By Rep. Ryan Gonzalez / March 21, 2025 / | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice
In the state of Colorado, we are facing over a $1.2 BILLION dollar shortfall. As we are now halfway through the 2025 legislative session, we have seen little progress from the lawmaking majority on making hard and significant cuts to our budget.
Rather than admit the improper allocation of taxpayer dollars, the majority uses this predicament to go after and attack our Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR).
Our state budget this year is over 43 BILLION. In the last 6 years they have gone from a budget surplus to a very progressive spending spree at the expense of taxpayers.
More offices, tax credits, and programs that require funding and eat away at TABOR refunds have been – and continue to be – the norm for the majority rule in Colorado.
Much of this is due, in part, to the COVID ripple effect that we are seeing now, just years in the making. As a first term legislator, I can see – firsthand – many problems in how things are being managed and run under the Gold Dome.
We do not, and I cannot stress this enough, we do not have a revenue problem.
We have a spending problem, a big one.
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Most citizens make a rationale choice in purchasing a home. As the late Thomas Sowell said, “an affordable home is a home you can afford.” For much of our history, home ownership was the most important decision that citizens made to accumulate wealth over their lifetime. Paying off one’s mortgage was a lifetime event, allowing citizens to retire in comfort. But today, many citizens are losing the dream of home ownership.
Unlike other taxes, property taxes give citizens freedom of choice in deciding to invest in a home. Citizens can compare the government services offered relative to the property taxes they must pay in different jurisdictions. And citizens can vote with their feet, moving to a jurisdiction that matches their preferences. Since a large share of property taxes are earmarked for education, citizens can compare the quality of schools and the property taxes in different school districts.
But, high rates of inflation distort the rational choices that citizens make in investing in a home. Since 2020, citizens have been hit with a double whammy. Higher interest rates and higher home prices have priced many citizens out of the housing market. Citizens who own a home are often left with the choice of selling their home and downsizing to a home they can afford. But homeowners ask the obvious question, why should I have to sell my home simply because the government has failed to stabilize prices?
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Editor:
The Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) was approved by voters in 1992. Colorado voters approved a measure which amended Article X of the Colorado Constitution that restricts revenues for all levels of government (state, local and schools).
Under TABOR, state and local governments cannot raise tax rates without voter approval and cannot spend revenues collected under existing tax rates without voter approval. Revenue in excess of the TABOR limit, must be refunded to taxpayers. Under TABOR, the state has returned more than $2 billion to taxpayers.
For 32 years Colorado citizens have received a TABOR check with no conditional requirements. Last year, taxpayers received an $800 check for one qualifying taxpayer or $1,600 for two qualifying taxpayers filing jointly.
Today’s Colorado Department of Revenue’s web page states:
“Attention, please remember that you must claim the state sales tax refund (TABOR refund) when filing your state income tax return or Property Tax/Rent/Heat Rebate (PTC) Application. If you claimed a 2024 refund, the TABOR refund will be combined and issued with your tax refund. Unlike the 2022 Colorado cashback, no separate check will be issued.”
Now you, the taxpayer, must opt in your “Modified Adjusted Gross Income” from your Federal Tax Report to determine your TABOR refund. If you do not fill in lines 31 to 34 on your state 2024 Colorado individual income tax return form DR 0104, you will not receive a refund. No $800 or $1,600 checks this year. Continue reading
In the November, 2024 general election, Arapahoe County voters approved ballot issue 1A, removing spending limits imposed by the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). Moving forward, this means county government gets to keep and spend over-collected tax revenue that would have otherwise been refunded to taxpayers.
In other words, voters gave county commissioners what amounts to a tax hike, and now it’s time to keep them accountable for it.
As part of the ballot language, a provision was included that mandates all spending of this tax revenue windfall be transparently reported. Specifically, it requires that the new spending be included in the county’s annual independent audit, published on the county website and that it be monitored and reviewed by a “resident advisory committee.” That’s where you come in.
The county pushed ballot measure 1A as a way to fund existing services that they claimed were potentially going to be cut due to budget shortfalls. And while I understand the need for transparency of how this massive influx of money should be spent, we must also make sure the advisory committee is up to the task and doesn’t just become a rubber stamp for political agendas and new pet projects.
According to the county website, the job of the committee is to ensure that 1A funds “are being used in alignment with their intended purpose, advocating for proper stewardship of these resources.”
If you think you’re up to that task, you should consider applying. It’s a great opportunity to get involved in your community, while also holding your elected officials accountable to the taxpayers.
There are ten committee slots to be filled, with at least one from each county commission district. Members serve three-year terms, with a two-term maximum. And if you’ve ever thought about running for public office, this is a great way to get some local government experience under your belt first.
Arapahoe County voters gave up their TABOR refunds in perpetuity, now it’s time to ensure county commissioner honor that sacrifice and hold up their end of the bargain.
Kathleen Chandler is an Arapahoe County resident and directs the Citizen Involvement Project at the Independence Institute, a free market think tank in Denver. She can be reached by email at Kathleen@i2i.org.
Citizen watchdogs needed for Arapahoe County 1A tax windfall – Complete Colorado
Advance Colorado Executive Vice President Kristi Burton Brown gives a brief history and explanation of Colorado’s unique taxpayer protection: the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. This revenue cap limits the state government’s ability to spend taxpayer dollars and requires refunds to be sent to Coloradans when the government collects beyond the limit.
February 15, 2025
It has been half a century since Howard Jarvis launched the first property tax revolt with Prop 13 in California. Since then, forty-six states and the District of Columbia have enacted some form of property tax limitation. Some of these measures have proven to be effective, but others are poorly designed and ineffective.
It is not surprising that a new property tax revolt has been launched. Many property owners had sticker shock this year when they got their property tax bills. I am one of the unfortunate sods in Colorado who have seen the property tax on their homes more than double in recent years. Many less fortunate souls on fixed incomes have literally been taxed out of their homes.
The explanation for the discontinuous increase in property taxes today is the same as that during the first property tax revolt in the 1970s. In those years double-digit inflation was accompanied by discontinuous increases in property taxes. Inflation rates recently peaked at 9 percent and have remained well above the target inflation rates set by the Federal Reserve. Increased housing costs are one of the major contributors to this higher rate of inflation. Higher home prices today also reflect the expensive and time-consuming regulations imposed by state and local governments on home construction.
Even in a state such as Colorado, with an effective tax and expenditure limit, homeowners have not been protected from the ravages of inflation. Colorado has experienced one of the highest rates of increase in home prices in the nation. Colorado’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) limits the amount of property tax revenue that local governments can keep and spend. TABOR also requires voter approval for any new tax or increase in tax rates; but it does not cap the amount of property taxes that individual homeowners must pay. TABOR has not shielded homeowners from increased property taxes due to rising property values and other state and local measures designed to increase collections. The Colorado Legislature will hold a special session this year to address the problem of higher property tax burdens.
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