Pueblo legislator's bill to equalize TABOR refunds passes during special session

The second special session called by Colorado Gov. Jared Polis is now over.

Colorado lawmakers convened for four days in Denver to pass multiple bills that provide short-term relief for property taxes, as well as equalize state tax refunds and boost rental assistance programs.

This was after Colorado voters rejected Proposition HH at the ballot box in early November, which was a complicated tax question that would have addressed rising property taxes and equalized refunds from the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR).

Here’s what the lawmakers representing Pueblo did during the session and what they think about how it went.

Property taxes will be slightly reduced

Homeowners will see some relief in property taxes. The bill addressing property tax relief reduces the assessment rate from 6.765% to 6.7% and increases the amount of the home value exempt from property taxes to $55,000.

The Colorado Sun calculated that the average Colorado property owner will save approximately $200 on property tax bills due in April, but that depends on local tax rates as well as the home value.

The state will backfill most lost revenue to counties, school districts and other local government entities that mostly depend on property tax revenue, Colorado Public Radio reported.

Pueblo’s state senator sponsored bill equalizing TABOR refunds

Nick Hinrichsen, the state senator whose district includes all of Pueblo County, was the sponsor of one of the bills that passed through state legislature during this special session that equalizes refunds from extra money the state collects under TABOR.

The bill was also sponsored by Sen. Janice Marchman of Loveland, as well as Rep. Javier Mabrey of Denver and Rep. Ruby Dickson of Centennial.

All single tax filers will receive an estimated $847 and joint filers will get $1,694, according to the bill’s fiscal note.

The majority of Coloradans will get more back from the state because this bill passed.

“By sending refunds out equally, we're giving more of a benefit to middle-class income earners — 70% of Coloradans and more than 80% of Puebloans will see an increase in their in their refund because of this,” Hinrichsen said about his bill.

For people earning less than $51,000, that’s an extra $261 for single filers and $522 for joint filers than if the bill hadn’t been passed. However, people earning more than $104,000 will receive a smaller TABOR refund with this bill.

Hinrichsen told the Chieftain before the special session started that he wanted to prioritize equalizing TABOR refunds. He also sponsored a bill last year that flattened TABOR refunds and expedited their disbursement.

He said that he is working on another bill for the regular session that starts in January to equalize TABOR refunds in future years.

Not much bipartisan support

The multiple measures that were passed through the Colorado Legislature at a quick pace last weekend were mostly sponsored by Democratic lawmakers.

Democratic Rep. Matt Martinez, whose district includes parts of Pueblo and the San Luis Valley, told the Chieftain he thinks that the rushed timing of the session meant that there was less opportunity to collaborate with Republicans.

Martinez added that he wants to have more conversations across the aisle to work on more long-term measures for property tax relief in future years.

Rep. Tisha Mauro, also a Democrat, represents parts of the city and county of Pueblo. Mauro said that some of her Republican colleagues agreed on some of the points in the bills but they decided to vote against them.

Rep. Ty Winter, a Republican whose district includes southeastern Colorado and parts of Pueblo West, told the Chieftain in a text message that the collection of bills passed during the session amounted to a re-packaging of the failed Proposition HH.

Winter, along with most Republicans, opposed Hinrichsen’s bill to equalize TABOR refunds. He said that he “listened to voters” who rejected Proposition HH and changing TABOR.

Unlike Proposition HH, the property tax relief bill does not dip into TABOR refunds, Colorado Newsline reported. However, another bill to expand income tax credits that legislators also passed this session dips into the TABOR surplus.

The GOP caucus introduced a measure that used reserves from the general fund for property tax relief, which Democrats opposed, according to Colorado Newsline.

Democratic support wasn’t always unanimous

Hinrichsen was one of a few Democrats to oppose the creation of a state task force to study how to reduce property taxes moving forward.

He said that he has a “philosophical disagreement” with addressing property taxes at a state level when it’s more of an issue for local governments to decide but hopes that the task force will be able to deliver some “good results.”

On the other hand, Hinrichsen thinks that the state should do more to address income taxes, which he says are assessed at higher rates for low- and middle-income Coloradans but relatively low for high-income residents.

Mauro supported the task force. She said that she doesn’t disagree with Hinrichsen’s objections, but that the task force will be able to show lawmakers the extent to which they can take action to address property taxes in future years.

Anna Lynn Winfrey covers politics for the Pueblo Chieftain. She can be reached at awinfrey@gannett.com. Please support local news at subscribe.chieftain.com.

This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Special session: Why a Pueblo legislator pushed for equal TABOR refunds