From Face The State today:While Gov. Bill Ritter has eagerly insisted that he will appeal a Friday court ruling establishing that a mill levy freeze amounts to an unconstitutional tax increase under Colorado law, members of the state Board of Education, a defendant in the case, remain undecided about whether they will formally join in support of Ritter's challenge. It appears the District Court ruling may have emboldened the two Republicans on the State Board to change their mind. The Board meets in executive session tomorrow:Vice Chairman Bob Schaffer, R-Fort Collins, introduced in April a motion for the board to take a formal position, by way of public vote, on whether the department would “defend the lawsuit or [agree with] the … [Read more...]
Search Results for: property tax increase
Democrats Still Not Owning Up to Property Tax Increase
Leading Colorado Democrats still don't seem to understand how property owners paying a higher tax rate constitutes a tax increase, even though the new law signed by Democrat Gov. Bill Ritter will raise $114 million in new tax revenue: But Rep. Jack Pommer, D-Boulder, who sponsored the House version of the school-finance bill, said Gardner doesn't understand how the law works. "It's not a tax increase," he said. " . . . The money that comes from the school district never leaves the school district." He said the money was not going to the state budget and that all the local school districts affected by the law had held a vote to exempt themselves from the TABOR limits to keep the property tax revenues. How else can Democrats justify … [Read more...]
Consequences of Supporting a Property Tax Increase
What happens when you vote to jam a property tax hike down your constituents' throats? People from the other major party can't move fast enough to file the paperwork that will enable them to run against you in the next election. Just ask Rep. Bernie Buescher, D-Grand Junction: Between six and 10 local Republicans are considering a run against incumbent Rep. Bernie Buescher, D-Grand Junction, next year, according to senior members of the Mesa County Republican Party. Alan Farina, chairman of the candidate search committee, said his committee has attracted a series of serious candidates who could run against the two-term incumbent next year. “We actually have several people expressing interest,†Farina said, “some really, really … [Read more...]
Heath: “Grand Bargain” K-12 Tax Hike “Beginning to Take a Bite” from Elephant
Imagine sitting down to write a term paper or thesis, then releasing the first draft of the paper not only to your professor but to a worldwide audience. Now imagine your paper contains instructions for allocating billions of tax dollars to a bunch of different groups. You can start to understand what Colorado state senator Michael Johnston (D-Denver) feels like after releasing a draft of legislation to rewrite the state's 19-year-old School Finance Act. In the funny game of democratic politics, is it better to make a bold push in one direction, or to try to bring diverse interests together around a "Grand Bargain"? When it comes to Johnston's monumental effort, the question is being played out before our eyes. The idea is to tie "bold" … [Read more...]
Once Proud Freedom-Loving Gazette Backs Colorado Springs Tax Hike
Last week I pointed out that financial concerns might end up pushing the Colorado Springs Gazette to abandon its longstanding position as a beacon of limited government, personal liberty, and fiscal sanity. Well, buckle up, because it's started happening really quickly. Witness today's Gazette editorial co-signed by publisher Steven Pope and John Weiss, publisher of the Lefty Colorado Springs Independent, pulling out the big scare to support a tax hike on the city's ballot. However, it's not clear the new Gazette management has considered all of the implications of the property tax increase (H/T Sean Paige). If the Gazette losing its independent, libertarian voice concerns you in the least, now is the time to speak up. … [Read more...]
Rossputin: Bill Ritter’s Transparent Try to Set Stage for Another Tax Hike
When I recently pointed out Governor Bill Ritter's public proclamation in favor of transparency, this wasn't the kind of transparency I was talking about. Rossputin explains:There's a reason that the first thing Ritter is proposing to do is cut education and prison funding, and "temporarily" suspend the homestead exemption which lowers property tax for many senior citizens, and it's the oldest liberal trick in the book: He's setting the stage for a tax increase proposal "for the children" and with the specter of violent felons roaming the streets unless we go along. Well, it's time to just say no to more liberal government expansion. Yes, Bill Ritter's announcement should make it rather transparent that he and the Democrats are … [Read more...]
Questions Linger as Colorado Supremes Sit on Ritter Tax Hike Decision
The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) and Governor Bill Ritter are defendants in a case filed by the Independence Institute (disclosure: where I work) and numerous aggrieved taxpayers over a 2007 law that raised property taxes without a proper vote of the people, as required by the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. Denver District Court Judge Christine Habas came down on the side of the people nearly seven months ago, but the Colorado Supreme Court has been silent since - despite reasonable expectations that critical tax revenue issues be addressed in a timely manner. As Face The State reports, CDE needs the Supreme Court to "hurry up":In June, Ritter, a defendant alongside CDE, appealed the decision to the state's highest court. Oral … [Read more...]
Jeffco School Tax Hike to Kick Granny Out, Create “Socialist Utopia”?
Update: The story has been picked up in the Denver Post. Conservative activist Tom Graham of Arvada is the culprit. Not the best tactical approach from my point of view. Why? Because now we have to watch and make sure that government public relations teams don't make Mr. Graham the election issue instead of the burdensome tax hike. Also, a copy of the booklet is viewable online. Voters in Jefferson County, have you seen the official published arguments for Jeffco Schools 3A, a $34 million-per-year property tax increase to fund Colorado's largest school district? I looked in vain for a copy of the voter booklet on the Jefferson County Elections Office web page, but little Eddie has helped us out by typing out a copy and providing his own … [Read more...]
Bill Ritter’s Property Tax Hike May Work Against Funding Aurora Schools
The Denver Post reports good news from Aurora - with a catch:The Aurora school district and its teachers union have reached an agreement on a new contract that calls for a 2 percent increase in pay for all employees this coming school year. But there's a hitch: The school board must agree to put a property-tax hike on the November ballot to fund it and voters must approve it or else there will be no raises. Aurora Public Schools hasn't asked for a mill levy increase since 1990 but feels that is the only way it can fund salary increases for the 2008-09 school year, said chief personnel officer Kari Allen. The timing isn't good. School property taxes for Aurora homeowners and business owners already increased about 6 percent this … [Read more...]
Bill Ritter, Tax Increases, Unions, and the Colorado Supreme Court
With a little shameless self-promotion, I tie it all together on the longest day of the calendar year. First, news broke earlier this week that Gov. Bill Ritter has done the inevitable, by agreeing to appeal a district court ruling that came to the clear and appropriate conclusion that Ritter erred in raising school property taxes without voter permission. Sure, I could link to lots of articles that highlight this news, but only the one in the Denver Daily News quotes the author of this blog:"I believe the district court judge did the right thing by recognizing that Colorado voters should be asked before they endure a tax increase," said Ben DeGrow, a policy analyst at the Independence Institute. "It's simply a matter of honoring the … [Read more...]
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