… shouldn’t the localities decide how to tax themselves?

Bah.

Requires each locality to lower its real estate tax rate for the forthcoming tax year, to produce no more than 101 percent of the previous year’s real property tax levies when any annual assessment, biennial assessment or general reassessment of real property by the locality would result in an increase of 1 percent or more in the total real property tax levied. The locality may increase the rate above the reduced rate after a public hearing held no sooner than 30 days after the rate reduction.

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