TABOR’s Spectacular Failure
In 1992, Colorado adopted a state constitutional amendment - dubbed the “Taxpayers’ Bill of Rights” or TABOR - that limits the annual growth of Colorado’s state budget to a strict formula. Annual growth in their budget must be less than the annual growth of population plus inflation.
Conservative groups are pushing for similar limits across the country. Stateline.org reported in March, “The states considering TABOR-like amendments this year are Alaska, Arizona, California, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee and Wisconsin.”
Yesterday, right-wing columnist George Will opined, “Tabor has been spectacularly successful.” If he means that it has successfully gutted Colorado’s ability to provide basic public services, he’d be right.
Colorado has the nation’s seventh-highest per-capita income. But according to data from the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities:
- Colorado ranks 47th in K-12 education funding as a share of state income.
- Colorado ranks 50th in the nation in on-time immunization rates.
- The share of low-income individuals enrolled in Medicaid is lower than in all but five other states.
- Colorado has eliminated its affordable housing loans and grants program.
- Due to underfunding, court hearings that are required by statute to occur within two days of a filing routinely take 30 days.
Colorado’s story should be a warning to all those states now considering TABOR amendments.
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34 Responses to “TABOR’s Spectacular Failure”
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Gover Norquist wants to drown this country in a bathtub. Colorado was first. We’re all next.
October 3rd, 2005 at 5:42 pmTABOR has been a disaster here. There are “initiatives” on the November ballot to fix this mess but the opposition will be national and massive. This is a national issue folks, believe me when I say if the fix fails in Colorado there will be a plethora of TABOR law across the country in the coming years.
These are exactly the kind of laws that will make their way to the Supreme Court eventually. That is why Rove is packing the court with “property rights”, “freedom of speech” (ie. no election reform), and “strict constructionist” judges. Privacy and gay rights MEAN NOTHING EITHER WAY to Rove other than keeping the base focus on their fetus/gay issues to get out the vote. Hence, keep Roe v Wade in place to keep their focus while keeping in place the money machine of K street lobbyists intact.
October 3rd, 2005 at 5:44 pmSounds exactly like something my state would want to do — unfortunately.
October 3rd, 2005 at 5:45 pmThis is like them basing ‘leave no child behind’ off of the ’success’ of Texas. Texas is ranked 50th (as in LAST PLACE) in the nation in education. Clearly bush has turned failure into an artform…
October 3rd, 2005 at 5:47 pmIs TABOR th evil robot that used to fight ROM?
October 3rd, 2005 at 5:56 pmAs a Colorado resident, I am well aware of the adverse affect TABOR has had on this state; public education is not very good, higher education tuitions are skyrocketing, the roads and infrastructure are poor at best and human services are faced with countless hardships. Unfortunately, the vote is going to very close as to wether or not we can get a five year “break” from this ill-conceived amendment.
October 3rd, 2005 at 5:56 pmUh, those ARE signs of success for people that want nothing more than to starve government to death. Vote them out!
October 3rd, 2005 at 5:59 pmfrom grover’s pov, it IS spectacularly successful… every piece of actual or implied social contract is being destroyed which is precisely the plan…
October 3rd, 2005 at 5:59 pmFor more on TABOR in Colorado and Oregon, see:
- “TABOR Pains”
- “TABOR Pains II: Colorado Comes Undone”
October 3rd, 2005 at 6:06 pm#8 Mr Norquist is the anti-Christ.
October 3rd, 2005 at 6:06 pmAs several have already pointed out, this is Grover Norquist’ plan from the start.
October 3rd, 2005 at 6:52 pmThis is the beginning of the end folks, just look for them to couch it all in terms that the average, distracted American will think is a good thing.
Oh Georgie Porgie, we the people of the US want to thank you for the wonderful NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND bit.
What a deal!
The State of California is reporting that high schoolers cannot pass the most rudimentary examinations in english and math.
Time to hire Armstrong Williams once again, right Georgie?
