The Colorado General Assembly convenes Wednesday at a familiar impasse about how to improve the state’s roads and reduce traffic congestion – one that appears headed for more political theatrics this session. The Democratic majority is reiterating their position that new revenue through taxes or fees is required to meet the state’s roughly $9 billion […]
Prop CC
Posted inEducation, Politics and Government, Transportation
$10 million poured into 2019 election, but big money couldn’t push Proposition CC to passage
Advocates for Proposition CC outspent the opposition by more than double but still lost in the statewide November election. The two campaign committees behind the ballot question — Coloradans for Prosperity and Great Education Colorado — spent a combined $4.5 million on the failed effort, according to final campaign finance reports filed late last week. […]
Posted inUncategorized
Comparing voters to their neighbors can dramatically boost turnout. A Colorado mailer, however, really missed the mark.
Using mailers as a form of social pressure to urge people to vote is among the most effective ways of driving election turnout, studies show. The tactic, in fact, can be even more potent than door-to-door canvassing. That’s especially true when voters are told how their voting record compares to their neighbors’. Such messaging can […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns, Politics and Government
Opinion: Colorado said “no” to extreme spending by rejecting Proposition CC
On Election Day, Proposition CC went down in flames across Colorado with a double-digit loss. The only counties with a voting majority in favor of the measure were Denver, Boulder, Broomfield, Routt, Summit, Eagle, Pitkin, Gunnison, Ouray, San Juan, San Miguel and La Plata – all liberal strongholds and a mere 12 out of 64 […]
Posted inBusiness, Education, Politics and Government, Transportation
The next fiscal fight in Colorado starts now: A bid to repeal TABOR and one to raise taxes on top earners
Colorado voters rejected a bid to remove the spending caps in the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights — but the fiscal fight is only expected to get more intense in the next year. One interest group is considering a repeal of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights and another is testing ideas for a graduated tax system […]
Posted inEducation, Politics and Government, Transportation
Meet the million-dollar man behind Proposition CC on Colorado’s 2019 ballot
Dan Ritchie made a prophetic declaration four and a half years ago. In a conference room filled with Colorado policy leaders, the former University of Denver chancellor moderated a discussion with experts who lamented the state’s dismal rankings for spending on education, colleges and transportation. But no one had an easy solution. Out of nowhere, […]
Posted inEducation, Growth, Politics and Government, Transportation
Proposition CC campaign is door-to-door combat as both sides turnout supporters ahead of 2019 election
Kane Randolph presses the doorbell at the home of a voter in Denver and readies his pitch. In the next few seconds — which is all the time he expects to get — he needs to explain Proposition CC, a 60-word question on the 2019 statewide ballot that is mired in baggage. When the door […]
Posted inBusiness, Education, Politics and Government
Dark money and big donors fuel the ballot battle over Proposition CC in Colorado
Big money is pouring into the Proposition CC campaign – and Colorado voters may never find out where much of it is coming from. That’s because dark-money nonprofits are contributing heavily to supporters and opponents of the 2019 ballot question to end TABOR revenue limits. That dark money — totaling nearly $3 million — is […]
Posted inEducation, Growth, News, Politics and Government, Transportation
It’s Election Day in Colorado! Here’s what you need to know about casting your ballot and what’s on it
There’s no presidential election or U.S. Senate contest on the 2019 ballot, but the Nov. 5 election will ask Colorado voters two fiscal questions with major ramifications for the future of the state. Proposition CC and Proposition DD pose questions related to taxes — whether to keep the tax money the state collected and whether […]
Posted inEducation, Politics and Government, Transportation
Proposition CC explained: What it means to end the spending caps in TABOR and the money at stake
In one of the most significant potential changes to state fiscal policy in decades, Colorado voters this November will be asked to permanently eliminate a revenue cap that has both restrained and reshaped state government since 1992. The ask of voters is relatively modest: Forgo the occasional refund under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights — […]