GUEST COLUMN: Don’t be fooled — vote ‘no’ on Prop HH
It is unfortunate that the governor and legislative Democrats failed to fully engage in any conversations about the potential solutions to the property tax issue facing hard-working Colorado families who are struggling to make ends meet. The ballot measure, Proposition HH, that Coloradans are being asked to vote on in November 2023 was rushed, with very limited discussion of its true impacts.
The state Legislature could have simply lowered the state assessment rate, and you could be paying less than you did last year in property taxes. The governor and the Democrats chose not to do that. Instead, they gave you Proposition HH, which will lower your assessment rates by .095%. Yes, take that in. .095%. Not even close to enough for most Colorado families to buy school supplies. (According to the National Retail Federation, the average to be spent on school supplies including clothes, is $890.07 per child.)
In return for their dishonest scheme, it is estimated in a study by the Common Sense Institute that taxpayers will give up over $5,000 of their Taxpayers’ Bill of Rights (TABOR) refunds over the next 10 years alone. Remember the check you received in the mail last year, right before the election, signed by the governor? Yes, that check. Gone. Forever. With just one vote.