Oct
02
Category Archives: Quote
Sep
11
Colorado Chamber Applauds Landmark TABOR Decision from State Supreme Court
For media inquiries, please contact Cynthia Eveleth-Havens at CynthiaE@cochamber.com.
DENVER – The Colorado Chamber of Commerce today applauded the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision in MetroPCS v. City of Lakewood, determining that the City of Lakewood failed to comply with Colorado’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). The Colorado Chamber submitted an amicus brief on the case in December 2024.
“This landmark case draws a sharp line in the sand for the state and local jurisdictions trying to tax voters without their approval,” said Colorado Chamber President and CEO Loren Furman. “This is the first time the Colorado Supreme Court has found a violation of TABOR’s voter approval requirements for new taxes, which could set an important precedent moving forward. Businesses depend on the predictability of our laws and tax policies, and we applaud the Court’s decision to prohibit taxing authorities from unilaterally imposing new taxes without the consent of voters.”
The Court ruled that Lakewood violated the state constitution by expanding a 1969 tax ordinance twice in the last three decades when it enacted a business and occupation tax on cell service providers without prior voter approval. The Court declared the ordinances violated TABOR laws making them void and requiring Lakewood to refund the tax it collected unlawfully over the past years.
The Colorado Chamber’s prior amicus brief can be found here: https://cochamber.com/wp-content/uploads/T-Mo-CO-Brief-of-Amicus-Curiae-Colorado-Chamber-of-Commerce.pdf
Colorado Chamber Applauds Landmark TABOR Decision from State Supreme Court
Aug
30
Jon Caldara 7 Years Ago – “Isn’t It Nice To Just Be Asked?”
#HandsOffTABOR
#DontBeFooled
#ItsYourMoneyNotTheirs
#TABOR
#FollowTheLaw
#FeesAreTaxes
#VoteOnFees
#ReplaceThemAllForNotFollowingVotersWishes
Jul
25
Governor sued over state’s plan to keep tax on overtime
LEGISLATURE
Governor sued over state’s plan to keep tax on overtime
Policymakers grapple with the effects of GOP’s federal tax law
A conservative advocacy group and a state senator sued Gov. Jared Polis and the head of Colorado’s tax agency Thursday, alleging that recent legislation requiring the continued taxing of overtime pay — in the face of federal changes — violates the state constitution.
The lawsuit, filed in Denver District Court, argues that House Bill 1296 violates the state’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, or TABOR, which requires voter approval before the state can levy new taxes.
HB-1296, which Polis signed into law in May, requires the state to continue taxing overtime starting next year — and it was passed in anticipation of a provision in Congress’ tax law this month that temporarily will allow workers to deduct a large portion of overtime from their federal taxes.
Colorado’s law was drafted as federal debates about cutting taxes on overtime — a campaign promise by President Donald Trump — were developing. Now lawmakers are grappling with the potential for hundreds of millions of dollars in cuts to state funding resulting from the final tax bill.
The new lawsuit, which Democrats dismissed as a political stunt, was filed by Advance Colorado and Republican Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, as well as by a Fremont County commissioner, Kevin Grantham — a former Senate president — and two Coloradans who receive overtime pay.
Income declared on earners’ state tax return typically is influenced by what is on their federal tax forms. The lawsuit alleges that restarting the overtime taxation at the state level constitutes the creation of new revenue, which would require voter approval, and it asks a judge to invalidate the law.
The state legislation didn’t necessarily create a new tax, although it changed the collection mechanism to ensure that tax on overtime still was collected regardless of federal changes. Functionally, it continues a tax on overtime income that the federal government now allows to be deducted to a significant degree — up to $12,500 annually — for the next four years.
Michael Fields, the president of Advance Colorado, accused Democratic lawmakers of trying to sidestep TABOR and voter approval.
May
06
Colorado Democrats fail to challenge TABOR as legislative session nears end
Colorado Democrats fail to advance their resolution challenging the Taxpayer Bill of Rights before the legislative session ends Wednesday.
DENVER — A Democratic-led effort to challenge Colorado’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) will not advance before the legislative session ends Wednesday, despite the party’s complete control of state government.
State Rep. Sean Camacho, D-Denver, who sponsored a resolution to initiate a lawsuit seeking to have TABOR ruled unconstitutional, confirmed the measure will not receive a vote before midnight, ensuring the resolution will not have enough time to go through all the steps in the House and Senate by Wednesday.
“It is not happening,” Camacho said.
He did not know why it was not being put to a vote, and as of Monday night, a spokesman for House Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillion, had not responded to an 12:35 p.m. text message regarding the vote.
TABOR, which has been state law since 1992, limits how much revenue Colorado can collect and spend each year. It also requires refunds to taxpayers when the state exceeds those limits. Democrats have increasingly cited TABOR as the reason behind this year’s $1 billion in state spending cuts.
