TABOR is Anti-Education

A 40 percent tuition spike "is an awful lot",and it highlights the need to amend the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights, which imposes rigid spending and revenue controls on the state's budget makers.

                     -State Rep. Brad Young, R-Lamar and chairman of the JBC

TABOR Impact on Education:

• By 2000, Colorado 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 lastin the percentage of state wealth devoted to public schools.

The State of Education in Colorado after TABOR:

School district considers charging for kindergarten

Aspen School District officials are considering serious measures to balance the budget, including the possibility of charging parents for kindergarten. The 1991 TABOR (Taxpayer Bill of Rights) amendment to the state constitution, which restricted increases in public spending to the rate of inflation plus growth, has hampered education spending, according to Superintendent Sirko.

Capitol hasn't learned lesson on schools

All over the state, schools would be laying off teachers, eliminating programs, increasing class sizes, cutting textbook budgets. This would come on top of a decade of defunding public education in the 1990s. Three years after voters passed Amendment 23 with 70,000 more votes than were cast for TABOR, per pupil funding in Colorado is still $700 below the national average. The Colorado Children's Campaign reported that we rank 35th in high-school graduation rates and last in sending disadvantaged kids to college. Not coincidentally, we also rank dead last in the percentage of state wealth devoted to public schools.

Budget storm predicted

TABOR must either be repealed or amended to release higher education from its umbrella and allow the state to save money for a rainy day.

Can CU survive until a TABOR amendment?

Under TABOR, tuition funds are currently counted as state revenue, which limits the ability of colleges and universities to leverage their cash funds. CU will need, on average, a 13 percent resident student tuition increase next year to make up for the $27 million.

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