In response to rapidly rising property taxes, California voters approved a statewide ballot initiative, Proposition 13, which froze property taxes regardless of the appraised value of the property. The state was to reassess the value of the property and could increase taxes only when the ownership of property was transferred. The property was exempt from this reassessment if the exchange of ownership was made between persons over the age of fifty-five or between parents and children. Over time, this system created dramatic differences in the taxes paid by people owning similar property. Long-term owners paid lower taxes; new owners paid higher taxes. Stephanie Nordlinger bought a house in Los Angeles County. Nordlinger then sued the county, claiming that the tax system was unconstitutional under the equal protection clause because it allowed the government to treat similarly situated individuals differently. In finding that the law did not violate the equal protection clause, the court most likely applied which of the following standards?
a. Strict scrutiny
b. The rational bass test
c. intermediate scrutiny
d. A due process test