{"id":36361,"date":"2023-01-11T11:09:59","date_gmt":"2023-01-11T18:09:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/colorado-voters-may-be-asked-to-forgo-their-future-tabor-refunds-so-the-state-can-boost-school-funding\/"},"modified":"2023-01-11T18:09:59","modified_gmt":"2023-01-11T18:09:59","slug":"colorado-voters-may-be-asked-to-forgo-their-future-tabor-refunds-so-the-state-can-boost-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/colorado-voters-may-be-asked-to-forgo-their-future-tabor-refunds-so-the-state-can-boost-school\/","title":{"rendered":"Colorado voters may be asked to forgo their future TABOR refunds so the state can boost school funding"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Annie
Annie Friesema teaches high school students in a dual enrollment class on early childhood education on Sept. 14, 2022, at the Roy J. Wasson Academic Campus in Colorado Springs. (Olivia Sun\/The Colorado Sun via Report for America)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The Colorado legislature will debate a bill this year that would ask voters in November to waive their future Taxpayer\u2019s Bill of Rights refunds and earmark the money, potentially billions of dollars each year, to public education.<\/p>\n

The forthcoming measure, sponsored by state Rep. Cathy Kipp, a Fort Collins Democrat and former Poudre School District board member, and state Sen. Rachel Zenzinger, an Arvada Democrat who has worked as a teacher, is sure to face pushback from Republicans, who are fierce defenders of TABOR refunds. There could also possibly be opposition from some fellow Democrats, including Gov. Jared Polis, who would like to see the money spent elsewhere<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to pay our teachers,\u201d Kipp said. \u201cWe need to fund our schools. We do not fund our public schools adequately. TABOR is a part of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

TABOR requires voter approval for all tax increases in Colorado and it also caps government growth and spending, mandating that tax revenue collected in excess of the cap be refunded to taxpayers. In the case of state government, the legislature decides how the refunds are distributed. Last year, Coloradans were mailed checks of $750 or $1,500<\/a> after the state collected more than $3 billion over<\/a> what the cap allowed.<\/p>\n

The TABOR cap is forecast to be exceeded in the current fiscal year, which began July 1, by more than $2 billion. That money also would have to be refunded to taxpayers.<\/p>\n

But TABOR also lets local governments and the state ask taxpayers to eliminate the cap so that they can keep the excess revenue. In 2019, voters rejected Proposition CC<\/a>, which would have let the state keep TABOR surplus. The measure failed by 8 percentage points.<\/p>\n

Since TABOR surplus can vary from year to year \u2013 in some years there may be no surplus at all \u2013 Kipp calls her bill a \u201cBand-Aid\u201d until Colorado comes up with a dedicated funding source for schools, which would likely be through a tax increase.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not long-term sustainable funding,\u201d Kipp said. \u201cBut I joined the legislature so we could figure out how to properly fund our public schools. I am looking for solutions. And this is one of them \u2013 potentially.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zenzinger said the idea stems from a proposal from Great Education Colorado, a group that advocates for more funding for schools.<\/p>\n

Kipp said that if a long-term, sustainable funding source for schools is identified, the legislature could vote in the future to repeal the TABOR surplus school funding mechanism.<\/p>\n

The legislature is supposed to increase annual per pupil funding at the rate of inflation under Amendment 23<\/a>, a measure passed by voters in 2000. But in the wake of the Great Recession, state lawmakers in 2010 adopted the budget stabilization factor<\/a> \u2013 sometimes also referred to as the negative factor \u2013 which allows the General Assembly to allocate to schools each year less than what they are owed. The I.O.U. persists today.<\/p>\n

Additionally, teacher pay has been a persistent area of complaint in Colorado<\/a>, with districts recently struggling to attract and retain educators.<\/p>\n

Republicans and conservative groups are already lining up against Kipp\u2019s proposal.<\/p>\n

State Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, a Brighton Republican, said the legislature should shift its funding priorities and send more money to schools rather than ask voters to waive their TABOR refunds.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we should follow the Constitution and fund it like we\u2019re supposed to,\u201d she said. \u201cNot with TABOR refund dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n

Michael Fields, a conservative fiscal activist with the political nonprofit Advance Colorado Institute, said the legislature has already invested more money in schools.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe problem is that not enough of that money is going to teacher pay. We need better outcomes and more accountability with the billions of dollars we are already spending on education,\u201d he said. \u201cWith the cost of living higher than ever, Colorado families want their TABOR refund checks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Polis said in November that he wants a TABOR surplus to be used to drive down Colorado\u2019s income tax rate<\/a>. He supported Proposition CC in 2019, but since then hasn\u2019t publicly advocated for the state to ask voters again to keep TABOR surplus. Since Kipp\u2019s bill would be a referred measure, Polis\u2019 signature on the measure wouldn\u2019t be needed and thus he couldn\u2019t veto it. It would only need a simple majority to pass, and Democrats control both the House and Senate by wide margins.<\/p>\n

Kipp and other Democrats who support the legislation, which is expected to be introduced as soon as this week, will also likely be called hypocrites since they celebrated TABOR refunds<\/a> last year ahead of the November election. Polis held multiple news conferences during which he enthusiastically publicized the checks Colorado sent to taxpayers.<\/p>\n

Kipp even voted for a bill the legislature passed in 2022 facilitating the refunds and making them a flat rate opposed to being tied to income levels as prescribed in law. The bill also prompted the state to pay out the checks in August and September rather than in April 2023, which is when they would normally be distributed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a one-time, equitable distribution of the refund,\u201d she said, highlighting how TABOR refund checks have generally been much smaller if they even happen at all. \u201cPeople generally get very small amounts of money back. And what could we do with all that money if we put it together? We could do a lot of good things for public education. That\u2019s what we\u2019re trying to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kipp\u2019s bill wouldn\u2019t affect the TABOR surplus used to reimburse local governments for any property tax exemptions claimed by local seniors and disabled veterans. It also wouldn\u2019t touch the roughly $300 million in TABOR surplus set aside each year for affordable housing by Proposition 123<\/a>, which voters approved Nov. 8.<\/p>\n

The Colorado Sun is a reader-supported, nonpartisan news organization dedicated to covering Colorado issues. To learn more, go to coloradosun.com<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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