Author: Erik Gamm and Chris Brown
TABOR Takings Tracker
Legislators placed Coloradans’ TABOR refunds squarely in their crosshairs during the 2024 legislative session, having passed over 100 bills that would slash the TABOR refund to a quarter of its projected size if signed into law. Amid a period of state revenue growth in unprecedented excess of the Referendum C spending cap and a state budget larger than $40 billion for the first time in history, the state’s legislative majority has seen fit to circumvent the standard refund mechanisms through a long list of proposed tax rate reductions, tax credits, and redistribution efforts. Since the last issue of this report five days before the end of session, five TABOR-impacting bills were defeated, four new ones were introduced, and several others were amended heavily.
By the end of the legislative session, lawmakers passed 101 bills that will affect TABOR refunds. Most of these redirect money out of refunds towards targeted tax reductions for specific groups, mainly families and low-income Coloradans. Through such measures, the state will diminish taxpayers’ agency to decide, whether by saving, investing, or donating to charity, how best to allocate money that they would normally be owed. Voters rejected Proposition HH, which proposed to take TABOR refunds in exchange for limited property tax relief, just last November.
- 101 bills were passed during the 2024 legislative session that, if signed into law, will reduce projected TABOR refunds by a combined $2.8 billion (47%) of the $6 billion projected between FY24 and FY26.
- These bills propose to reduce the TABOR refund by a combined $523 million in FY24, $1.06 billion in FY25, and $1.25 billion in FY26. The recent announcement that an additional $67 million in TABOR refunds is owed to taxpayers due to an accounting error is not reflected in this report.
- The reduction in refunds over the next three years is similar in size to the FY23 TABOR refund. Of the $3.28 billion available, $3.1 billion was distributed as direct payments of $800 to each Colorado taxpayer. The remaining $180 million was diverted via an expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit approved during the 2023 session.
- The two most impactful bills from the 2024 session (see the list below) will reduce TABOR refunds by $1.8 billion, more than 42%, between FY25 and FY26. The rest of the bills would reduce refunds by a total of $391 million (9%) over that period.
- Some major bills, like SB24-166, were lost in the final days of the session.
- SB24-228, which is expected to be signed into law shortly, proposes to change the TABOR refund mechanism by lowering the state income tax rate according to the level of excess state revenue. When it comes into effect, Coloradans’ TABOR refunds will be partially replaced by income tax reductions.
The figure below shows projected TABOR refunds in the next three fiscal years and the amounts of those refunds that each bill would remove.
2024 legislation will reduce the current fiscal year’s TABOR refund to $1.3 billion, which is 71% of the latest projection.
The refund will subsequently fall to $851 million in FY25 and $1.04 billion in FY26—both less than half of what’s currently projected. Several bills signed into law after the 2023 session, mostly tax credits and refunds similar to those under consideration now, also reduced these projections prior to the start of the current session.
76% of the proposed FY26 TABOR refund reduction comes from just two bills:
- HB24-1134: Adjustments to Tax Expenditures to Reduce Burden
- Expands several state income tax credits including the EITC
- HB24-1311: Family Affordability Tax Credit
- Creates refundable tax credits for low-income filers with children
Both bills reallocate their refund impacts through tax credits and/or transfer payments to individuals and couples; HB24-1311 expires after ten years and HB24-1134 will continue to reduce revenue subject to TABOR indefinitely. Upon the first release of this report, there were three other bills that proposed to reduce the FY26 refund by more than $100 million, but two were curtailed substantially and one was defeated altogether. As a result, though four new bills and several late amendments to existing bills made up much of the difference, the 2024 session’s TABOR impact is somewhat less than it appeared poised to be at the beginning of May.
Although the loss of $2.8 billion in refunds would be realized largely as tax cuts, and regardless of whether the policies behind it are beneficial or not, the legislature’s approach to these cuts broadly undermines TABOR’s intent by divorcing taxpayers’ contributions to state revenue from the values of refunds they receive and deciding for them how that money should be spent instead.