To continue reading the rest of this story, click (HERE) to go to 9 News
Apr
02
10th Circuit dismisses lawsuit challenging validity of TABOR
We just wanted to remind you that the premise of this case was settled in December, 2021 but the political party on the left doesn’t learn. Here’s the headline and story:
10th Circuit dismisses lawsuit challenging validity of TABOR
Chief Judge Timothy M. Tymkovich, writing for himself and six of his colleagues, concluded that the Boulder County Board of County Commissioners, a handful of school districts and one special district failed to show that the 1875 Enabling Act that guaranteed to Colorado a “republican” form of government had also given the local government entities the ability to challenge TABOR’s taxing and spending restrictions.
“Looking at the Enabling Act’s language, we conclude the plaintiffs cannot state a claim under the Act’s promise of a republican constitution. Neither the Enabling Act’s text nor structure supports the political subdivisions’ arguments. The clause promising a constitution republican in form has no clear beneficiary,” Tymkovich wrote in the Dec. 13 decision.
Mar
29
Ballooning Medicaid costs, TABOR limits expose flaws in Colorado’s big government spending spree
Ballooning Medicaid costs, TABOR limits expose flaws in Colorado’s big government spending spree
By Rocky Mountain Voice Editorial Board
After years of overreach and unchecked government growth, Colorado lawmakers are now scrambling to plug a $1.2 billion hole in the state budget — a crisis largely of their own making.
Colorado budget writers voted Wednesday night to finalize a 2025–26 budget plan that slashes transportation funding, eliminates programs, and kicks key decisions down the road — all while Medicaid spending surges out of control.
Despite the so-called “cuts,” the budget still grows to over $16 billion. But massive increases in Medicaid — particularly long-term care for seniors and the disabled — are eating up the budget at an unsustainable pace. Democrat lawmakers admit the problem is only getting worse. “Next year, I see our fiscal challenges compounding,” said Rep. Shannon Bird, vice chair of the Joint Budget Committee (JBC), during a hearing.
Conservatives argue this crisis is a direct result of failed progressive governance: endless new programs, expensive mandates, and refusal to address structural overspending.
TABOR Targeted Again
Once again, the state’s taxpayer protections — the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) — are being blamed by Democrats for the budget woes. TABOR limits government growth to population plus inflation, requiring refunds to citizens when revenue exceeds the cap.
Instead of thanking taxpayers for Colorado’s booming economy, JBC Chair Sen. Jeff Bridges (D-Greenwood Village) criticized TABOR: “When the economy is booming and the state is tightening its belt, that just doesn’t make sense,” he told The Colorado Sun. “It’s like, ‘why are you making these cuts?’ And the answer is TABOR.”
But to fiscal conservatives, it makes perfect sense. TABOR keeps the government from ballooning during economic highs and forces legislators to prioritize. That’s not dysfunction — it’s accountability.
Click (HERE) to read the rest of this editorial.
Feb
20
TABOR = TAxpayer’s Bill Of Rights
70%+ of Coloradans support TABOR.
What TABOR stands for:
What one political party in Colorado is trying to wrongfully change it to, according to our TABOR friend, Representative Ryan Gonzalez:
Representative Ryan Gonzalez (@RyanGonzalezCO) / X
Jan
28
Coloradans must opt in for TABOR refunds when filing taxes
DENVER (KDVR) — Monday marked the first day the IRS could start accepting and processing your tax return.
Colorado filers need to keep an eye out for one key step to make sure they get all the money they are eligible for back in their wallets.
Coloradans are set to get TABOR refunds after they file their taxes this year, but the state is reminding residents that they have to opt in.
“Unfortunately, if you didn’t check that box for your taxes you filed in 2024 for tax year 2023, you did miss out on your tabor refund,” said Elisabeth Kosar, communications director for the Colorado Department of Revenue. “TABOR is something you need to opt into so please, please check that box or again have whoever is preparing your taxes check that box.” Continue reading
Nov
10
More Evidence for the TABOR Spending Cap
November 9, 2024 by Dan Mitchell
Last April, I shared some data showing that Colorado’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights had forced politicians in the Centennial State to return $8.2 billion of tax revenue.
The state’s politicians did not want to return the money. But TABOR is a spending cap and the rules require that any extra tax revenue (above and beyond what would finance allowed levels of spending) has to be returned to taxpayers.
This spending cap has been good news for the state’s economy, as illustrated by the chart.
But I now need to update the benefits of TABOR.
That’s because we have another year of data. And, as explained in this report from Center Square, taxpayers are getting another refund. This time, their savings will be more than $1 billion. Continue reading