Monthly Archives: June 2016

Jun 24

Spring of inaction: 2016 legislative session proves Illinois needs a taxpayer bill of rights

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Spring of inaction: 2016 legislative session proves Illinois needs a taxpayer bill of rights | Illinois Policy | Illinois’ comeback story starts here

Illinoisans need a taxpayer bill of rights so that politicians must ask permission from voters if they want to raise taxes.

Illinoisans need a taxpayer bill of rights so that politicians must ask permission from voters if they want to raise taxes.

Colorado adopted a Taxpayer Bill of Rights, or TABOR, as an amendment to the Colorado Constitution. The Colorado TABOR requires any government to seek voter approval before imposing a new tax or raising existing tax rates. The TABOR also contains a formula that determines how much in taxes a government can collect in a year, based on increases in population and inflation. If more revenues are collected than the formula allows, then the governing entity is required to reimburse the excess money back to the taxpayers.

A provision in Colorado’s TABOR allows excess revenues to be kept by the government if the taxpayers give voter approval through a ballot initiative. Anytime there is a proposal to raise taxes or keep excess tax revenues, the ballot must provide the following: information on the governing entity’s current and previous four years of spending, the proposed tax increase in percentages and estimated dollar amounts, and summaries of support for and opposition to the proposed tax increase.

 

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Jun 20

Vote NO on Initiative 117

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FYI, Vote NO on Initiative 117. Spread the word.
 

Initiative #117

State Spending
Proposes amending the Colorado statutes to:
  • allow the state to keep and spend all revenue it collects through June 30, 2026;
  • raise the limit on the amount the state may keep and spend beginning July 1, 2026; and
  • require that any money the state keeps over its existing limit be spent on education, transportation projects, mental health services, and senior services, rather than refunding the money to taxpayers.
initiative 117
http://www.leg.state.co.us/LCS/Initiative%20Referendum/1516initrefr.nsf/b74b3fc5d676cdc987257ad8005bce6a/d87ae53dd844f43a87257fae00744f6f/$FILE/2015-2016%20117v1.pdf
Jun 10

EDITORIAL: Celebrate TABOR for Making Colorado strong

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EDITORIAL: Celebrate TABOR for Making Colorado strong | Colorado Springs Gazette, News

By: The Gazette editorial board

June 9, 2016 Updated: 
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Colorado is reliably hot, economically. During good times and bad nationally and internationally, the economy typically produces above-average indicators when compared to other states. When Forbes, Business Insider and others rank states by economic performance, Colorado sometimes ranks first and seldom fails to finish among the top five.

One economic factor makes Colorado different than all other states. It’s called the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, or TABOR. Only Colorado has such a law.

TABOR is like that persnickety old-school spouse who won’t let the household live beyond its means. The rest of the family may resent the rules, because compulsive spending is fun. But they ultimately benefit from the safety and security of a stable home.

The law restricts government spending with a formula that accounts for inflation and population growth. If revenues exceed what the formula allows, politicians must return the windfalls unless voters say otherwise. All changes to tax policy must be approved by a public vote.

TABOR is constantly under attack because it tells politicians “no.” It limits their ability to spend. But the benefits are not in question if one examines the facts.

 

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Jun 08

Colorado groups on IRS ‘targeting’ list

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Colorado groups on IRS ‘targeting’ list

June 7, 2016 5:10 PM· By Todd Shepherd

A handful of Colorado-based conservative organizations that sought tax-exempt status from the IRS are on the recently disclosed list of groups that were hit with additional scrutiny in the application process. In 2013, the IRS admitted and apologized for delaying the applications for tax-exempt status to groups with “tea party” or “patriot” in the group name.

A group called “TBD Colorado” is also on the list. Complete Colorado has not confirmed at the moment that the group is the same as the “To Be Determined Colorado” initiative launched by Governor Hickenlooper.

