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The LA Lawyer Who Fought Prop 13 All The Way To The Supreme Court
Stephanie Nordlinger (Photo by Sean Havey for California Dream)
Stephanie Nordlinger was never a fan of Prop. 13. When it passed forty years ago, she feared that government services like parks and schools would suffer. Then, in 1988, she became a first-time homeowner.
She bought a modest home in Baldwin Hills for $170,000 -- about $370,000 in today's dollars. Nordlinger thought it was fundamentally wrong that she was paying more in property taxes than richer residents of the city, just because of when she bought.
After Nordlinger got her first property tax bill, she sued on the grounds that Prop. 13 violated the 14th amendment: equal protection under the law.
KPCC, in a state-wide media collaboration, has published a deep dive looking at whether it's fair that homeowners with similar house pay radically different taxes. And, yes, we tell you about what happened to Nordlinger's case as it made it all the way to the Supreme Court. READ OUR SPECIAL REPORT >>
Do you want to know more about Prop. 13 and how it changed the California Dream?
Of course you do.
- Mapping California's Prop. 13 winners and losers, down to your neighborhood
- What is Prop. 13? Your Prop. 13 cheatsheet
- Public schools, public trust: The profound effect of Prop. 13 on California's public schools
- Too few homes: Is Prop. 13 to blame for the state's housing shortage?
- Neighborhood in flux Prop. 13 promised to keep our neighborhoods stable. Did it work?
- Expanding Prop. 13: A proposition on November's ballot renews the Prop. 13 debate.
- Should businesses pay more? In 2020, voters could raise property tax bills for businesses
(Photo by Sean Havey / California Dream)
Sponsored message
The California Dream series is a statewide media collaboration of CALmatters, KPBS, KPCC, KQED and Capital Public Radio with support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the James Irvine Foundation.
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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