EDITORIAL : ASSESSMENT CREEP SPECIAL LEVIES, FEES ARE A GROWING BURDEN FOR TAXPAYERS.

Here's some news that should be of great interest to property owners - especially in Los Angeles. For the first time in California history, assessments and fees are the largest sources of revenue for state and local governments.

A study released by the California Taxpayers' Association found that combined, fees and assessments now exceed any of the three largest taxes: property taxes, sales taxes or personal income taxes.

And no wonder. They're an easy and often underhanded way for city councils and special districts to raise money without taking them to a vote of the people. Unlike a special tax that requires a two-thirds vote for approval, special assessments can be levied without voter permission. Assessment districts normally are abandoned only if property owners representing more than 50 percent of the assessable land file written protests.

Historically, assessment districts were established to provide capital improvements, such as sidewalks, that benefited specific parcels.

But in 1992, the California Supreme Court allowed local jurisdictions to levy assessments to maintain services that had been funded by property taxes, thus releasing those property taxes to be used by the local officials as they choose.

Following the court's decision, fees and assessments skyrocketed, growing by $1.7 billion, slightly higher than sales tax growth and eclipsing the growth rates of other major taxes, which rose about $200 million.

So it's little wonder that Los Angeles City Hall was deluged with irate calls last week after property owners began receiving notices for public hearings on a proposed tax assessment to raise $25 million for parks. The proposed assessment would add nearly $20 a year to the annual property tax bill for a typical single-family home.

That proposed assessment comes on the heels of a similar tax proposal by the Los Angeles Community College District that would cost the average homeowner about $12 a year. No election, however, is planned.

But the days of this gimmick may be numbered. A constitutional amendment being pushed by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association would make it harder for local agencies to levy special assessments without winning voter approval.

We aren't prepared to say whether that amendment should be approved. However, there is nothing to prevent the Legislature from eliminating a lot of these abuses on its own.