Among the list:

  • Citizen Awareness Project
  • Clear Information Colorado
  • Coalition for a Conservative Majority Colorado Springs
  • Coalition for a Conservative Majority Denver Chapter
  • Colorado Women’s Alliance
  • Common Sense Colorado
  • Northwest Colorado Alliance, Inc.
  • Tea Party Patriots, Denver
  • TBD Colorado
  • The TABOR Committee

All of the groups appear to have a conservative or right-of-center leaning with the exception of  TBD Colorado, if that group is indeed the non-profit arm of the Governor’s effort “to find solutions to the difficult problems facing the state.”

The list was created as a result of a class action lawsuit against the IRS. According to the Washington Times, which broke the story on Sunday:

The tax agency filed the list last month as part of a court case after a series of federal judges, fed up with what they said was the agency’s stonewalling, ordered it to get a move on. The case is a class-action lawsuit, so the list of names is critical to knowing the scope of those who would have a claim against the IRS.

Complete Colorado reported in May of 2013 that The TABOR Committee felt as though it had received unnecessary and unfair questioning regarding the nature of their organizations. That group is on the list.*

“Certainly, we were damaged by this,” said Penn Pfiffner, Chairman of the TABOR Committee. “It’s very likely that we’ll be looking to recover the costs by the delay in responding to the extraordinary questions we got.”

Among the many questions asked in the letter to The TABOR Committee were such items as:

“…please provide each [board officer’s] names and addresses of each individual’s employer/business, the nature of their employment/business…”

“Please provide copies of agendas and/or descriptions of topics covered at each of the organization’s general meetings and events since inception.”

“Please submit copies of all publications and/or advertising materials that have been distributed or will be distributed.”

The list of 426 names does not include 40 other names of organizations that had already opted out of being a part of any class action suit. However, the list of 426 exceeds the original estimate from the IRS of 298 groups that were targeted.

Group list of extra scrutiny targets by IRS

*The 2013 report names the group as The Tabor Foundation. The TABOR Foundation is the (c)(3), and The TABOR Committee is the (c)(4) arm of the same group.

CORRECTION: The original publishing of this article listed Common Sense Colorado as an organization that would not be considered right-of-center or conservative. That is incorrect.

Send us tips at CompleteColorado@gmail.com.

http://completecolorado.com/pagetwo/2016/06/07/colorado-groups-on-irs-targeting-list/

Jun 08

Anti-TABOR lawsuit deserved latest setback in federal court

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Anti-TABOR lawsuit deserved latest setback in federal court

Cynthia Coffman picture

Cyrus McCrimmon, Denver Post file

Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman is defending the state against a lawsuit regarding TABOR.

By The Denver Post Editorial Board |

June 7, 2016 |

The Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights has multiple flaws that this editorial page has documented repeatedly over the years while urging lawmakers and voters to fix them.

We’re also on record as recently as last month urging the legislature to adopt a budgetary mechanism to free up revenue that otherwise would have to be refunded under TABOR.

But our critique of TABOR doesn’t extend to questioning the right of voters to enact or defend it. The 5-year-old lawsuit arguing that TABOR violates the U.S. Constitution’s mandate that states have a “Republican Form of Government” is too strained and exotic for our taste. It deserved the setback it suffered last week in federal court.

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that several Colorado lawmakers who are plaintiffs lacked legal standing to sue because they do not represent the General Assembly as a whole.

To read the rest of this story, click (HERE):

Jun 07

TABOR Survives Constitutional Challenge

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Lunch Links: Puerto Rico Vote This Week, Gun Tax, and TABOR Survives Constitutional Challenge

June 06, 2016

By Joseph Henchman

Today is June 6, the date in 1978 when California voters approved Proposition 13 by a wide margin of 65 percent to 35 percent. Spearheaded by activist Howard Jarvis after years of skyrocketing property tax increases, Prop. 13 immediately cut property taxes by 30 percent and capped them thereafter: property taxes are limited to 1 percent of assessed value and the assessed value can only be increased a maximum of 2 percent per year, unless a change of ownership occurs. The “California tax revolt” symbolized by Prop. 13’s passage led to similar initiatives in other states. Although there is occasional criticism of how Proposition 13 works and its lock-in effects, it remains a third rail in California politics.

