A TABOR fan emailed us:
“Lakewood city council wants to keep the $12 million due back to the taxpayers. Stealing is still illegal right?,”
Our President responded, “What was the source of the $12 million?
If collected by the City, what circumstances would it be due back to the taxpayers? Over-collection (that is above the TABOR limit) or something else?”
The response was, “It was on the channel 8 Lakewood City Council meeting last night. Over collection.”
Our response is as follows,
“You asked about a week ago if the TABOR Committee would look into the potential diversion of funds by the City of Lakewood.
Thank you for calling our attention to the situation. I was unaware of how full the tax coffers have become and of the potential for a tax increase. I turned to former City Councilman Doug Anderson and he did the research on our behalf. He learned that the City expects to collect $12 million above its TABOR limit for the year. The City Manager also informed him that a ballot issue was likely.
The City Council has two options under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. It can rebate the over-collection or it can obtain voter approval for retaining the funds. The TABOR Committee is not prepared to charge the City with theft, as the deadline for placing the question on the ballot will not pass until late August. The broad statement that “all taxation is theft” may be what you are referring to, but that is too strong a position for most Lakewood citizens. If people let the City know that they expect elected leaders to follow the state constitution, then TABOR anticipates the option of the City keeping the money, with voter approval. The TABOR organizations have sued in the past when governments ignore TABOR, but we hope that won’t be necessary if the City conforms to the TABOR requirement. I personally don’t want the City to keep the extra taxes, but the TABOR Committee must wait until the City is in violation before we would charge it with diverting funds.
I suspect that you already are engaged in the opposition, and I applaud the growing grassroots movement to have the City simply decide to rebate the extra taxes, or if Council goes to a ballot measure, to defeat the request. I have seen emails from Dave Wiechman to that effect and I hope that you and Doug Anderson are communicating too.
Thanks for your concern and efforts on behalf of limited government in Lakewood,
Penn Pfiffner
Chairman, TABOR Committee
303-233-7731″
We would like our tax money returned too.
The money should be used by Lakewood to benefit all citizens. The refund I receive won’t be enough to make much of a difference in my finances. But using all the money in a way that helps the city provide needed services can make a bigger difference for everyone. Fire and police protection, improvements to teacher pay or repairs to schools, mosquito abatement, etc. — wherever it is needed most — all are reasonable benefits for our entire community.
Let’s let the city keep the money and use it beneficially.
I want and need the additional taxes collected refunded. It’s the right thing to do for the citizens of Lakewood
I believe it is pretty clear that the city is looking for a blank check (no payee) for $12 million dollars. It doesn’t matter what is proposed on the ballot; it is very unlikely the city will be legally bound to a specific use of our money. The city is permitted to keep more tax dollars every year that the cost of living goes up and the populations grows. This $12 million dollars is over and above that increase. Please allow families to reclaim the $300 (on average) that they overpaid this year. Vote ‘No’ to letting the city keep our tax refunds.
Where does the tax overpayment come from?