Category Archives: Kerr vs. Polis Lawsuit

Dec 17

Happy New Year From Your Colorado TABOR Foundation!

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By a vote of 55% to 45%, you helped defeat Prop CC to remove TABOR spending limits, but they’re at it again.

Anti-TABOR activists are already testing ballot language for a 2020 initiative to unwind your Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. With a high Democratic voter turnout, they see next year’s election as their chance to amend the State Constitution to give government taxing authority without a vote of the people.

The TABOR Foundation educates voters on how the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights protects their livelihood and why it matters to their family’s future.

We give seminars, media interviews, social media updates, and we’re a primary contact for citizens asking for help when their local jurisdictions violate TABOR mandates.  Importantly, we engage in legal action to protect TABOR.

Defending freedom costs time – and money. We need more help. What can you do to help us?

Please send your donation of $50, $100, $150 or more. Checks payable to TABOR Foundation, a 501c3 not-for-profit organization, may be tax deductible as allowed by law.

And, we welcome your service with our Board of Directors, Speakers Bureau, or in some other capacity.  Please call me to talk about being more involved.  Thanks!

 

Sincerely,

Penn R. Pfiffner
Chairman
303-233-7731

TABOR Foundation
720 Kipling St.
Lakewood, CO 80215
www.thetaborfoundation.org 

Nov 12

We could use your help, talents, and skills defending the gold standard, Colorado’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR).

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Now that Proposition CC has gone down in flames, what will progressives do next to sabotage TABOR?
Aren’t you sick and tired on politicians trying to weasel their way out of, or ignoring, TABOR?
We need to do something about it, right?
Well then, why not you?
Yes, you read that right.
Why not?  It’s a great time to get involved.
If not you, then who?
We could use your help, talents, and skills defending the gold standard, Colorado’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR).
We’re looking forward to having you help Colorado.
It’s easy to join.
See below on how you can make a difference.

 

 

 

Continue reading →

Oct 11

Update on anti-TABOR lawsuit

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The federal lawsuit to repeal TABOR through the courts took an expected step recently.  The team bringing the lawsuit has been arguing that TABOR restricts legislators’ ability to act.  The lawsuit is now known as “Kerr vs. Polis”.  The first question, which our  side thought was settled by the US Supreme Court’s ruling on a similar Arizona case, is whether the lawsuit can be brought by the plaintiffs – that is, do those entities have “standing”?  The most recent argument, available at this link http://www.scribd.com/document/429794251/19-09-30-Appellants-Response-to-Governors-Pt-for-Rehearing-en-Banc is the plaintiffs’ written argument that the 10th Circuit should drop the issue of standing and allow the case to proceed directly.

A three-judge panel found that the amended list of plaintiffs could bring the lawsuit and therefore it could proceed on the merits.  The defenders of TABOR believe that this was an errant ruling and the dissenting justice was very direct, saying that the plaintiffs’ argument “…. is so meager as to constitute waiver. Moreover, their argument—insofar as I am able to piece it together—also fails on the merits.”  We hope that the entire 10th Circuit Court of Appeals will agree to hear the appeal again (“en banc”).  The Court of Appeals can be expected to accept or decline the Motion reasonably soon, according to a Colorado attorney familiar with the case.  The TABOR Foundation has been monitoring this situation in conjunction with the National Federation of Independent Business, with whom we partnered in previous amicus filings.

 

Aug 10

AG Weiser requests extension of deadline to defend TABOR; motion granted

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Please note that Sherrie Peif has issued an update to her story; the AG did request an extension of the appeal but his office had failed to respond to Sherrie’s repeated requests for information.
See her new story below.
 

AG Weiser requests extension of deadline to defend TABOR; motion granted

 By 

“The Attorney General has said he will defend the constitution and that’s what he will do,” Pacheco said by email Thursday morning.

Complete Colorado attempted to get hold of Weiser through Pacheco before the story published; however, Pacheco did not return phone calls or email requests until after the story published. Weiser was also aware prior to publication that Complete Colorado was attempting to get hold of him through a series of Tweets with Complete Colorado.

Regardless, Complete Colorado regrets the original error.

