RUNNING TO THE LEFT: Hickenlooper Announces Support For Impending $1 Billion Tax Hike Campaign

Published on May 22, 2013 by

Democrats applaud Hickenlooper for signing SB213, the bill attached to the impending $1 billion tax hike campaign

In a sign Governor Hickenlooper has all but abandoned any hope at retaining his moderate political brand, yesterday he announced his support for an impending $1 billion tax hike campaign.

Reports The Durango Herald‘s Joe Hanel at the bottom of a piece about Hickenlooper signing the attached SB213:

Hickenlooper pledged Tuesday to campaign for the tax increase once the sponsors pick a single initiative.

This, folks, is big news. In 2011, Hickenlooper steadfastly refused to take a public position on the Prop 103 tax hike ballot initiative, earning the derisive nickname “Chickenlooper.”

Currently tax hike proponents are deciding between raising taxes through increasing the flat tax rate, or creating a graduated system, with higher incomes being taxed at an even higher rate.

The fact that Hickenlooper has already agreed to back the billion dollar tax increase, without even knowing what form it wil take, is a risky move.

A recent poll that purposely over-sampled Democrats found that voters strongly oppose a tax increase, no matter what form it takes.

From our post on the poll:

Magellan polled 675 respondents from April 24-25 and found an overwhelming opposition to income tax hikes, with 55% of respondents opposed to the idea of raising the state income tax from 4.63% to 5.35% to only 36% supportive of the idea.

When asking about a graduated income tax hike, with those making less than $75,000 seeing their taxes go up 1%, while those making over $75,000 would see a 3% hike, the opposition increased slightly with 56% opposed and 35% in support.

We honestly can’t think of a single ballot initiative in Colorado history that started at 36% support to 55% opposition that succeeded in the end.

In a still fragile economy, voters simply aren’t willing to hand over more cash to the government.

With Hickenlooper’s approval rating already underwater with independents, this certainly can’t help his political standing.

 

GIVE IT UP, MIKEY: Statewide Poll Shows No Appetite For Tax Hike In 2013

Published on May 6, 2013 by

State Senator Mike Johnston, the better looking version of failed Prop 103 tax hike leader Rollie Heath, is pushing a $1.1 BILLION dollar tax increase for the ballot this year. A new survey by Magellan Strategies indicates Mikey would be better off staying at home than wasting his time pushing a tax hike when Colorado voters have no intention of supporting it.

Magellan polled 675 respondents from April 24-25 and found an overwhelming opposition to income tax hikes, with 55% of respondents opposed to the idea of raising the state income tax from 4.63% to 5.35% to only 36% supportive of the idea.

When asking about a graduated income tax hike, with those making less than $75,000 seeing their taxes go up 1%, while those making over $75,000 would see a 3% hike, the opposition increased slightly with 56% opposed and 35% in support.

Those results are close to the last tax hike attempt in Colorado, Prop 103 in 2011. That ballot initiative lost 2-1 across the state — a crushing defeat for Rollie Heath and his team.

Based on Magellan’s survey, it doesn’t look like this year’s tax hike attempt will fair much better.

The poll had a margin of error of +/- 3.77%. The sample reflected the conservative leanings of odd year elections — historically low turnout affairs — with 39% Republican, 36% Democrat and 25% Unaffiliated. It used a combination of cell phones and landlines to reach respondents.

There was a bright spot in the poll for tax hikers — people are positive about the general idea of raising taxes for education 50%-43%. The problem for the tax hike set is that as soon as you ask about specific proposals, the bottom falls out.

It seems people like the idea of spending more money on education — as long as it’s someone else’s.

Long live TABOR!

UPDATE: An interesting note from the polling memo: The sample used is slightly more Democratic in its makeup than previous off-year elections, giving the pro-tax hike side a slight bump. And they are still getting crushed. See the partisan makeup of the electorate in 2009 and 2011 below:

 

PeakFeed: What Will The Proposed $1 Billion Tax Hike Get You?

Published on April 24, 2013 by

Legislative Democrats are pushing a billion dollar tax hike this fall that is connected to the education bill, SB213. What, exactly, will Coloradans get for giving up an additional billion dollars a year to the state government?

The Independence Institute’s education policy expert, Ben DeGrow, answers after the jump:

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TAX HIKE HOORAY! 20 Democratic Senators Vote In Favor Of Bill Tied To Billion Dollar Tax Increase

Published on April 2, 2013 by

Today, the full Democratic Senate caucus voted in favor of SB213, the School Finance Act that is tied to a billion dollar increase.

