Category Archives: Kerr vs. Polis Lawsuit

May 10

Federal judges to hear TABOR repeal, appellate court deals with censured judge

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COURT CRAWL | Federal judges to hear TABOR repeal, appellate court deals with censured judge

Courthouse close with Justice inscribed
jsmith, iStock image
Welcome to Court Crawl, Colorado Politics’ roundup of news from the third branch of government. Today will feature a rare all-judges hearing in Colorado’s federal appellate court, plus the state’s Court of Appeals last week issued guidance for parties who appeared before a now-censured judge.

TABOR saga continues

This morning, the entire roster of judges on the Denver-based federal appeals court will hear oral arguments in the decade-long lawsuit over whether to declare Colorado’s 1992 Taxpayer Bill of Rights unconstitutional. Today’s hearing likely won’t end the lawsuit: the question before the judges is whether political subdivisions, like school districts or boards of county commissioners, have legal standing to sue for TABOR’s repeal.

•  Listen live at 10 a.m. here.

COURT CRAWL | Federal judges to hear TABOR repeal, appellate court deals with censured judge | Courts | coloradopolitics.com

Feb 07

Appeals Court Rules Kerr, et al, Have Standing In TABOR Lawsuit

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Appeals Rules Standing OK_7.22.19 by North Suburban Republican Forum on Scribd

Feb 07

Court Wait Until After Ballot Initiative

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Court_wait Until After Ballot Initiative_12.13.19 by North Suburban Republican Forum on Scribd

Feb 07

Court Order Vacates Appellate Panel Decision

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Court Order Vacates Appellate Panel_10.14.20 by North Suburban Republican Forum on Scribd

Feb 06

Appeals Court Rules Standing OK

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FILED
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit

PUBLISH
July 22, 2019

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
Elisabeth A. Shumaker

Clerk of Court
FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT
_________________________________
ANDY KERR, Colorado State
Representative; NORMA V. ANDERSON;
JANE M. BARNES, member Jefferson
County Board of Education; ELAINE GANTZ BERMAN, member State Board of Education; ALEXANDER E. BRACKEN; WILLIAM K. BREGAR, member Pueblo District 70 Board of Education; BOB BRIGGS, Westminster No. 17-1192
City Councilman; BRUCE W.
BRODERINS, member Weld County
District 6 Board of Education; TRUDY B.
BROWN; JOHN C. BUECHNER, Ph.D.,
Lafayette City Councilman; STEPHEN A.
BURKHOLDER; RICHARD L. BYYNY,
M.D.; LOIS COURT, Colorado State
Representative; THERESA L. CRATER;
ROBIN CROSSAN, member Steamboat
Springs RE-2 Board of Education;
RICHARD E. FERDINANDSEN;
STEPHANIE GARCIA, member Pueblo
City Board of Education; KRISTI
HARGROVE; DICKEY LEE
HULLINGHORST, Colorado State
Representative; NANCY JACKSON,
Arapahoe County Commissioner; CLAIRE
LEVY, Colorado State Representative;
MARGARET MARKERT, Aurora City
Councilwoman, a/k/a Molly Markert; MEGAN J. MASTEN; MICHAEL MERRIFIELD; MARCELLA L.
MORRISON, a/k/a Marcy L. Morrison;
JOHN P. MORSE, Colorado State Senator;
PAT NOONAN; BEN PEARLMAN,
Boulder County Commissioner;
Continue reading →

Feb 06

Court Wait Until After Ballot Initiative

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Appellate Case: 17-1192 Document: 010110274622 Date Filed: 12/13/2019 Page: 1
FILED
United States Court of Appeals
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS _________________________________ FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT Elisabeth A. Shumaker December 13, 2019Tenth Circuit
ANDY KERR, Colorado State Clerk of Court
Representative, et al.,
Plaintiffs – Appellants,

v. No. 17-1192
(D.C. No. 1:11-CV-01350-RM-NYW)
JARED POLIS, Governor of Colorado in (D. Colo.) his official capacity,

Defendant – Appellee.

——————————

COLORADO ASSOCIATION OF
SCHOOL BOARDS AND COLORADO
ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL
EXECUTIVES, et al.,

Amici Curiae.
_________________________________
ORDER
_________________________________
Before BRISCOE, SEYMOUR, and HOLMES, Circuit Judges.
_________________________________
This matter is before the Court on the appellee’s Petition for Rehearing En Banc of our decision in Kerr v. Polis, 930 F.3d 1190 (10th Cir. 2019). A response to the Petition is also on file.
Upon review of these pleadings we note that a ballot initiative has been filed with the Colorado Secretary of State that proposes a vote at the next general election to repeal

Appellate Case: 17-1192 Document: 010110274622 Date Filed: 12/13/2019 Page: 2
Section 20 of Article X of the Colorado Constitution, the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). In June 2019, the Colorado Supreme Court held that the “initiative comprises a single subject within the meaning of the Colorado Constitution,” and returned the initiative to the Title Board to “set[] a title, ballot title, and submission clause.” In re Ballot Title #3, 2019 CO 57, ¶ 40. The initiative is currently pending review by the Colorado Supreme Court on a second appeal raising questions about the appropriate title for the initiative. Continue reading →

