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Tag: Taxes

Former Colorado Springs councilwoman prioritizes public safety, infrastructure, lower taxes in race for El Paso County’s District 3
gazette.com, State

Former Colorado Springs councilwoman prioritizes public safety, infrastructure, lower taxes in race for El Paso County’s District 3

By Breeanna Jent [email protected] Brandy Williams has her eyes on El Paso County's future, and she sees fireworks. Williams is running as a Republican in the crowded race to replace outgoing Stan VanderWerf on the Board of El Paso County Commissioners in District 3, promising to prioritize public safety, infrastructure and lower taxes. The county has seen rapid widespread population and economic growth over the last decade, said Williams, 45. Likening its expansion to a mountain climbed, the lifelong resident and former Colorado Springs councilwoman said the county's next step should be continuing that push. READ FULL ARTICLE ON GAZETTE.COM
COLUMN: Jared Polis has been all talk on tax cuts | Jimmy Sengenberger
denvergazette.com, State

COLUMN: Jared Polis has been all talk on tax cuts | Jimmy Sengenberger

By Jimmy Sengenberger Gov. Jared Polis has long pledged fealty to lower income taxes, a position he reiterated in his recent State of the State address. “I know some Democrats in the past have been skeptical of reducing our income tax rate,” Polis said, “but cutting the income tax rate is the most effective way to further our economic growth.” While his comments were met with consternation from fellow Democrats, they were nothing new for Polis. In 2021, he garnered headlines for declaring at a conservative conference that Colorado’s income tax “should be zero.” READ FULL ARTICLE ON DENVERGAZETTE.COM
Most Americans feel they pay too much in taxes, poll finds
ASSOCIATED PRESS, KRDO.COM, National

Most Americans feel they pay too much in taxes, poll finds

By CORA LEWIS and LINLEY SANDERS, ASSOCIATED PRESS  A majority of taxpayers feel they pay too much in taxes, with many saying that they receive a poor value in return, according to a new poll from the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.  Two-thirds of U.S. taxpayers say they spend “too much” on federal income taxes, as tax season begins. About 7 in 10 say the same about local property taxes, while roughly 6 in 10 feel that way about state sales tax. Generally speaking, Republicans are more likely than Democrats to view taxes as unfair, to say they are paying too much in taxes, and to see taxes as a poor value. READ FULL ARTICLE ON KRDO.COM
Democracies, Republics, and TABOR
i2i.org, State

Democracies, Republics, and TABOR

By Rob Natelson, Independence Institute In 2011, a group of politicians and special interests sued in federal court to void Colorado’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). The case was Kerr v. Hickenlooper. The plaintiffs’ primary argument was that TABOR violated the U.S. Constitution’s Guarantee Clause (Article IV, Section 4), which says in part, “The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government.” The plaintiffs contended that to be a “republic,” a state must make taxing and spending decisions through elected representatives only. They based this on a misreading of James Madison’s Federalist No. 10 essay—while ignoring everything else Madison and other Founders said about republican and democratic governance. The plaintiffs pointed o...
Caldara: Let’s bring back 4-year TABOR overrides
completecolorado.com, State

Caldara: Let’s bring back 4-year TABOR overrides

By Jon Caldara | SOURCE: COMPLETE COLORADO PAGE TWO (You can listen to this column, read by the author, here.) The former head of the leftist ProgressNow Colorado, who is married to a U.S. congresswoman living in Jefferson County, has donated to the election campaigns of all three of the current Jefferson County commissioners. So, what a coincidence those same Jefferson County commissioners, all Democrats, are now going to pay him $180,000 to help dupe taxpayers out of TABOR refunds. As reported by the news site CompleteColorado.com (a project of Independence Institute, which I run), 7th Congressional District U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen’s husband, Ian Silverii, has just inked a spectacular deal from Jefferson County. His firm “won” a $340,000 con...
Governor removes Democrat from board that blocked Douglas County’s property tax cut, replaces him with Republican
State, The Colorado Sun

Governor removes Democrat from board that blocked Douglas County’s property tax cut, replaces him with Republican

