Mello-Roos is a tax named after two California legislators who found a way around the landmark, tax-limiting Proposition 13.
The tax allowed local governments to generate revenue to pay for projects such as schools, roads and parks in new neighborhoods.
Typically, housing developers create Mello-Roos districts, which can then issue debt and collect taxes. The tax amounts vary wildly from district to district and even house to house.
BRANDON QUESTER
Brandon Quester is the former director of data and visuals at inewsource. He worked on data analysis, interactives and graphics for our Mello-Roos coverage.
LEONARDO CASTAÑEDA
Leonardo Castañeda is a former reporter at inewsource. He worked on data analysis and reporting for our Mello-Roos coverage.
JOANNE FARYON
Joanne Faryon is a former investigative reporter at inewsource. She worked on the reporting for our Mello-Roos coverage.
KEVIN CROWE
Kevin Crowe is a former data reporter at inewsource. He did data analysis, interactives and graphics for our Mello-Roos coverage.
FEATURED STORY
Special property tax lacks robust oversight, accountability
San Diego County property owners have paid almost $1 billion since 2011 in Mello-Roos taxes, and not all are created equal.
Eastlake homeowners pay millions in Mello-Roos school taxes but money goes elsewhere
Over the past three decades, the Sweetwater Union High School District has used at least $46 million in special taxes paid by property owners in the Eastlake neighborhood to fund projects in other parts of Chula Vista.
Help us crowdsource San Diego’s Mello-Roos tax districts
Help us request documents from the almost 30 government agencies with Mello-Roos taxes so we can shed light on how you’re taxed and how your money is spent.
iPads for seventh graders at Sweetwater school district MIA
Five years after the Sweetwater Union High School District board spent $4.5 million to put iPads in the hands of seventh graders, nearly all of the Apple tablets are classified as out of inventory, lost or stolen.
Mello-Roos tax records: How we crunched the data
The Mello-Roos map is the culmination of months of data mining, cleaning and analysis that allows San Diego County residents can find the taxes they pay.
City of S.D. says checking Mello-Roos tax bills too costly
The city of San Diego’s audit committee has decided it would be too much work and too costly to reconcile the tax bills for people who pay special assessments called Mello-Roos. Instead, the committee recommends notifying people of potential errors in their bills. Mello-Roos taxes are special assessments added to property taxes in new developments.…
City auditor wants Mello-Roos tax bills checked for accuracy
The audit, prompted by an inewsource investigation last year, found problems with the way the city records square footage on building permits, ranging from typos to incomplete information.
Neighborhood kids can’t go to new Poway Unified school, but teachers’ kids can
The district is holding a lottery for families who want their children to attend this August, but it excludes homeowners who did not pay for the construction of the school through their Mello-Roos taxes.
Poway Unified parents want answers about who gets a seat at new school
The Poway Unified School Board faced some tough questions from parents at a meeting Tuesday night about how their Mello-Roos tax dollars are being spent.
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