Low Road:  TABOR -- A Taxpayer Bill of Wrongs

Citizens for a Sound Economy (CSE) is currently pushing the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) in Tennessee, Maine, Oregon, Wisconsin, and New Hampshire. 

In 1992 Colorado voters passed TABOR, and CSE Chairman Dick Armey claims the state is a success story and a model for the nation.  In reality, the impact of TABOR on Colorado was devastating, but there’s no reason to let the facts get in the way of a political argument.

Right now, Colorado lawmakers are considering a Billion-Dollar Bailout from TABOR, citizens are suing the state because legislators are trying to sidestep constitutional spending requirements, and two out of three people in Colorado want to Change TABOR and renew state services.  Papers like The Denver Post are saying TABOR just doesn’t make economic sense.

State Sen. Ron Tupa made it clear:  "The TABOR amendment is truly a disaster. It’s a disaster for the state of  Colorado."  Click here for talking points on the disaster known as TABOR.

Colorado Under TABOR

TABOR was Devastating to Economic Development in Colorado

       Colorado had a growing list of highway projects that had not been funded

       Colorado has lost more jobs in this recession than any but 3 other states. 

       In 2002, the per-capita income in Colorado fell faster than in any other state. 

       Unemployment in Colorado has more than doubled since 2000. (The annual unemployment rate in Colorado was 2.8% in 2000 and went up each year to reach 6.0% in 2003.)

       Even since the start of the recovery, only 4 states have lost a larger share of employment than Colorado, which lost 18,000 jobs in 2003 alone.

TABOR was Devastating to Health Care in Colorado

             Colorado spent less than most other states on public health

             Colorado was below the national average in immunization rates

             Colorado was at the bottom in prenatal care

             Colorado had the highest rate of uninsured low-income children in the nation

TABOR was Simply Devastating to Colorado

       The Bill resulted in a downgrade of Colorado bond rating, and analysts specifically blame TABOR for making the fiscal crisis worse.

       In a pair of studies in 1999, Governing Magazine ranked Colorado's finances as among the worst managed in the country, again due to TABOR.

       Colorado ranked almost last in state investment in the arts

       Colorado's 38 state parks in a bind, exemplifying how spending restrictions in TABOR harm state services in visible, physical ways.

Click here for more on Colorado after TABOR.

TABOR is Bad for Education

TABOR’s Impact on Colorado Schools:

       By 2000, the state had fallen to a ranking of 50th in K-12 spending per $1000 of personal income

       Colorado was almost the last among states in high school graduation rates

       Per pupil funding in Colorado is still $700 below the national average.

       The Colorado Children's Campaign reported the state ranks last in sending disadvantaged kids to college.

       Not coincidentally, Colorado also ranks dead last in the percentage of state wealth devoted to public schools.

       State Rep. Brad Young, Chairman of the Joint Budget Committee, said a 40% tuition spike "is an awful lot", claiming the increase highlights the need to amend the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. 

       It gets worse:  School district are considering charging for kindergarten, state newspapers claim the Capitol hasn't learned lesson on schools, the University worried about a budget storm that was predicted, and residents are left wondering if the University would survive until a TABOR amendment could be passed?

Whoops!  “Time out.” 

What Republican Lawmakers are Saying about TABOR:

"Let's take a timeout from TABOR . . ."

-Colorado Gov. Bill Owens to business leaders.

“I think [Owen’s Idea] is a simple approach, a good one.  It would give us the money to get us back to a 6 percent spending limit and dig us out of this hole."

-Sen. Dave Owen, R-Greeley, vice chairman of the Joint Budget Committee

"Really it's become almost a crisis.  This year we are budgeting for next year. We have to cut approximately $90 million from next year's budget and at the same time we are going to refund $40 million in TABOR. It simply doesn't make any sense."

-Republican Rep. Joe Stengel of Littleton.

"It's a disaster in the next few years if we can't come up with a solution."

-Rep. Brad Young, the Lamar Republican who chairs the budget committee, commenting on potential ballot issues are under consideration to relax the restrictions in TABOR so Colorado can lower its deficit.

"Our constitution is losing relevancy.  There will undoubtedly be conflicts put into the constitution by the voters with various well-meaning initiatives that seem right at the time but will inevitably come into conflict, (as) we've seen with (Amendment) 23 and TABOR."

-Rep. Al White, R-Winter Park

“To continue to cut the higher education budget makes no sense.  What are we going to do when our kids graduate from high school and can’t afford to go to college or won’t go because it has deteriorated so badly?”

-Rep. Nancy Spence, R-Centennial

More Republicans Call “Time Out”. . .

Rep. Keith King, R-Colorado Springs, has proposed a measure to increase the TABOR limit by $350 million a year and lower the corresponding TABOR refund

Senate President John Andrews lobbied to retain $350 million above the amount that TABOR would otherwise allow the state to spend. 

 Republican Governor Owens' offering would ask voters to retain an extra $100 million in revenue above existing TABOR limits for two years while trimming K-12 spending by $100 million in each of the same two years.

Click here to see more Comments about TABOR from Colorado.

Cities and Counties Oppose TABOR

Minnesota cities oppose the “Taxpayers Bill of Rights” (TABOR). Click here to see their Talking Points against TABOR

Council Members Blasts Taxpayer’s League -- Councilmember Bob Zagaros called TABOR a “solution in search of a problem,” and said that if TABOR is passed, city councils might as well be eliminated and only have elected officials at the county level.

City officials oppose legislation proposals -- TABOR would mandate that government be run by formula rather than through thoughtful, deliberative process designed to ensure public policy issues are fully explored and considered.

According to Phyllis Resnick from the Tax Center at the University of Denver, many companies consider Colorado "a nightmare to do business with" because of variable tax rates between counties.

View the Model Anti-Tabor Resolution for cities.

More TABOR Resources

The Oregon Center for Public Policy recently released an issue brief What is TABOR?, which explains the major provisions of the so-called taxpayer’s bill of rights in Colorado.

Colorado's Fiscal Problems are Severe and Likely to Continue with TABOR.  This new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (co-written with Jim Zelenski & Carol Hedges) debunks some myths about TABOR and tells the real story of how Colorado's faring after a decade of living with the most restrictive tax and expenditure limit in the country.

Updated TABOR Fact Sheet (March 2004) - Just the facts, nothing but the facts.

Summary of Legislative Proposals to Amend TABOR (March 9, 2004) - A brief analysis of the concurrent resolutions introduced to date to amend TABOR.

TABOR: A Brief Outline (Jan 04) This clear and accessible paper provides a skeletal outline of the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. It defines key terms, sections and challenges, including the ratchet effect.

Dr. No and the Spectre of ALEC covers the Ghostwriting of State Legislation, including TABOR in Wisconsin.

For more Resources on TABOR, click here.

TABOR Quote of the Month

Ramming TABOR -- Wisconsin Speaker John Gard, R-Peshtigo, addressing the Marinette County Board on TABOR:  "Don't close your mind and say 'no' to it.  Let's see what the proposal is.  If we wanted to ram it down your throat, we would have done it two months ago."

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