Category Archives: Article V

Aug 31

Colorado’s fee-based enterprises skirt TABOR, increase revenue by 3,000%

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Colorado’s fee-based enterprises skirt TABOR, increase revenue by 3,000%

State-owned enterprises increase fees from 46% of total state spending in 1996 to 71% in 2023

In 1992 voters enacted the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights to constrain the growth of government by requiring voter approval for tax increases. Since then, the state government has built a new structure to avoid that requirement.

The creation of TABOR-exempt state-owned “enterprises” has allowed government to increase fees from 46% of total state spending in 1996 to 71% of state spending in 2023 without requiring approval from taxpayers, according to a new report released by the Common Sense Institute, a non-partisan research organization “dedicated to the protection and promotion of Colorado’s economy.”

“Fees are a rapidly growing and significant cost for Coloradans,” said Kelly Caufield, Executive Director of the Common Sense Institute. “At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if we call it a tax or a fee, these costs are driving the cost of living in our state.”

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Aug 30

Menten: Weighing in on local TABOR measures for the 2024 ballot

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2024 Election, Elections, Natalie Menten, TABOR, Uncategorized

Menten: Weighing in on local TABOR measures for the 2024 ballot

August 29, 2024 By Natalie Menten

 

One great, though lesser-known benefit provided in the Colorado Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) is the local ballot issue notice. This guide is sent by mail at least 30-days before the election to all households with one or more registered voters.

The notice includes details about upcoming local ballot measures that increase taxes, add debt, or suspend TABOR revenue limits. It includes a section where registered voters have the opportunity to submit FOR or AGAINST comments, up to 500 words each.

You should know that there are actually two types of TABOR ballot issue notices. One notice is for the statewide measures and commonly referred to as the “Blue Book.” The notice discussed here is for elections held by local governments such as a city, town, school district, or special taxing district. It’s important to know the difference as you could potentially get more than one of these notices in the mail.

Several years back, it was discovered that out that of some 300 local tax issues throughout the state, only 15 had the taxpayer’s voice printed in a ballot issue notice.  That’s only 5 percent!  You can make a big difference and amplify your voice by being an author of the next ballot issue notice where you live.  Considering that you reach thousands of voters, submitting comments in the TABOR notice costs almost nothing and takes relatively little time and energy.

What follows is an explanation of how to participate in the local ballot issue comment process. As in so much of government bureaucracy, instructions must be followed with no room for alteration.  The deadline for this year is Friday, September 20 no later than noon to have your comments included in the local TABOR notice. Continue reading →

May 09

EDITORIAL: Rein in violations of taxpayer’s rights

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EDITORIAL: Rein in violations of taxpayer’s rights

    •  Updated 

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The 2024 tax and audit season, which generally stretches from mid-January to mid- or late April, hasn’t been quite as challenging as it was in pandemic years, industry experts said.

Government is supposed to be of, by and for the people. That’s why Colorado voters passed the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights in 1992, forcing the state government and other taxing jurisdictions to obtain voter approval before raising taxes or spending revenues that outpace inflation and population.

Moments after voters passed the law, politicians began routing around it. They began levying and/or raising car registration “fees,” energy production “fees” professional registration “fees,” doing-business “fees,” plastic bag “fees,” phone “fees,” tire “fees,” alcohol “fees” and much more.

Politicians who don’t want to ask for a tax increase — those who think they know what’s best for other peoples’ money — learned early on they could call a “tax” a “fee” and from TABOR become free. Courts, which make up a major component of state and local taxing jurisdictions, have gone along with this ruse.

Boldly flouting federal law, the Colorado Legislature recently passed Senate Bill 184 to impose a “Congestion Impact Fee” on rental vehicles. The money will go to fund passenger rail and other Democratic pet projects marketed as good for the climate.

To continue reading this story, please click (HERE) to at the Denver Gazette.

Feb 28

Fiscal Rules and ‘Learning by Doing’

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February 28, 2024

Fiscal Rules and ‘Learning by Doing’

By Barry Poulson

An important discovery in understanding productivity change and economic growth is the phenomenon of “learning by doing.” One of the first discoveries of this phenomenon was in the aircraft industry during World War II. Defense contractors discovered that in producing a particular aircraft, the labor force was more efficient with each successive contract. The labor force gained knowledge in producing aircraft in the initial contract that they applied in subsequent contracts.

Learning by doing is found to increase productivity across many industries. It is found in pursuing public policies as well. I gained insight into these learning effects as a member of the Colorado Tax Commission. We held hearings across the state to gain insight into citizen attitudes toward fiscal policy, and in particular to Colorado’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights Amendment (TABOR). If any government in Colorado wants to increase taxes, revenues, or issue public debt, it must have citizen approval. Citizens in Colorado have voted on hundreds of these ballot measures at all levels of government since TABOR was passed through citizen initiative in 1992. Continue reading →