What the Colorado legislature passed during the special session and how it will affect your pocketbook
Colorado lawmakers passed a series of bills during a four-day special session that should have been aimed at addressing property tax reform. After the overwhelming defeat of Gov. Jared Polis' ambitious tax plan, Proposition HH, Democrats were quick to call a special session to tackle the pressing issue of rising property taxes.
It’s unfortunate that legislators concluded their special session without producing real property tax reform for Colorado homeowners – though the Democrats did produce much drama and legislation that won’t be popular with everyone.
On Monday, the Colorado General Assembly successfully passed seven bills and the governor has signed them all.
Homeowners can expect to see an average savings of $200 on their property tax bills come April. This relief is made possible by a reduction in the residential assessment rate and an increase in the tax exemption for homeowners.
However, the Democrats' approach to addressing property tax reform has been met with opposition from Republicans who argue that it is only a temporary solution and does not provide long-term relief for Colorado's cost of living crisis. These concerns were not addressed by the majority party, who instead chose to focus on redistributing funds to low-income workers and providing rental assistance.
"Saving Coloradans money and reducing their tax burdens should have been the No. 1 priority for this special session,” said Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, a Republican from Brighton. “Instead, it looks like the Democrats and Governor Polis used this as an opportunity to score some political points. Our bill was a real and honest solution that would have given the people of Colorado the tax relief they need.”
Under the new legislation, those earning less than $104,000 per year can expect a larger Taxpayer's Bill of Rights refund next year, while higher earners will see a decrease in their refund. To provide immediate relief, lawmakers also approved $30 million for emergency rental assistance and expanded the Earned Income Tax Credit for low-income working families that came out of the general fund and TABOR refunds.
The legislature also created another level of government, a bipartisan task force intended to work towards finding a long-term solution to the state's property tax issues. The panel, which includes state lawmakers, local elected officials, and representatives from various industries, is set to present its findings to the governor and legislature by mid-March and may even propose a constitutional amendment to address the issue on the 2024 ballot.
Some additional highlights… A pro-Palestinian protest also disrupted the session and a Democratic lawmaker, who was already called out of order earlier, joined the demonstrators who called for a “ceasefire” in the House gallery, prompting her colleagues, both Democrat and Republican, to stand behind the Colorado General Assembly’s lone Republican Jewish lawmaker.
On the last day, despite warnings from House leadership, Rep. Epps continued to disrupt the legislative process with her ongoing rants. Finally, she left the floor to join pro-Palestinian protesters in the gallery to heckle the only Republican Jewish member of the House, Rep. Ron Weinberg.
Epps ignored pleas from her leadership and the Black Caucus to come back to the floor. Instead, the abolitionist performed for spectators with a flurry of colorful language.
Under Senate Bill 23B-003, individual tax filers, regardless of income, will receive $847, while joint filers will receive $1,694. The TABOR refund for the 2023 tax year will be paid with the 2024 tax filing.
Republicans called the approach wealth redistribution and warned it could drive away wealthy Coloradans and the jobs they produce. Democrats insisted that wealthy taxpayers did not need the refunds and that more of those dollars should go to low-income residents.
The checks will be $800 for single tax filers and $1,600 for joint tax filers.
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Schools will be reimbursed for all the money they would have gotten had the legislature not exempted $55,000 of a home’s value from taxation and reduced the residential assessment rate. That totals about $145 million.
Counties, cities and other local agencies like water districts and libraries will only receive state assistance if their local property values are increasing by less than 15%. Even then, the reimbursements may be only partial.
This special session was a clear example of the Democratic majority's refusal to work with Republicans in a bipartisan manner.
In about 50 days or so, lawmakers will return to the Capitol for the regular session -- some a little for wear.