Full List of Bills
| Bill Number | Short Title | FY24 TABOR Impact | FY25 TABOR Impact | FY26 TABOR Impact |
| HB24-1001 | Reauthorization of Rural Jump-Start Program | $0 | -$500,000 | -$1,100,000 |
| HB24-1002 | Social Work Licensure Compact | $0 | $0 | $550,500 |
| HB24-1004 | Ex-Offenders Practice in Regulated Occupations | $0 | $170,000 | $170,000 |
| HB24-1018 | College Textbook Sales Use Tax Exemption | $0 | -$1,000,000 | -$1,900,000 |
| HB24-1027 | Exemption for Children’s Products | $0 | -$10,000,000 | -$15,600,000 |
| HB24-1030 | Railroad Safety Requirements | $0 | $0 | $440,070 |
| HB24-1036 | Adjusting Certain Tax Expenditures | -$140,000 | -$1,400,000 | -$1,800,000 |
| HB24-1051 | Towing Carrier Regulation | $0 | $176,849 | $179,339 |
| HB24-1052 | Senior Housing Income Tax Credit | -$33,800,000 | -$33,800,000 | $0 |
| HB24-1078 | Regulation of Community Association Managers | $0 | $647,350 | $0 |
| HB24-1089 | Vehicle Electronic Notifications | $0 | $252,510 | $725,328 |
| HB24-1095 | Increasing Protections for Minor Workers | $0 | $19,200 | $38,400 |
| HB24-1099 | Defendant Filing Fees in Evictions | $0 | -$191,412 | -$191,412 |
| HB24-1105 | Creating the Chicano Special License Plate | $0 | $43,672 | $47,650 |
| HB24-1111 | Adopt Cosmetology Licensure Compact | $0 | $0 | $301,875 |
| HB24-1116 | Extend Contaminated Land Income Tax Credit | $0 | -$938,000 | -$1,900,000 |
| HB24-1125 | Tax Credit Commercial Building Conversion | $0 | $1,500 | $2,500 |
| HB24-1132 | Support for Living Organ Donors | $0 | $11,166 | $12,140 |
| HB24-1133 | Criminal Record Sealing & Expungement Changes | $0 | $0 | -$57,749 |
| HB24-1134 | Adjustments to Tax Expenditures to Reduce Burden | -$44,000,000 | -$136,000,000 | -$207,000,000 |
| HB24-1135 | Offenses Related to Operating a Vehicle | $0 | $12,400 | $12,400 |
| HB24-1138 | Tax Credit for Transfer of Agricultural Asset | $0 | -$600,000 | -$1,350,000 |
| HB24-1142 | Reduce Income Tax Social Security Benefits | $0 | -$300,000 | -$600,000 |
| HB24-1157 | Employee-Owned Bus Office & Income Tax Credit | $0 | -$446,250 | -$1,091,000 |
| HB24-1221 | Income Tax Credit for Eligible Teachers | -$17,800,000 | -$35,800,000 | -$18,000,000 |
| HB24-1235 | Reduce Aviation Impacts on Communities | $0 | -$800 | -$17,800 |
| HB24-1240 | AmeriCorps Education Award Tax Subtraction | $0 | $0 | -$210,000 |
| HB24-1243 | Income Tax Owed by Minors on Earned Income | $0 | -$2,000,000 | -$3,900,000 |
| HB24-1249 | Tax Credit Agricultural Stewardship Practices | $0 | $0 | -$1,500,000 |
| HB24-1251 | Sunset Debt-Management Service Providers | $0 | $0 | $41,500 |
| HB24-1253 | Sunset Regulation of Respiratory Therapy | $0 | $0 | $155,415 |
| HB24-1254 | Sunset Regulation of Nontransplant Tissue Banks | $0 | $0 | $750 |
| HB24-1262 | Maternal Health Midwives | $0 | $3,815 | $3,815 |
| HB24-1268 | Fin Assistance for Certain Low-Income Individuals | $0 | -$3,200,000 | -$6,500,000 |
| HB24-1271 | State Income Tax Credit for Veterinary Profl | $0 | -$1,000,000 | -$2,000,000 |
| HB24-1276 | Sunset Process Commn Deaf Hard of Hearing Deafblind | $0 | $0 | $2,308,535 |
| HB24-1280 | Welcome, Reception, & Integration Grant Program | $0 | $0 | $375,000 |
| HB24-1292 | Prohibit Certain Weapons Used in Mass Shootings | $0 | $250,000 | $250,000 |
| HB24-1294 | Mobile Homes in Mobile Home Parks | $0 | $1,128 | $1,128 |
| HB24-1295 | Creative Indus Community Revitalization Incentives | $0 | $10,750 | -$4,868,500 |
| HB24-1311 | Family Affordability Tax Credit | -$327,000,000 | -$684,000,000 | -$739,000,000 |
| HB24-1312 | State Income Tax Credit for Careworkers | $0 | -$21,200,000 | -$42,900,000 |
| HB24-1313 | Housing in Transit-Oriented Communities | $0 | -$2,300,000 | -$17,300,000 |
| HB24-1314 | Mod Tax Credit Preservation Historic Structures | $0 | -$25,000 | -$60,000 |
| HB24-1316 | Middle-Income Housing Tax Credit | $0 | $0 | -$400,000 |
| HB24-1325 | Tax Credits for Quantum Industry Support | $0 | $100,000 | -$3,800,000 |
| HB24-1326 | Bingo-Raffle Licensing Sunset Review | $0 | $0 | $760,000 |
| HB24-1327 | Sunset Physical Therapists | $0 | $0 | $296,596 |
| HB24-1328 | Sunset Continue Money Transmitter Regulation | $0 | $0 | $637,320 |
| HB24-1329 | Sunset Architects Engineers & Land Surveyors | $0 | $0 | $1,488,099 |
