, including this humble observer, think it is? Or something else the problem? Like the messengers for the ballot measure?

A reader sent along several pictures showing booths set up at the Gateway Mall in Bismarck by a far-right group called the Sons of Liberty, the founder of which

threatened members of the Grand Forks City Council

during the debate over the Fufeng corn milling facility.

One booth is for the so-called “Election Integrity Act,” a ballot measure backed by 2020 election conspiracy theorists

proposing sweeping changes to how our state’s elections are operated.

The other booth is for the property tax measure but, as you can see, there was plenty of other signage promoting anti-vaccine, pandemic-era pablum and suggesting that

Gov. Doug Burgum

is a puppet of Microsoft founder Bill Gates.

Any campaign, whether for a candidate or a ballot measure, wins through coalition building. While there is undoubtedly an appetite for conspiracy theories and anti-vaccine argle-bargle among some North Dakotans, I don’t believe that faction represents anything approaching a majority of the electorate.

My point is there may be many people open to being persuaded on the question of abolishing property taxes, but not when it’s juxtaposed with election conspiracy mongers and anti-vaccine messaging.

It’s worth noting that Becker himself is a highly polarizing figure.

His legislative career arc saw him transition from a thoughtful libertarian-leaning Republican to a full-on, Trump-era populist. While he has a bit of a cult following in state politics — particularly among the anti-vaccine, Bill-Gates-is-the-puppet-master crowd — he’s not popular with the general electorate.

We know this because last year he was on the statewide ballot, and he bombed, garnering less than 19% of the statewide vote.

I don’t support abolishing property taxes — I’m not happy about what most of us are paying, but I don’t think this measure is a good solution — but if I were to give the property tax campaign some advice, I’d say they should think about just who it is that’s representing their cause to the public.

Though I would caution the opponents of this measure not to get too cocky. Anger about property taxes in North Dakota is very real, and while this ballot measure may have a figurative albatross around its neck in the form of some of its most visible supporters, that may not be enough to stop it from passing.

And the issue must be addressed, whatever the fate of this proposal.