For that, let’s give them three cheers.

No, not for the actual raising of taxes — which requires a vote of the people that is destined to fail — but for going on the record for a billion dollar tax hike.

A number of GOP consultants have asked us to extend their sincere appreciation to Senate President John Morse and his caucus — they just helped write a whole flight of direct mail hit pieces and fundraising solicitations.

We too would like to thank the fine Senators for helping clarify things. In 2011, we tried to get every member of the Legislature on record on the last tax increase try, Prop 103. Unfortunately, the mainstream press didn’t seem interested and didn’t try to track down the position of legislators, so we were forced to comb through the petition circulator list, legislator newsletters and video of town halls to figure out where our elected leadership stood on increasing taxes.

Tracking down tax hike stances of those in support of raising them has been difficult ever since the passing of TABOR. The Constitutional amendment that has helped save Colorado from a California-like financial reality has indirectly been a huge boon to Democrats in Colorado, as it has allowed them to hide their support for tax increases. SB213, with it’s reliance on a billion dollar tax hike to take effect, helps bridge that gap for campaign rhetoric. 

Sure, Democrats will cry that they didn’t vote for the tax increase itself, merely a bill that would only take effect should the tax hike pass. We’re sure GOP consultants will be glad to let local networks and papers explain the distinction without a difference. Today’s vote gives the consultants all the paid media grist they need to start slamming the senators as tax hike loving, gun hating left wingers, focused more on social policy than economic legislation.

You hear that, Democrats? That’s the sound of consultants clinking glasses in cheers for the business you just brought them.

 

BEHIND THE CURTAIN: Who Is Pushing the $1B Tax Increases?

Published on March 29, 2013 by

Gail Klapper, Colorado Forum

Earlier this week, the Peak reported on the 25 ballot initiatives submitted relating to the funding of Democratic Sen. Mike Johnston’s education reform bill, SB13-213.  While its unclear which of the tax increases Democratic Sens. Mike Johnston and Rollie Heath, specifically, are supporting to pay for their massive education overhaul, it would appear that three separate groups are behind the ballot initiatives.

One tranche of tax increases was introduced by Colorado Forum, which “seeks to promote consensus in the community on enlightened public policy”, according to its web site.  While its members appear to be primarily from the business community, its leader, Gail Klapper has a political background.  She was a White House Fellow under President Gerald Ford.  Oddly, in her Colorado Forum bio she leaves off her time with Governor Dick Lamm, on whose cabinet she served (her Forum bio mentions that she served a Colorado Governor, but only her Forbes bio mentions which Governor).

Additionally, her political donation records show that she sides primarily with the left.  Over the past decade, she and her husband, Jack, or her company, The Klapper Firm, have donated over $5,500 to primarily Democratic causes and candidates, according to TRACER.

The next largest group of initiatives were filed by “dynamic duo” Bruce Broderius, a former member of the Greeley School Board and longtime advocate for increased education funding (according to Ed News Colorado), and Colorado newcomer Kate Pettersen.  Broderius, himself, has given several thousand dollars to political candidates and causes, mostly from the Democratic side.  Pettersen, a relatively small donor – giving $50 here and there to Democratic candidates and causes, has made her presence known primarily as a “volunteer lobbyist” on education issues with Great Education Colorado.

Pettersen moved here from Bloomfield, Michigan about a year and a half ago.  Quick tip, Kate: the way to make friends in a new city is not to levy a one billion dollar income tax increase on its residents.  Here’s an excerpt from a Denver Post letter-to-the-editor she penned earlier this year:

“The public schools are not failing; we are failing our public schools. Our family would be more than happy to pay more in taxes for public education.”

It’s great to know that Pettersen has more disposable income than the rest of Colorado.  After all, her husband is a pediatric cardiologist.  Sounds like a profitable career path.  Kate, there’s a box you can check on your taxes to pay more.  We suggest that you use that.  The rest of Colorado is simply trying to make ends meet.

Finally, the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce has submitted Johnston’s bill in its entirety as a ballot initiative (without the funding component) in case the bill doesn’t make it through the legislature.  Kelly Brough, the Chamber’s CEO, had served as the chief of staff for then-Mayor of Denver John Hickenlooper.

All of this is to point out that these initiatives are backed not by some bipartisan coalition, but a handful of Democrat hacks.  Let’s keep this in mind as the initiatives advance in the process.