| HB24-1330 | Air Quality Permitting | $0 | $0 | $2,637,927 |
| HB24-1333 | Sunset Continue Private Occupational Schools | $0 | $0 | $1,118,025 |
| HB24-1335 | Sunset Continue Mortuary Science Code Regulation | $0 | $392,700 | $400,620 |
| HB24-1336 | Sunset Broadband Deployment | $0 | $525,393 | $533,042 |
| HB24-1340 | Incentives for Post-Secondary Education | $0 | -$18,100,000 | -$36,700,000 |
| HB24-1344 | Sunset Plumbing Board | $0 | $0 | $1,626,325 |
| HB24-1351 | Sunset Division Banking & Board | $0 | $0 | $6,020,627 |
| HB24-1352 | Appliance Requirements & Incentives | $0 | -$14,300,000 | -$34,600,000 |
| HB24-1353 | Firearms Dealer Requirements & Permit | $0 | $0 | $813,275 |
| HB24-1357 | Pipeline Safety | $0 | $311,093 | $429,359 |
| HB24-1358 | Film Incentive Tax Credit | $0 | -$2,500,000 | -$5,000,000 |
| HB24-1365 | Opportunity Now Grants & Tax Credit | $0 | $12,100 | -$7,370,800 |
| HB24-1367 | Repeal Severance Tax Exemption for Stripper Wells | $0 | $9,800,000 | $20,200,000 |
| HB24-1369 | Colorado Agriculture Special License Plate | $0 | $145,656 | $158,117 |
| HB24-1371 | More Uniform Local Massage Facilities Regulation | $0 | $0 | $10,057 |
| HB24-1379 | Regulate Dredge & Fill Activities in State Waters | $0 | $0 | $190,202 |
| HB24-1380 | Regulation of Debt-Related Services | $0 | $15,000 | $15,000 |
| HB24-1381 | Sunset Division of Financial Services | $0 | $0 | $2,561,000 |
| HB24-1409 | Employment-Related Funding & Workforce Enterprise | -$49,456,237 | -$24,462,740 | -$24,462,740 |
| HB24-1411 | Increase in Property Tax Exemption Filing Fees | $0 | $381,065 | $387,670 |
| HB24-1417 | Fee Changes Health-Care Cash Funds | $0 | $0 | $593,867 |
| HB24-1432 | Repeal CBI Criminal Justice Record Sealing Fee | $0 | -$159,220 | -$159,220 |
| HB24-1434 | Expand Affordable Housing Tax Credit | $0 | -$6,300,000 | -$48,100,000 |
| HB24-1436 | Sports Betting Tax Revenue Voter Approval | -$2,800,000 | -$5,200,000 | -$7,200,000 |
| HB24-1438 | Implement Prescription Drug Affordability Programs | $0 | $12,100 | $7,078 |
| HB24-1439 | Financial Incentives Expand Apprenticeship Programs | $0 | -$7,500,000 | -$15,000,000 |
| HB24-1449 | Environmental Sustainability Circular Economy | $0 | -$3,860,000 | -$3,900,000 |
| HB24-1469 | Collections for Another Government | -$38,700,000 | -$37,400,000 | -$37,800,000 |
| SB24-008 | Kinship Foster Care Homes | $0 | $50,398 | $16,809 |
| SB24-010 | Dentist & Dental Hygienist Compact | $0 | $0 | $902,488 |
| SB24-015 | Licensed Professional Counselors in Communities | $0 | $34,304 | $68,608 |
| SB24-016 | Tax Credits for Contributions via Intermediaries | -$239,000 | -$478,000 | -$478,000 |
| SB24-018 | Physician Assistant Licensure Compact | $0 | $0 | $569,113 |
| SB24-020 | Alcohol Beverage Delivery & Takeout | $0 | $0 | $26,180 |
| SB24-044 | PERA Retiree Refundable Income Tax Credit | -$9,000,000 | -$18,300,000 | -$9,300,000 |
| SB24-076 | Streamline Marijuana Regulation | $0 | $0 | $127,221 |
| SB24-120 | Updates to the Crime Victim Compensation Act | $0 | $16,335 | $19,899 |
| SB24-123 | Waste Tire Management Enterprise | $0 | $0 | $7,900,000 |
| SB24-126 | Conservation Easement Income Tax Credit | $0 | $33,900 | -$204,800 |
| SB24-127 | Regulate Dredged & Fill Material State Waters | $0 | $0 | $1,540,109 |
| SB24-141 | Out-of-State Telehealth Providers | $0 | $0 | $151,235 |
| SB24-152 | Regenerative Agriculture Tax Credit | $0 | $0 | -$600,000 |
| SB24-161 | Parks & Wildlife Licenses & Passes | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| SB24-173 | Regulate Mortuary Science Occupations | $0 | $0 | $333,575 |
| SB24-190 | Rail & Coal Transition Community Economic Measures | $0 | $0 | -$1,400,000 |
| SB24-207 | Access to Distributed Generation | $0 | $143,977 | $202,198 |
| SB24-218 | Modernize Energy Distribution Systems | $0 | $498,328 | $464,978 |
| SB24-226 | Modifications to College Kickstarter Account Program | -$42,000 | -$91,000 | -$104,000 |
| SB24-229 | Ozone Mitigation Measures | $0 | $0 | $697,237 |
| SB24-230 | Oil & Gas Production Fees | $0 | $0 | $68,291 |
| SB24-231 | Alcohol Beverage Liquor Advisory Group Recommendations | $0 | $320,000 | $320,000 |
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