DENVER — Although he campaigned on a promise to defend the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) despite his personal opinion of the nearly three decades old constitutional amendment, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser made his first move in the opposite direction by letting a deadline pass to argue an ongoing TABOR case in federal court.

Weiser had until Tuesday to ask that the entire circuit court hear the case after a 3-judge panel from the Tenth  Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court’s ruling. The lower court had ruled that local governments do not have the right to sue.

Aug 08

AG Weiser fails to appeal TABOR decision in federal court

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Colorado Democrat Attorney General “Idiot” Phil Weiser lied to you. He said he would defend #TABOR.
Typical liberal modus operandi
Shame on any one who voted for this buffoon.

DENVER — Although he campaigned on a promise to defend the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) despite his personal opinion of the nearly three decades old constitutional amendment, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser made his first move in the opposite direction by letting a deadline pass to argue an ongoing TABOR case in federal court.

Weiser had until Tuesday to ask that the entire circuit court hear the case after a 3-judge panel from the Tenth  Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court’s ruling. The lower court had ruled that local governments do not have the right to sue.

“It’s disappointing that AG Weiser is not fully following through on his campaign promises,” said Michael Fields, Executive Director of Colorado Rising Action. “The rubber will hit the road when the merits of the TABOR case are heard, and he actually has to defend the constitution.”

Fields added that everyone should be concerned that Weiser chose not to defend the state’s constitution knowing he is not a TABOR supporter.

Jul 29

Colorado’s Attorney General Candidates Weigh in on Six Key Issues

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This is from September, 2018.
Now to find out if AG Weiser is a man of his word or did he lie to Colorado?
 
On TABOR:
Weiser says: “You have a job to be a leader, to work with people to solve problems, and to suggest how the law can be improved. With respect to TABOR, there is a clear need to improve.”
 
The takeaway:
Like Brauchler, Weiser will defend the law.
But if the Colorado General Assembly or governor wants to (legally) work around TABOR or fight to repeal it, he’d probably be OK with that.
 
Jul 28

Semantics ploy could undermine TABOR

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COLUMN: Semantics ploy could undermine TABOR

  • By: Mike Rosen
Rosen_0249 (copy)
What’s your opinion of Article X, Section 20 of the Colorado Constitution? I suspect the reply of the overwhelming majority of Coloradans to that question would be: “Huh?” But hold that thought.

If you’re a Colorado taxpayer, you better get a firm grip on your wallet. Once again, the forces of unlimited government and the folks who know how to spend your money better than you do are after it. The dragon they want to slay for the umpteenth time is commonly known as TABOR, The Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights.

This was an amendment added to the state constitution via a ballot question by a direct vote of the people in the general election of 1992. It limits spending by all levels of government under a formula that considers population growth and inflation. It also requires approval by the voters for tax increases.

While still in the ballot-question womb and from the moment of its birth, TABOR has been generally supported by Republicans and opposed by Democrats. To circumvent TABOR, Democrat governors and legislators have sometimes gotten away with the charade of disguising tax increases as new “fees.”

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

 

Jun 29

Caldara: Cowboy up and repeal of Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights

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Caldara: Cowboy up and repeal of Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights

In this file photo, volunteers pile up signs for backers of the 2005 ballot measures that aimed to lift some TABOR restrictions. Referendum C passed which allowed the state to retain expected refunds for five years and reset the TABOR base.

By JON CALDARA | Columnist for The Denver Post

PUBLISHED: June 28, 2019 at 2:14 pm

Come on you taxpayer-hating, consent-loathing, voter-fearing pantywaists.

Cowboy up and put a full repeal of our Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights on the ballot. You know you want to. So just do it.

I’m talking to you in the Colorado Legislature who’ve been calling tax increases “fees” because you don’t trust the people who elected you to vote on their own taxes. You who want another “TABOR time out” to nibble away consent and jack up spending limits permanently.

You’ve always hated TABOR because you hate asking for permission to raise taxes. You hate asking to raise debt. You hate asking to keep excess tax revenue above the rate of population growth and inflation.

You’ve used every conceivable loophole the courts have pried open for you to keep what would have been refunded to working families.

And now you never want to have to ask again.

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