 

HEY MIKEY, WHY DO YOU WANT MORE? Despite Revenue Gains, Senator Mike Johnston Stills Wants A Tax Hike

Published on March 28, 2013 by

With the economy recovering and tax revenue increasing, you would think the calls for tax hikes would begin to recede, but then you would misjudge the aim of tax hikers.

They’re like a fat kid in a candy store — give ‘em one piece and they just want four more.

As the Associated Press’s Ivan Moreno reported yesterday, the state’s general fund is already increasing by $600 million over last year, and the overall budget surpassed $20 billion this year, with it expected to cross $22 billion next year:

Under the Senate spending plan, general fund expenditures, which lawmakers control, were expected to be about $8.2 billion next year, compared to $7.6 billion in the current budget year. The state’s total budget, which includes federal money and cash funds, would be about $20.5 billion.

That hasn’t stopped State Senator Mike Johnston from forging ahead with his plan to ask for a $1 billion+ tax hike from taxpayers this year. Or was it $2.75 billion?

We’ll say this for the tax hike set, at least they picked a better face forward for this campaign compared to 2011′s disastrous Prop 103. Zach Morris beats Mr. Burns any day as a poster child for policy.

Of course recent tax receipts may not keep pace with Magpul and associated industries leaving the state and many hunters boycotting Colorado over it’s gun control legislation. So maybe the tax hike is meant to make up for that lost revenue?

What’s the reason, Mikey? Why do you want more?

 

INCOME TAX HIKE: Johnston’s Education Bill Would Raise State Income Taxes

Published on March 26, 2013 by

Coloradans have been waiting for the proposed changes in the way the state funds our education system.  Most of the bill deals with how education funds are dispersed. But, these massive reforms to the state education fund come with a hefty price tag – estimates are at the one billion dollar plus mark.

On Friday, more than 25 ballot initiatives to pay for this effort were submitted to the legislature’s administrative office for consideration on the 2013 November ballot.  All of the funding proposals depend on increasing state income tax percentages for most taxpayers.

Some of the initiatives rely on a flat tax increase across the board of .72%.  Other initiatives rely on a tiered system of tax increases.  The most punitive of the bunch would increase income taxes by .12% up to $50,000, then by .37% on incomes from $50,000 through $75,000, then by .87% from $75,000 through $100,000, by 1.37% from $100,000 through $200,000, and by 2.27% for income over $200,000.

Currently, Colorado’s state income tax rate resides at 4.63% of federally taxable income.  This means that the new state income tax rates would be 4.75% up to $50,000, 5% from $50,000 through $75,000, 5.5% from $75,000 through $100,000, 6% from $100,000 through $200,000, and 6.7% for income over $200,000.

At 4.63%, Colorado’s state personal income tax is somewhere in the middle, according to the Federation of Tax Administrators.  With a proposed highest rate at 6.7%, Colorado’s tax rate begins to look a little more like Delaware or Connecticut.  The difference is that the tax rates in these two states start at about half of Colorado’s proposed tax rates.

Education reform is a buzz word that sounds like a great idea, but does this bill contain reforms that will actually improve outcomes or is this just another union pay off?  And, can Colorado’s families afford a huge tax hike at a time when inflation on everyday goods is rising, housing costs are going up and we still have high unemployment?

 

THE BIG FRAUD: Bennet’s Tough Talk Exposes Udall’s Bogus Budget Rhetoric

Published on January 4, 2013 by

Michael Bennet, the junior U.S. Senator who has leap frogged Mark Udall in the Senate’s power structure, is really getting the hang of this making-Mark-Udall-look-bad thing.

With one no vote and one turse statement criticising a fiscal cliff fix that Udall and the rest of the Senate embraced, Bennet did what conservatives — including us, frankly — couldn’t. Bennet forced the Denver media to expose the utter disassociation between Mark Udall’s posturing as a fiscal conservative and his actual votes.

Here’s just a snippet of Udall quotes in recent years about spending. Compare these to a small collection of his voting record on spending below.

May 2010: “We need all the tools we can get our hands on to erase our debt and get our nation’s fiscal house back in order,” Udall said.

November 2010: “Coloradans know full well that the way Washington spends money is broken. Out-of-control spending has caused us to rack up huge deficits, which now threaten our future economic prosperity and our national security. The American people want us to show them that we’re serious about taking action to solve this problem.”