Here are some interesting links I came across:

  • S. House to Vote on Puerto Rico Bill This Week:The bill sets up a control board to oversee the island’s finances and restructure its $70 billion debt. It’s backed by Speaker Ryan, Minority Leader Pelosi, and Treasury Secretary Lew, but some Democrats are unhappy with a provision reducing the island’s minimum wage for young workers, and some Republicans are unhappy with the precedent the bill creates. (Bloomberg)
  • Appeals Court Rejects Constitutional Challenge to Spending Limitation: The federal Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals ruledthat individual Colorado lawmakers do not have standing to challenge their Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) spending limitation. They left open the question of whether the Legislature as a whole can bring such a challenge. The lawmakers argued that TABOR deprives Colorado of functioning representative government in violation of the Guarantee Clause of the Constitution. (10th Circuit)
  • Hillary Clinton and the Gun Tax: In a 1993 hearing, then-First Lady Hillary Clinton endorsed the idea of a 25 percent gun tax. Asked yesterday by George Stephanopoulos of ABC if she still supports it, she declined to answer but defended the proposal as a way to cover medical and law enforcement costs. (ABC)
  •  Oklahoma to Vote on Sales Tax Increase: The one-cent increase will appear on the November ballot as State Question 779. (The Oklahoman)
  •  Switzerland Rejects Guaranteed Basic Income: A proposal to give each Swiss adult 2,500 francs (about $2,500) each month was rejected at the ballot box, 23 percent to 77 percent. (Wall Street Journal)

 

And be sure to check out our new map on alcohol taxes.

 

http://taxfoundation.org/blog/lunch-links-puerto-rico-vote-week-gun-tax-and-tabor-survives-constitutional-challenge

 

Jun 07

The Creation of a Colorado Charter School, Part Five

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EDITORIAL: The Creation of a Colorado Charter School, Part Five – Pagosa Daily Post News Events & Video for Pagosa Springs Colorado

The Creation of a Colorado Charter School, Part Five

We might mention a couple of noteworthy laws created in the early 1990s, here in Colorado. One of those laws — the Taxpayers Bill of Rights, better known as TABOR — was approved by Colorado voters as an amendment to the state constitution, in 1992. TABOR’s language attempts to restrain the growth of state and local government in Colorado by limiting spending increases. In general terms, TABOR ties the rising cost of government to inflation and population growth; increases in tax revenues that exceed the TABOR-defined limits must be refunded to the taxpayers.

A quick illustration. Between 1970 and 2000, the average value of a single family home in Colorado nearly tripled — when adjusted for inflation. (Source: U.S. Census. It more than tripled when inflation is included.) That meant that a government agency funded solely by property tax would be pulling in nearly three times as much revenue (adjusted for inflation) in 2000 as they were in 1970 — unless that agency had reduced its mill levy. (I’ve never heard of a government entity in Colorado voluntarily reducing its mill levy.)

This hypothetical government entity was not required to actually provide better service in exchange for this ‘natural’ increase in tax revenues. The extra money just flowed in, without anyone necessarily doing anything differently.

TABOR attempts to control this type of taxation growth. Colorado voters, meanwhile, can choose to increase their taxes voluntarily, to fund new local or state programs, whenever they get the urge — and in fact, that happens on a fairly regular basis. (Maybe not so often in Archuleta County.)

One of the government systems that’s funded largely by property taxes — and which might have seen its tax funding nearly triple between 1970 and 2000, had it not been for the passage of TABOR — is the state’s education system.

To read the rest of this article, click (HERE):

Jun 06

William Perry Pendley’s New Book, “Summary Judgement”

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The TABOR Foundation and The TABOR Committee are represented in legal filings by the outstanding team at Mountain States Legal Foundation.  William Perry Pendley is the President of MSLF.  If you like TABOR, please consider making a donation to them.

