Your Land, Their Rules? The Absurdity of Property Tax in America
America was born on the radical premise that people are free. Free to speak, free to worship, free to defend themselves — and free to own property without asking a king for permission.
Yet here we are, 250 years later, and government has smuggled the king’s crown back onto its head. How? Through property tax.
The Great Illusion of Ownership
You don’t own your home. You rent it from the government, indefinitely. Miss a payment, and watch how fast your county treasurer proves it. Sheriff’s sale, foreclosure, eviction — all without ever having signed a lease. That’s not freedom; that’s feudalism with better branding.
And the excuse? “Local control.” As if your township board is a kindly landlord just making sure you mow the grass. In truth, the property tax is nothing less than a whip in the hands of bureaucrats and politicians, ensuring you never forget who’s boss.
When Policy Overrides Law: The Erasure of Michigan’s 2020 Election Data
In a Hillsdale County courtroom, Michigan’s Director of Elections admitted under oath that clerks throughout the State were ordered to erase 2020 election data — not by statute, but by internal policy. A direct violation of his oath and the law. For what purpose?
The Hillsdale County Clerk went further, conceding that he had no lawful authority to seize Adams Township’s ballots or voting machine, yet he did so anyway — even blocking the township from securing a replacement tabulator. This is the same Clerk who twice manipulated the counties Republican precinct delegate election, proclaiming his devotion to “election integrity” just before being thrown out of his own Districts Convention for the second time.
And the justification for wiping out election records? Cost. Roughly ten dollars for a flash drive.
Here’s the double standard: government shrugs at the erasure of election history because ten dollars is “too much,” yet the same government will seize your home and auction it off if you fall behind in property taxes. Ten dollars is too expensive to preserve a Republic, but not too small a reason to strip an American of their property.
The trial pulled back the curtain. Michigan’s election system is not operating on law but on arbitrary orders — enforced by officials who manipulate the rules when it benefits them. If history can be deleted for ten dollars, then nothing — not your vote, not your rights, not even your home — is safe from government control.
This is, at its core, a Conservative issue
Critics cry, “Without property tax, communities collapse, local control will be lost!” Really? Tell that to Florida, which funds itself on tourism and consumption-based revenue. Tell that to Michigan, nearly on par with Florida in tourism. while also hauling in billions from marijuana sales, the lottery, alcohol, and tobacco. There is no shortage of revenue in America — only a shortage of imagination. Eliminating property tax doesn’t destroy local control; it forces local government to govern instead of extort. It makes them accountable to the people, not to the tax roll.
The idea that government can force you off your land if you can’t or won’t pay them for the privilege of living on it is not just bad policy, it is un-American. The United States was built on the radical notion that citizens hold the natural right to Life, Liberty, and Property. Our Founders rejected the feudal order of Europe, where land was always held at the pleasure of kings or lords and could be seized the moment a subject failed to pay rent to the crown. That old-world system was slavery in all but name, keeping men laboring for the soil they call home without ever letting them truly own it. Yet through property taxes, Americans have quietly allowed that feudal system to slip back in under a new disguise, “our Democracy”. Today, a man can pay off his mortgage, settle every debt, and still be evicted by the sheriff for failing to pay his annual rent to the government. That is not liberty. That is extortion dressed up as civic duty, carried out by the end of a sword, or in modern times, gun.
Opponents of reform know this is indefensible, so they fall back on rhetorical tricks. They accuse critics of being “emotional and extremist,” while themselves leaning on fear-driven appeals about communities collapsing, local governments losing control without property tax. But the truth is plain: all taxes imposed by force violate liberty, yet property tax is uniquely destructive because it denies ownership itself. When the state has permanent claim over your home, you do not own it in any meaningful sense — you rent it from the government indefinitely. That is not an emotional argument; it is a factual one. A sales tax does not do that. A sin tax does not do that. Even fees for services do not do that. Only property taxes carry the implicit threat that the government can strip you of the very ground beneath your feet. That’s extremism.
Some in our own Republican ranks try to dismiss this reality by comparing property tax to income tax, arguing that one is simply “worse” than the other. But this is nothing more than fallacious rhetoric. To argue whether income tax or property tax is worse is like debating whether arsenic is preferable to cyanide. Both kill you, just in different ways. Income tax destroys incentive, forcing Americans to labor first for the State before laboring for themselves. Property tax destroys ownership, making Americans perpetual tenants on their own land. To excuse one form of coercion simply because another exists is not conservatism — it is cowardice. True conservatives do not argue over the size of the chains; they work to break them.
