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Evan Horowitz said Healey presents her tax policy to resonate with progressive groups that care about tax cuts for vulnerable people and also to reassure business leaders...

U.S. Rep. Jake Auchincloss, along with Evan Horowitz of the Center for State Policy Analysis at Tufts University, share their ideas on how Massachusetts can fund transportation projects

Boston could be facing a shortfall of more than a billion dollars over the next five years from lagging tax revenues, according to a new report from the Boston Policy Institute.

Market values for office buildings are falling. That could cost the city over $1 billion in tax revenue over the next five years, according to a new analysis by Tufts University’s Center for State Policy Analysis 

Over the next five years, that city could face a tax revenue shortfall to the tune of $1.2 to $1.5 billion, according to a new study from the Boston Policy Institute.

“Offices are not as desirable as they used to be,” Horowitz said. “Boston’s got a lot of offices. If those offices are less desirable, then they are worth less and you can’t charge as much in taxes.

“A tax falloff representing 10 percent of Boston’s total spending is too large to be offset by creative accounting or other kinds of financial management,” the report said. “The city will need to raise new revenue or reduce its medium-term spending plans.

One of the biggest unanswered questions amid Boston’s ongoing recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic is how much slumping commercial real estate values could wallop city finances. A new report out Thursday aims to answer just that.

Simply raising taxes on commercial properties or transactions to make up for losses isn't wise, according to Horowitz.