Colorado ballot measure would let state keep more tax money for education
Colorado public schools could get a funding boost under a ballot measure lawmakers will consider referring this year.
The measure would raise the cap on how much revenue the state can keep and spend under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. The increase would be tied to how much the state spends on education through its general fund, which is now about $4.5 billion. The measure is backed by the Colorado Education Association, a teachers union.
“For more than 30 years, an outdated and arbitrary revenue cap has kept our state funding tied up so tightly that we can’t invest in public education and keep up with student needs,” CEA President Kevin Vick said during a press conference Thursday on the steps of the Colorado Capitol. “Even when Colorado’s economy is strong, this cap blocks the state from using money it already collects for K-12 education.”
The state is required to refund money it collects over the TABOR cap to taxpayers through a variety of mechanisms. In recent years, it has sent direct checks to people and issued various tax credits, but under the proposed measure that money would go to education instead of back to taxpayers.
https://coloradonewsline.com/briefs/colorado-ballot-measure-education/