If Republicans are to be taken seriously about liberty, then eliminating one forced tax cannot be treated as the finish line. It must be the starting gun. Abolishing the property tax is not the end of the conversation; it is the beginning of restoring what the Founders intended when they enshrined property rights as fundamental to freedom. John Adams once declared that “property must be secured, or liberty cannot exist.” Thomas Jefferson warned that “a right to property is founded in our natural wants,” and that without it, men are reduced to dependence and servitude. They understood that ownership is the bedrock of independence. A man who owns nothing is a man who can be controlled. And in America today, property tax ensures that no American truly owns the home they live in. This was a radical position two hundred and fifty years ago, to claim it still is, absurdity.
America already generates immense revenue through consumption-based systems. The problem is not how to fund government; the problem is that government always reaches first for the most coercive and destructive tool. Property tax is that tool, and it is long past time conservatives had the courage to say so. It is a relic of the Old World, a shadow of monarchy lingering on free soil. To defend it is to defend the very system our ancestors bled to escape and our peers bleed to protect. To abolish it is to finally drive a stake through the heart of feudalism and secure once again the promise that in America, our homes are our Castles — not the king’s income source.
The Republican Responsibility
Democrats will never lead this fight; their ideology thrives on central control and redistribution. Libertarians may speak some truth, but they lack the numbers and organization to act. Independents have no lasting coalition and lean towards more government.
Only the Republican Party has the principles, the platform, and the people to restore liberty in property and labor — but only if it unites around its own stated values.
Limited Government
Individual Liberty
Private Property Rights
Free Enterprise
Personal Responsibility
Fiscal Responsibility
Constitutional Government
These are not slogans. They are obligations. They are the measuring rod by which Republicans must judge every law, every budget, every local ordinance, every one of it’s Representatives and candidates. And they speak directly to the issue at hand. Every single Republican claims to stand on these core principles.
Republicans must expose the myth that taxation equals local control. True local control exists when citizens, not bureaucrats, decide how their money is spent. When funding is voluntary, when services are transparent, when fees and assessments must be earned through consent — that is when government becomes what it was meant to be: a servant, not a master.
The Party cannot afford to waste energy on internal factional warfare. Its true task is to wield its energy against the real enemy: big, intrusive government that has forgotten its place. AxMITax is not just a tax reform measure — it is a test. A test of whether Republicans still believe in their own principles enough to defend the right of every American to own property free from the constant threat of forced eviction from their property.
The time for half-measures has passed. This is the moment for Republicans to stand up, unite, and fight for what their platform already demands: liberty, property, and the freedom of the people.
The Path Forward
Critics will cry, “Without property and income taxes, how will government survive?” The answer is simple: the same way families do—by living within their means. The truth is, counties and townships already have the tools to fund themselves without threatening to take someone’s land.
Government can fund operations through direct user fees. If you use it, you pay for it. If you don’t, you don’t. That means building permits, zoning requests, dog licenses, ambulance runs, vital records, park use or boat launch fees, recreation programs, FOIA processing, and other voluntary charges. These are specific, tied to actual usage—not blanket taxes that punish everyone. When governments charge only for what’s used, they are forced to stay accountable, efficient, and respectful of their limits.
Local communities also have the option of special assessments. Done right, these aren’t coercive taxes but voluntary, targeted investments. Neighbors on a road can vote to fund resurfacing; a neighborhood can decide to pay for street lighting or drainage improvements. It’s not socialism—it’s free citizens choosing to invest in their own communities without government force.
Enterprise-based government is another path. Local services can and should operate like businesses—self-sufficient, not entitlement programs. Water and sewer utilities, broadband, parks and campgrounds, public transit, event centers, even county fairgrounds can generate their own revenue. Just like private enterprise, they must operate efficiently or go under. That’s real accountability.
Counties and townships can also contract with each other on a fee-for-service basis—sharing, fire and emergency services, courts, jails, and planning offices. This reduces duplication, cuts overhead, and turns government into a service provider rather than a tax collector, most rural governments have operated like this for a long time.
Beyond that, governments sit on vast land and facilities. Instead of hoarding, they should sell, lease, rent, and license them for use—whether event space, vendor stalls, or recreation. They can sell services, rent unused buildings, and even develop local branding and sponsorship opportunities. That’s how you turn assets into revenue without confiscating property.