December 2011: “Coloradans tell me that they are tired of the broken system in Washington. They know that if we continue to run our country in the red, it’s just a matter time before we run it into the ground….With our nation’s debt already passing $15 trillion, it’s urgent that Congress pass a balanced budget amendment so we can turn our fiscal ship around.” (Note: Udall’s Balanced Budget Amendment charade failed with only 21 votes)

The list of Udall’s failed amendments, “bipartisan” letters, working groups and other such Washington games of make believe are nearly endless when it comes to calling for controlling spending. Udall sure likes to play the fiscal conservative in the DC dress up game, but when it comes time to vote, it’s not the Senator concerned about spending that shows up.

Fiscal cliff deal that added $4 trillion to our deficit? Mark Udall, yes.

Raising the debt ceiling for Bush? Mark Udall, yes.

Raising the debt ceiling for Obama? Mark Udall, yes.

Obamacare? Mark Udall, yes.

Cap and trade global warming tax? Mark Udall, yes.

Stimulus? Mark Udall, yes.

Auto bailout? Mark Udall, yes.

The list goes on, and on, and on. You might not hear us say this often, but this week we are thankful for Michael Bennet’s actions. They finally helped expose one of the greatest gaps in Colorado politics between rhetoric and action.

Mark Udall, you are a big fraud.

 

BAD DEAL: Fiscal Cliff Raises Taxes for Coloradans

Published on January 2, 2013 by

Following the passage of the fiscal cliff deal, President Obama has claimed that the tax hikes were only for the top 2%, yet the liberal Tax Policy Center has identified all the tax brackets that will be affected by the deal.  Here’s what Obama had to say about the deal:

“Thanks to the votes of Democrats and Republicans in Congress I will sign a law that raises taxes on the wealthiest 2% of Americans while preventing a middle-class tax hike that could have sent the economy back into recession and obviously had a severe impact on families all across America.”

Gosh, Obama’s vision for the fiscal cliff deal reached yesterday sounds like it really benefits the middle class.  Unfortunately, the fiscal mess that Obama shoved through Congress is actually a tax increase for 77% of Americans, according to the Tax Policy Center.  Business Insider helpfully outlined the tax increases per income bracket (see right).

According to the 2011 Census American Community Survey, the median income per household in Colorado is $55,387, the median family income in Colorado is $69,110, and the median per capita income in Colorado is $29,804.  This means that the average family and household will see $822 more in federal taxes, and the average Coloradan will see nearly a $300 tax increase.

These numbers may not seem terribly onerous; however, when you combine the federal tax increases with the nearly 20% property tax increases in Denver from Referendums 2A/2B and the upcoming taxes associated with Obamacare, this is a huge tax increase on middle class families.  Once again, Obama says he’s protecting the middle class, when in reality, the middle class is suffering too.  This fiscal cliff deal is simply not a good deal for America, or for most Coloradans.

Bravo to the legislators who stood up to this bill, including Reps. Coffman, Tipton, Lamborn and Gardner and Sen. Bennet.  We’ll give credit where credit is due.  Sen. Udall and Reps. Degette, Perlmutter, and Polis, wrong vote.

 

TAX HIKE COMETH: Legislative Democrats Could Push Bank-Breaking $2.75 Billion Tax Increase In 2013

Published on December 19, 2012 by

An online education-focused publication, funded in large part by the Colorado teachers’ union, is the first to report a shockingly audacious plan by newly-empowered legislative Democrats.

In 2013, Ed News Colorado reports legislative Democrats could seek up to $2.75 billion in tax hikes for education.

Colorado voters could face a $1 billion decision on school funding in the November 2013 election, if a complicated two-step reform plan plays out as its backers hope.

Discussions about the issue have been underway for more than a year but have intensified in recent weeks. Backers now plan to make school funding a top issue for the 2013 legislative session – and they hope to have a bill passed by mid-March…

Supporters of finance system reform, led by Democratic Sen. Mike Johnston of Denver, hope to achieve their goals in two steps. First, they want the legislature to pass a thorough modernization of the state’s school finance formula. Then they plan to ask voters for the money to support the new system. If the public doesn’t approve the necessary tax increases the new funding system wouldn’t go into effect.

Johnston’s partner in the effort is Sen. Rollie Heath, D-Boulder and author of a proposed tax increase for education that voters rejected in 2011…

At a meeting last week of what’s called the Technical Advisory Group, which Johnston has used as a sounding board on school finance, he estimated the cost of his suggested reforms at more than $2.75 billion. [Peak emphasis]

Whether it’s a $1 billion tax hike or a $2.75 billion tax hike, it’s enough to do serious damage to a slowly-recovering economy.

And if that isn’t enough to break your bank, the second and third part of their plans definitely will…including requiring local school districts to increase taxes even more to access these dollars:

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