Oct 14

Even key Dems dis Prop. 123; vote NO

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Even key Dems dis Prop. 123; vote NO

  • By Ben Murrey
  • Oct 12, 2022Updated Oct 12, 2022

Ben Murrey

Thanks to the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, commonly known as “TABOR,” Coloradans will receive nearly $4 billion in excess revenue refunded from the state this year. That’s where those $750 checks for individuals and $1,500 for couples came from over the summer. On the ballot this year, Proposition 123 is asking voters to give up their refunds, at least in part.

If adopted by voters, the measure would reduce TABOR refunds by about $86 per person, based on information from the state voter booklet or “Blue Book.”

The measure dedicates up to 0.1% of income tax revenue to affordable housing programs administered by state bureaucracies. For years in which the state has a TABOR surplus, that would reduce TABOR refunds by about $300 million. State economists currently project refunds for at least the next three years.

Even Democrats — who rarely refuse the opportunity to spend more of your money on new government programs — have been skeptical of the measure.

Democratic state Sen. Chris Hansen, of Denver, expressed concern that Proposition 123 could eat directly into the state’s ability to spend on other priorities.

“There’s no free lunch,” Hansen said referencing the measure. “K-12 and higher education (is) where the marginal dollar is in our state budget. So $1 less means $1 less for education.”

The statement proves a bit disingenuous, but the senator is right to say there is no such thing as a free lunch. Continue reading

Sep 19

Menten: A citizen’s guide to weighing in on local TABOR ballot measures

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 ballot issue notice includes content and 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 two types of TABOR ballot issue notices. One notice is for the statewide elections 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. 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 during a ballot year, 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, being able to submit 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 FOR or AGAINST 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 23 no later than noon to have your comments included in the local TABOR notice.

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

Aug 19

Mr. TABOR

SPECIAL TO THE DENVER POST
Anti tax crusader and El Paso County commissioner Douglas Bruce next to his Mr.Tabor licsence plate. 8/19/05 THE DENVER POST/Chuck Bigger

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#DouglasBruce
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#ThankGodForTABOR
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#TABOR
#FollowTheMoney
#FollowTheLaw

Jul 30

Affordable housing program will cut into your TABOR refunds

Affordable housing program will cut into your TABOR refunds

By Natalie Menten

Guest Commentary

The state government has taken more taxes from you than we allow it to have, and it should rebate that over-collection back to you. That money coming back to all taxpayers is now in jeopardy. We should be alarmed at the potential waste.

Colorado voters’ dissatisfaction with government growing beyond its means led to the passage of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). This constitutional amendment requires voter approval for tax increases and debt. It also limits how fast government can grow. The formula for automatic tax increases is the prior year’s budget plus adjustment for inflation and population growth.

When government collects taxes above the limit, it must refund the surplus. Later this year, each taxpayer will get a $750 TABOR rebate from the state. The economic outlook predicts rebates for the next several years.

Two statewide ballot measures in November claim they don’t raise taxes, but that’s just not true. Funding for new programs comes from our future TABOR rebates. If we don’t get all those rebates back, that’s effectively a higher tax rate and clearly a tax hike.

One measure proposes to divert TABOR rebates to subsidize affordable housing programs. Proponents have spent hefty money on paid signature gathering. They are meeting with local elected officials and lobbying for political buy-in. They gloat that they had raised $5 million by June 1 and that they plan to spend millions more to sway Colorado voters. How much of the campaign donations will come from developers who specialize in subsidized projects?

Our TABOR rebates would be diverted into a new “Affordable Housing Fund,” to be split 60/40 between state and local governments. The requirements to release the funds come with damaging, top-down controls. Local elected officials would have to guarantee increasing affordable housing by 3% each year over a baseline number, as well as implementing a 90-day fast-track permit approval process.

If a local jurisdiction won’t or can’t comply with the measure’s requirements, not only would we taxpayers not receive our TABOR rebates, but the local government would be disqualified from the subsidy.

How would dense metro areas increase subsidized housing units year after year? Would they build out, build up or replace?

At what point might local governments discourage and make it more difficult to build singlefamily homes? Examples abound, including Minneapolis, Oregon and California banning single-family developments. It seems far-fetched that Colorado would enact these restrictive policies, but that’s what we have to anticipate with passage of this ballot measure.

This measure encourages government to compete against Ma and Pa to buy property. Who has deeper pockets?

Seniors whose retirement depends on rental income might well be affected because this proposal creates an eviction defense fund, which would pay attorneys with taxpayer money to prevent landlords from evicting non-paying tenants who are at risk of becoming homeless.

There’s a long list of problems in this extreme initiative (currently No. 108). The paid circulators I’ve encountered know little to nothing about the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, so they aren’t informing signers that the money comes from our upcoming TABOR tax rebates.

Since backers are apparently willing to spend many, many millions of dollars to pump out TV ads and fill our mailboxes with slick marketing pieces, I don’t know where our opposition campaign will find similar amounts of money to counter the propaganda.

Citizens who sign the petition likely aren’t aware of the devious, negative results. Hopefully by the time the election rolls around in November, voters will understand this ballot issue’s dangers and vote no.

 

Jul 22

Affordable housing program will cut into your TABOR refunds

Affordable housing program will cut into your TABOR refunds

By Natalie Menten

Guest Commentary

The state government has taken more taxes from you than we allow it to have, and it should rebate that over-collection back to you. That money coming back to all taxpayers is now in jeopardy. We should be alarmed at the potential waste.

Colorado voters’ dissatisfaction with government growing beyond its means led to the passage of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). This constitutional amendment requires voter approval for tax increases and debt. It also limits how fast government can grow. The formula for automatic tax increases is the prior year’s budget plus adjustment for inflation and population growth.

When government collects taxes above the limit, it must refund the surplus. Later this year, each taxpayer will get a $750 TABOR rebate from the state. The economic outlook predicts rebates for the next several years.

Two statewide ballot measures in November claim they don’t raise taxes, but that’s just not true. Funding for new programs comes from our future TABOR rebates. If we don’t get all those rebates back, that’s effectively a higher tax rate and clearly a tax hike.

Click the link below to continue reading this article at the Denver Post.

 

Opinion: Statewide affordable housing program will cut into your TABOR refunds

Jul 22

Menten: Jeffco commissioners want voters to hand them a blank check

Jefferson County is one of more than a dozen counties in Colorado that still enjoys the protections of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). This constitutional amendment requires voter approval for tax increases and debt.  It also modestly limits how fast government can grow. The formula for automatic tax increases is the prior year’s budget plus adjustment for inflation and local growth.

Jefferson County government is presently allowed to grow 3.9% annually under the formula as described in a Board of County Commissioners agenda for July 19 (page 171).  That’s a reasonable amount for government growth – compare it to your household. Have you gotten nearly a 4% increase in your income?

Yet, the county commissioners have spent the last few years claiming they have insufficient revenue to maintain operations. Now they blame the revenue problem on the pandemic, yet the county received close to a couple hundred million in COVID relief money.

That pile of federal money still didn’t calm down the county commissioners’ quest to get rid of our Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights.

To continue reading the rest of this story, please click (HERE) to go to Complete Colorado

#ItsYourMoneyNotTheirs
#ThankGodForTABOR
#VoteOnTaxesAndFees
#FeesAreTaxes
#TABOR
#FollowTheMoney
#FollowTheLaw