Colorado voters have once again rejected the Democrats' attempt to increase government spending and violate taxpayers' rights. Proposition HH, a measure proposed by Gov. Jared Polis and backed by legislative Democrats, was soundly defeated on Tuesday night by a 20-point margin.

Out of nearly 1.4 million votes, more than 60% of Coloradans rejected HH, dealing a major blow to the left's agenda. The Associated Press called the defeat shortly after voting ended, leaving little hope for its supporters. This marks the second time in four years that voters have rejected Democratic attempts to raise spending limits under the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights (TABOR).

The results were a clear message to the governor and legislature that taxpayers want clean property tax relief and oppose any attempt to circumvent TABOR. Michael Fields, president of the policy arm of Advance Colorado, a group advocating for fiscal conservatism, declared the results a victory for the people of Colorado.

Backers of HH have conceded defeat, with top Senate Democrat Steve Fenberg blaming a "misinformation slogan campaign by the far right" for its failure. But the truth is, HH was a complex and convoluted measure that left many voters confused and conflicted. This was a deliberate tactic by its supporters to sneakily increase government spending and meddle in local affairs.

But thanks to the strong opposition from conservatives and local government associations, including those who feared loss of funding for essential services, HH was rejected by the majority of Colorado voters.

Michael Fields, the president of the Advance Colorado Institute, hailed it as a "big win for TABOR," referring to the state's Taxpayer's Bill of Rights.

“Voters clearly saw through the legislature’s tax scheme intended to take more of their hard-earned money by historically increasing taxes.” Colorado House Minority Leader Rep. Mike Lynch said. “Republicans continue to ask that we and the Governor correct this fixable property tax mess now. Don’t make Coloradans wait any longer. The Governor has my phone number. I’ll be waiting for his call.”

The question now is whether Democrats will heed the message sent by voters and call a special session to provide clean property tax relief before people begin receiving their bills next year. But given the lack of a backup plan and Governor Polis's reluctance to consider alternative approaches, it seems unlikely.

Republicans, who sit at a historic low in the State Capitol, have been calling for a special session to address property taxes for months, but their pleas have fallen on deaf ears. Even when the governor was asked for a "Plan B" in case HH failed, he rejected the idea.

Property taxes have been a contentious issue in Colorado, with counties reporting skyrocketing increases of up to 60% since the repeal of the Gallagher amendment in 2020. However, Democratic lawmakers only took action in the 2023 session, waiting until the final three days to hastily push through the controversial ballot measure and accompanying TABOR refund legislation.

More surprising than the fact that Proposition HH lost maybe that it wasn’t even close. Voters resoundingly shot down the governor’s complicated property tax scheme that involved Coloradans trading their refunds for a slight temporary cut in their tax bill.

For a politician that has a long history of being politically savvy and tuned into voters, this follows a growing list of recent losses for Governor Polis that includes affordable housing legislation, and a string gun bills from last session.

It almost appears, when a win should be the easiest, with large majorities in both chambers, his own party’s infighting gets in the way of Polis’ certain victory.

READ MORE:

• ‘YES ON PROP HH’ CAMPAIGN CAUGHT FIBBING

• PROP HH FAILS THE TRUTH TEST

• PROP HH HURTS SECOND HOME INVESTORS

• WALL STREET JOURNAL WARNS COLORADANS ABOUT HIDDEN TAX HIKES IN PROP HH

• NEW POLL SHOWS COLORADANS TRUST LOCAL GOVERNMENTS TO SOLVE ATTAINABLE HOUSING ISSUES

In the end, Colorado voters have once again shown their commitment to fiscal responsibility and sound government policies. And with Republican lawmakers already proposing alternative solutions, it is clear that the defeat of Proposition HH was a victory for all taxpayers in the state.