Jared Polis took Bernie Buescher off the State Board of Equalization, giving Republicans a majority on the panel that reviews local property tax decisions By Jesse Paul | SOURCE: THE COLORADO SUN Jared Polis removed a Democrat he appointed to a state board that reviews local property tax decisions after the panel in December unanimously rejected Douglas County’s attempt to offer a $28 million tax break to homeowners. The governor blasted the State Board of Equalization’s decision at the time, and then last week took former Colorado Secretary of State Bernie Buescher off the panel and replaced him with Richard Sokol, an Englewood Republican, who sits on the board for South Metro Fire Rescue.  Polis’ swap not only sends another message about his dislike for the State Board o...
Colorado, 8 other states, push IRS for clarification on taxability of FAMLI benefits
coloradopolitics.com, State

Colorado, 8 other states, push IRS for clarification on taxability of FAMLI benefits

By Marissa Ventrelli | SOURCE: COLORADO POLITICS Gov. Jared Polis joined governors from eight other states in urging IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel to provide guidance on the taxability of Family and Medical Leave Insurance, or FAMLI, benefits to avoid double taxation. “As states operating these programs, we urge the Internal Revenue Service to provide clarifying guidance in this area, specifically regarding the taxability of these benefits and premiums, and to prevent the risk of double taxation," said a Jan. 18 letter signed by the state leaders. “The current absence of guidance from the IRS on the tax treatment of these programs creates a substantial risk of an unexpected and large tax liability for those who rely on these programs to take family leave, deal with a personal i...
Evaluating Gov. Polis’s Tax Reform Agenda: Tax Expenditures vs. Broad-Based Tax Relief
i2i.org, State

Evaluating Gov. Polis’s Tax Reform Agenda: Tax Expenditures vs. Broad-Based Tax Relief

By Fiscal Policy Center | SOURCE: INDEPENDENCE INSTITUTE Colorado’s governor, Jared Polis, champions increasing state revenue by eliminating provisions of the tax code that benefit special interests—what state budgeters call “tax expenditures.” Rather than use the new money to grow government or redistribute surplus revenue through tax handouts and Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) refunds, however, the governor argues the state should use the revenue to provide tax relief for all Colorado taxpayers through income tax rate reductions. As far back as 2018, Polis campaigned on this tax reform approach. This report evaluates Governor Polis’s progress in advancing these tax reform goals. By calculating the revenue impact of each tax expenditure modification, it determines whether legislatio...
Here’s how lawmakers want to pay for $78 billion child tax credit and business tax bill
denvergazette.com, National

Here’s how lawmakers want to pay for $78 billion child tax credit and business tax bill

By Zachary Halaschak, Washington Examiner | SOURCE: THE GAZETTE The $78 billion bipartisan proposal that would expand the child tax credit and renew key business investment deductions is meant to be fully paid for — here is how. The House Ways and Means Committee advanced the bipartisan bill on Friday in an overwhelming 40-3 vote, moving it one step closer to becoming law. The legislation enhances the child tax credit while restoring some major business tax provisions and would pay for it through changes to the pandemic-era employee retention tax credit, or ERC. The $78 billion bill, which came after weeks of negotiations, would be offset by stronger enforcement and penalties tied to fraudulent ERC claims and would bring an early end to...
Douglas County sues to overturn state board’s decision to block property tax relief plan
Denver Metro, Local, The Colorado Sun

Douglas County sues to overturn state board’s decision to block property tax relief plan

By Jesse Paul, Colorado Sun Douglas County is suing a state board that last month blocked the county’s creative attempt to offer a $28 million property tax break to homeowners by making an across-the-board reduction in previously determined home values.  The 15-page lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Denver District Court against the State Board of Equalization. It argues that the board didn’t have the authority to block the tax break and that it didn’t follow Colorado’s open meetings laws in doing so.  The county is asking a judge to overturn the board’s unanimous decision to stop the reduction in home values.  The Douglas County Commission voted in September to reduce the county’s valuations, determined in May, of single-family homes, townhomes an...