Feb 06

Court Order Vacates Appellate Panel

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FILED
United States Court of Appeals
PUBLISH Tenth Circuit

October 14, 2020
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
Christopher M. Wolpert
Clerk of Court
FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT
_________________________________
ANDY KERR, Colorado State
Representative; NORMA V. ANDERSON;
JANE M. BARNES, member Jefferson
County Board of Education; ELAINE GANTZ BERMAN, member State Board of Education; ALEXANDER E. BRACKEN; WILLIAM K. BREGAR, member Pueblo District 70 Board of
Education; BOB BRIGGS, Westminster No. 17-1192
City Councilman; BRUCE W. (D.C. No. 1:11-CV-01350-RM-NYW)
BRODERIUS, member Weld County (D. Colo.)
District 6 Board of Education; TRUDY B.
BROWN; JOHN C. BUECHNER, Ph.D.,
Lafayette City Councilman; STEPHEN A.
BURKHOLDER; RICHARD L. BYYNY,
M.D.; LOIS COURT, Colorado State
Representative; THERESA L. CRATER;
ROBIN CROSSAN, member Steamboat
Springs RE-2 Board of Education;
RICHARD E. FERDINANDSEN;
STEPHANIE GARCIA, member Pueblo
City Board of Education; KRISTI
HARGROVE; DICKEY LEE
HULLINGHORST, Colorado State
Representative; NANCY JACKSON,
Arapahoe County Commissioner; CLAIRE
LEVY, Colorado State Representative;
MARGARET MARKERT, Aurora City
Councilwoman, AKA Molly Markert; MEGAN J. MASTEN; MICHAEL MERRIFIELD; MARCELLA L.
MORRISON, AKA Marcy L. Morrison;
JOHN P. MORSE, Colorado State Senator;
PAT NOONAN; BEN PEARLMAN,
Boulder County Commissioner;
Continue reading →

Jan 24

Opinion: Politicians’ challenge to Colorado’s TABOR is without merit

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For almost three decades, TABOR has been a godsend for Colorado taxpayers.

2:55 AM MST on Jan 24, 2021

Colorado’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights is under attack once again, this time by the very politicians whose actions TABOR is intended to check.

A lawsuit filed by state legislators and some local elected officials has been wending its way through the federal courts since 2011. They seek to overturn the voter-enacted TABOR amendment to the Colorado constitution, which requires voter approval before state and local legislative bodies can impose or raise taxes.

The lawmakers’ case rests on the dubious idea that by denying legislators a free hand on matters of taxing and spending, TABOR denies Coloradans a republican form of government, in violation of the U.S. Constitution.

It’s a specious, self-serving argument that ignores more than a century of case law and practical political experience with voter initiatives and referendums, in Colorado and elsewhere.

The case will now be heard by the entire U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit, although it seems likely that the U.S. Supreme Court will eventually get the final word.

It’s a complicated case involving questions of standing — who has the right to bring a case to court — and whether constitutional guarantees of a republican form of government include the actions of political subdivisions such as school boards.

To continue reading this story, please click (HERE):

Dec 28

Update On Kerry vs Polis Lawsuit

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“The federal court of appeals will review the trial court’s ruling on whether the case should even be brought before the federal judicial system.  Your TABOR Foundation is one of three entities that filed a “friend-of-the-court” urging the courts to reject the arguments of the plaintiffs, and thereby end the case and leave the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights unchallenged.  You may read the argument submitted by Mountain States Legal Foundation, the Colorado Union of Taxpayers and our Foundation, below.”

Case No. 17-1192

 

 

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT

 

 

ANDY KERR, Colorado State Representative, et al.,

Plaintiffs-Appellants,

 

v.

 

JARED POLIS, Governor of Colorado, in his official capacity,  Defendant-Appellee.

 

 

On Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Colorado

No. 11-CV-01350-RM-NYW, The Honorable Raymond P. Moore

 

 

BRIEF OF AMICI CURIAE MOUNTIAN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION, THE COLORADO UNION OF TAXPAYERS FOUNDATION, AND THE TABOR FOUNDATION IN SUPPORT OF APPELLEE URGING AFFIRMANCE

 

 

 

Cody J. Wisniewski

MOUNTAIN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION

2596 South Lewis Way

Lakewood, Colorado 80227

(303) 292-2021

cody@mslegal.org

 

Attorney for Amici Curiae

 

 

CORPORATE DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

The undersigned attorney for Amici Curiae, Mountain States Legal Foundation, the Colorado Union of Taxpayers Foundation, and the TABOR Foundation certifies that

Mountain States Legal Foundation, the Colorado Union of Taxpayers Foundation, and the TABOR Foundation are non-profit corporations that have no parent corporations and have never issued any stock.

 

Respectfully submitted this 21st day of December 2020.

 

 

/s/ Cody J. Wisniewski          

Cody J. Wisniewski

MOUNTAIN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION

2596 South Lewis Way

Lakewood, Colorado 80227

(303) 292-2021

cody@mslegal.org

 

Attorney for Amici Curiae

 

i

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