Grants, philanthropy, and voluntary memberships add even more flexibility. Fire departments and senior centers don’t need to be funded by seizing homes. They can be supported through endowments, charitable donations, naming opportunities, and even subscription-style memberships—just like public radio or rural volunteer fire departments that already depend on community support.
Finally, tourism and economic development offer long-term revenue. Fairs, festivals, parades, rodeos, farmers’ markets, hiking trails, historical tours, and destination events bring in outside dollars, strengthen local business, and build civic pride—not resentment.
The greatest benefit of ending property taxes isn’t just the money saved—it’s the accountability restored. When government must ask for funding through contracts, votes, or voluntary support, it becomes humble, responsive, and just. When it can seize your property for nonpayment, it becomes arrogant, distant, and cruel.
By removing the guaranteed pipeline of property taxes, we force our governments to make the case, cut the waste, offer real value, and obey the Constitution. That’s not less local control. That’s real, earned local trust.
The Call to Action
The question before us is simple: does government rule its people, or are the people free?
Right now, property tax and income tax give us the answer — government rules. But that can change if Republicans find the courage to act.
We must declare, as free people once did:
“My land is mine. My labor is mine. My freedom is not a privilege.”
This is not extremism. It is the unfinished work of the American Revolution. And it is the Republican Party’s work — if it has the courage to remember who it is, freeing slaves is our heritage, can we not work to free our fellow Americans and ourselves? https://www.facebook.com/groups/axmitax
Dear Fellow Republicans,
Our Party has always stood for liberty, limited government, and the sacred right of property ownership. Yet today, through property and income taxes, government has made itself our landlord and overseer. These taxes reduce free Americans to tenants on their own land and compelled contributors from their own labor. As Republicans, it is our duty to unite around our principles — not fight among ourselves — and to confront this reality with boldness and clarity.
The enclosed article, “A Resolution for Liberty: Restoring Republican Principles on Property, Labor, and Government,” outlines both the historical and present dangers of these taxes and concludes with a resolution that we believe every Republican county, district and state party should adopt. It is not merely a policy statement but a reaffirmation of our platform values: private property rights, fiscal responsibility, and individual liberty. We respectfully submit it for your consideration, discussion, and formal adoption, so that our Party may once again speak with one voice in defense of the people we serve.
Sincerely,
[Name]
[County/District/State] Republican Party / Delegate
Resolution for Liberty
WHEREAS, the Republican Party affirms that rights come from God, not government, and that government exists to secure those rights, not infringe upon them;
WHEREAS, property tax functions as extortion paid to government, reducing ownership to conditional tenancy and violating the sacred principle of private property;
WHEREAS, income tax constitutes a compulsory claim on the fruits of labor, reducing free Americans to compelled contributors to the State before providing for their families;
WHEREAS, both property and income taxes contradict the Republican platform’s historic defense of liberty, property rights, and limited government;
WHEREAS, alternatives exist—including voluntary consumption-based revenues, resource royalties, lotteries, excise taxes, and reduced government spending—which are consistent with Republican principles of free enterprise and fiscal responsibility;
WHEREAS, division and factionalism within the Republican Party weaken the cause of liberty and must give way to unity in principle;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED
That the Republican Party, at every level, commits itself to the following principles of governance:
- Abolishing Property Tax – Ending government extortion of our land and restoring true ownership.
- Dismantling Income Tax – Allowing workers to keep the full fruits of their labor.
- Rebuilding Revenue Models – Funding government through voluntary, transparent, and market-based means requiring the consent of the governed.
- Shrinking Government Scope – Limiting spending strictly to core constitutional functions.
- Restoring Constitutional Governance – Ensuring that our governments operate within their constitutional bounds and derive just powers only from the consent of the governed.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED
That the Republican Party calls upon its members, leaders, and elected officials to stand together on principles, platform, and values, rejecting infighting and recommitting to liberty.
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED
That this Resolution be transmitted to Republican Party leaders, officeholders, and grassroots members as a statement of intent to complete the unfinished work of our founding ancestors:
“Our land. Our labor. Our liberty.”
[County/District/State] Republican Party
In liberty,
Chair: Josh Gritzmaker
Vice Chair: Lance Lashaway
The Hillsdale Conservatives
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