Perry Pendley book3

 

 

 

 

To receive his new book free, after a minimum of $25 contribution, click this link to donate: http://freedomisnotfree.mountainstateslegal.org/

William Perry Pendley was born and raised in Cheyenne, Wyoming, received B.A. and M.A. degrees in Economics and Political Science from George Washington University in Washington, D.C., was a Captain in the United States Marine Corps, after which he received his J.D. from the University of Wyoming College of Law, where he was Senior Editor on Land and Water Law Review.

He served as an attorney to former U.S. Senator Clifford P. Hansen (R-Wyoming) and to the U.S. House of Representatives Interior and Insular Affairs Committee. During the Reagan Administration, he served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy and Minerals of the Department of Interior, where he authored President Reagan’s National Minerals Policy and Exclusive Economic Zone proclamation. He was a consultant to former Secretary of the Navy John F. Lehman, Jr., and was engaged in the private practice of law in the Washington, D.C., area before his return to the West in 1989.

He has argued cases before the Supreme Court of the United States as well as various federal courts of appeals; he won what Time called a “legal earthquake” when the Supreme Court ruled in his favor in the historic Adarand (equal protection) case. His monthly column, Summary Judgment, appears throughout the country; he is the author of four books: It Takes A Hero (1994); War on the West (1995); Warriors for the West (2006); and Sagebrush Rebel (2013). He is admitted to practice law in Wyoming, Colorado, Washington, D.C., and Virginia.

Perry Pendley book1Perry Pendley book2

Jun 06

Progressives Return To Their Roots

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ICYMI, Mountain States Legal Foundation provides The TABOR Foundation and The TABOR Committee with excellent legal advice and representation. Here is their June column, Summary Judgement, written by MSLF President William Perry Pendley:
 
Each month, MSLF president and chief operating officer William Perry Pendley publishes his monthly column, Summary Judgment. A hard-hitting commentary on environmental, federal lands, natural resources, or private property rights issues, Summary Judgment is carried by newspapers, magazines, newsletters and other publications throughout the country. So topical are the issues addressed by Summary Judgment that they are often the focus of talk radio discussion for weeks after the column is sent out at the end of each month. Summary Judgment runs 650 words and may be reprinted so long as credit is given to William Perry Pendley and to Mountain States Legal Foundation. A glossy photograph of the author is available or download a high-res photo.

Progressives Return To Their Roots

Jun 01, 2016 | by William Perry Pendley

The Virgin Islands’ Attorney General issued a subpoena against ExxonMobil and a free-market think tank in Washington, branding, blacklisting, and besmirching hundreds from coast to coast as participants in a long-running criminal conspiracy.  The think tank’s lawyer reviled the subpoena as “offensive,” “unlawful,” a violation of “civil rights,” and “un-American.”  It is all that but one:  “un-American.”  It has its roots in progressives’ earliest and proudest days.

 

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Jun 05

High Taxes Lack a Guarantee of Quality Services: See Detroit

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Welcome to Detroit signIt’s about how resources are managed

By JAMES M. HOHMAN | May 18, 2016

It is a common trope in Michigan and elsewhere that the path to state prosperity is to have high taxes and quality services, with Minnesota pointed to as the paragon. Yet high taxes do not guarantee quality services, as Detroit can attest.

Detroit has the highest effective property taxes in the country, according to the Minnesota Center for Fiscal Excellence’s 2014 property tax study. For commercial property at all different values, Detroit is No. 1 in the nation. For homesteaded property, only Bridgeport, Connecticut surpasses Detroit. Detroit also has the highest property taxes for most values of industrial property. Only New York City has higher property taxes on apartments than Detroit. All of these rates are higher than those in Minneapolis. The one saving grace for property taxpayers in Detroit is that the net tax burden has decreased with the collapse in real estate values in the city. Continue reading →