DENVER — Senate President Steve Fenberg says that a judge has upheld Proposition HH, the November ballot question that is tied to reducing the rising property tax burden in Colorado.
The bill was passed by the legislature and signed by Governor Polis, but immediately challenged in a lawsuit by 17 counties, including El Paso County. The lawsuit, led by conservative advocacy group Advance Colorado, sites "clear title" and "single-subject" violations with SB23-303 and Proposition HH.
“Proposition HH is a transformative proposal that will save taxpayers more than a billion dollars each year by delivering immediate and long-term property tax reductions for Colorado families, and I am pleased that the Court today agrees that voters should have their say," said Steve Fenberg (D-Boulder), Senate President in press release on Friday. "It’s remarkable that a right-wing fringe group was hellbent on preventing Coloradans from lowering their property taxes in the first place. We will not stop fighting to deliver real relief for seniors, families, and businesses while responsibly protecting critical funding for services like schools, libraries, and fire departments our communities rely on.”
On Friday, Denver District Court Judge David H. Goldberg rejected hearing the case in part because he felt it was not within his jurisdiction, according to a report from The Colorado Sun. Goldberg added comments though, stating that Proposition HH does not violate and "clear title" or "single-subject" as the lawsuit states.
We have reached out to Advance Colorado, the group that initially filed the lawsuit, and are awaiting a response.
What would Proposition HH do?
The measure, if passed by voters, would take off $40,000 of a homeowner's taxable value through 2032, there are exemption of people’s second or subsequent single-family homes, like rental or vacation properties, which would stop being subject to that benefit in the 2025 tax year.
The residential assessment rate would be reduced to 6.7% from 6.765% in 2023, for the 2024 tax period and too 6.7% from 6.976% for the 2025 tax season. They 6.7% rate will then remain unchanged for the next decade.
It would also create a flat TABOR refund mechanism that will increase refunds for those making less than $100,000 a year. That TABOR money would be seen by taxpayers through flat-rate checks in the range of $650 or $1,300 depending on the type of filer.
Proposition HH also focuses on setting aside $200 million to repay schools, and local governments and to use an estimated $250 million in TABOR funds to back-fill a reduction in tax revenue from local districts.
In November voters will also decide if their should be a increase to the TABOR cap by an extra 1%. Should voters approve Proposition HH there will be changes in how TABOR funds are distributed.
If the Proposition fails it is unclear how Colorado lawmakers and Governor Polis will proceed with the growing property tax burden.
____
Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.
