The upcoming vote on Colorado’s Referendum C is democracy in action. In other states, politicians can negotiate backroom deals and pass tax hikes without asking permission from the taxpayers. But thanks to the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, there is a public debate and the taxpayers have a seat at the table. The law established by TABOR says Colorado politicians must receive taxpayer approval to raise taxes. Colorado Democrats are working within these rules and asking voters to approve Referendum C in order to raise their taxes and increase government spending by billions of dollars.
Last spring, the Democrats who control the state House and Senate voted to force the Referendum C tax hike on the people. Since then, they have spent considerable energy arguing that it is not a tax hike. Their assertions are inaccurate, and not surprising, because politicians on both sides of the aisle know most voters do not like tax hikes.
If the people vote “no” on Referendum C, TABOR will stay the same and the government will keep no more tax dollars than it is currently allowed. If the people vote “yes,” TABOR will change and the government will collect and spend $3.7 billion more in taxes than is currently allowed. That’s a tax increase – no matter how much political spin supporters try to put on it.
While it is not debatable whether Referendum C is a tax hike, there are issues surrounding the measure over which reasonable people can disagree.
For instance, does the government deserve the money more than Colorado workers do? Does the government need it more than Colorado families do? Will the government do a better job spending the money than the workers will? Those supporting Referendum C would answer “yes” to these questions, and those opposing would say “no.”
These are the issues up for debate, and it is not surprising who is on which side of the argument. Joining the Colorado Democrats in the “vote yes” camp are the usual special-interest suspects, many of whom hope to benefit from more government largess. Public employee unions have signed on to support the hike, as have the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, the Colorado Progressive Coalition, far-left political groups, and many others who eat at the government trough. On the other side, those opposing the tax increase include most Republicans, many taxpayers and pro-taxpayer groups, and others in favor of keeping government within its fiscally responsible constitutional limits.
Both sides are running campaigns throughout the state, but thanks to TABOR, it will be the people who ultimately decide whether or not to pass the largest tax increase in Colorado’s history. One fact that is sure to help some vote “no” is that, as Colorado’s state treasurer in May pointed out, “total state spending never actually decreased in any year of the recession.” There is no Colorado budget crisis. In fact, the 2005-06 state budget is the largest in state history, with a 7 percent increase in appropriations to $15.2 billion. Under this budget, spending is up across the board, including K-12 education, where the general fund appropriation has grown by 12 percent since 2001. Some would like it to grow faster, which it certainly would do if Referendum C passed. Others think $15.2 billion is more than enough to run the state and the politicians should earn their state salaries by figuring out how to do so without taking any more taxes from Coloradans’ bank accounts.
Still more will find themselves in the “vote no” camp because they do not want to raise taxes by nearly $4 billion when there is no revenue shortfall this year. Next year, the proposed budget of $15.2 billion calls for $200 million more in spending than is expected in revenue – that is the shortfall we keep hearing about. One elected official, Rep. Bob Beauprez, expressed concern over this giant tax increase for this small shortfall saying, “Referendum C is to our budget problems what a chainsaw would be to brain surgery – a blunt instrument for a delicate job.”
I agree, the largest tax hike in state history is not the right answer.
To increase taxes, supporters of Referendum C will need to convince the people that the government’s need for hard-earned dollars is greater than their own. In a state where more than 70 percent of the people like the safety of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, that is going to be a very difficult task.
Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey is chairman of FreedomWorks, a nationwide grassroots organization with more than 6,000 members in Colorado and 700,000 nationwide.
