Colorado voters have approved Proposition 117, a measure requiring voter approval on fee hikes that generate more than $100 million in revenue over five years.
In 2019, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that business fees were not considered taxes and thus outside the purview of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR), which subjects all proposed tax hikes to voter approval. Prop. 117, which Americans for Tax Reform supported, closes this loophole in TABOR by subjecting fee increases to voter approval, as is already the case for all tax hikes.
“By approving Proposition 117, Colorado voters have closed off an end-run around TABOR frequently used by politicians, one that has been costing Colorado taxpayers dearly,” said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform. “Between this new requirement for fee hikes and the enactment of an income tax cut with approval of Proposition 116, Colorado taxpayers got a double dose of good news from the 2020 election.”