October 3rd, 2005 at 7:01 pmThe most interesting aspect of the TABOR situation is how it’s split state and national business groups. The Denver Chamber of Commerce is leading the effort to reform the TABOR restriction, while the US Chamber continues to fund Norquist’s political operations. More details here.
October 3rd, 2005 at 7:14 pmPablo,
When you halt all education - you clearly leave no child behind the rest. It’s the inertia school of education. Why bother educating anyone, and then you can claim you left none of the children behind!
October 3rd, 2005 at 7:30 pmMore lies from the lefties. Here are the facts on TABOR in Colorado. And what thinkprogress failed to mention is that TABOR reduced Colorado’s potential deficit by 83%. If the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights had not forced the politicians to restrain their spending in the 90s, the deficit would have been $1.1 Billion.
http://www.americansforprosperity.org/index.php?id=334
October 3rd, 2005 at 8:37 pmHey, it’s working. Reduce taxes for the rich and limit services to those who need state and local services. . . the poor. I worked in corrections for thirty one years. Not until the illegal drug starting impacting “rich” families did the “general” population begin to demand drug education and intervention programs from the government. If you don’t need any financial support, why not endorse the reduction or severe limitation of government growth? Folks, this is class warfare, nothing more, nothing less.
October 3rd, 2005 at 10:20 pmWhy do all of you fools want bigger government? Are you too childish to take care of yourself?
October 3rd, 2005 at 10:38 pmColorado’s home foreclosure rate is double the national average.
October 3rd, 2005 at 10:40 pmThese statistics are distinctly uninformative.
“CO ranks 47th in education funding.”
Okay… and how does it rank in things that actually matter, like literacy rates and high school graduation rates? Big spending does not mean wise spending.
“…share of low-income individuals enrolled in Medicaid is lower…”
So maybe CO’s poor people revert more quickly to self-sufficiency than those in other states? Maybe charitable medical care is more prevalent, better funded, and better implemented than in other states? Maybe since CO is such a healthy state, fewer people need socialized medicine?
“housing loans”, “court hearings”
October 4th, 2005 at 10:55 amMaybe, like all government entities, CO state government is corrupt to the core and spends way too much of its considerable budget on pork and political favors and way too little on things that actually matter? And maybe if they had more money and power, CO officials, like any humans, would become even more corrupt and waste even more taxpayer money?
Susan, they are truly blind.
What happened to all of that clap trap about fiscal responsibility? Republicans cannot govern fiscally because of their greed. They just can’t help their need for PROSPERITY as they call it. The words sound good, but that’s all - just words and repubs eat it up like candy. How easily fooled they are by some sweet sounding name. No child left behind - SOUNDS good anyway.
Call it what you want but crap is crap even if you change the name to pink balloons. We should go into sales, fellow progressives. These people will buy ANYTHING.
Mine mine mine and you can’t have it.
October 4th, 2005 at 11:00 amRYAN NEAT
I loved it. How true. No child left behind because he is behind anyway.
October 4th, 2005 at 11:03 amThis is like them basing ‘leave no child behind’ off of the ’success’ of Texas. Texas is ranked 50th (as in LAST PLACE) in the nation in education. Clearly bush has turned failure into an artform…
Comment by Ryan Neat
Texas is ranked 33rd. Liar. Also, dipshit, No Child Left Behind was the creation of Ted “swimmer” Kennedy.
October 4th, 2005 at 1:10 pm34th is what I’ve seen, though other studies probably put Texas as last. Yes, Ted Kennedy played a part in its authorship, but so have others, it was bipartisan.
October 4th, 2005 at 2:25 pm33rd by what poll, IRI? Please give us your source.
October 4th, 2005 at 5:29 pmhttp://www.morganquitno.com/edrank04.htm
Texas is ranked 33rd, Colorado is 21st. Ryan, you friggin liar. Looks like you’re in no position to be commenting on education.
October 4th, 2005 at 6:44 pmI wish someone would STOP spewing this nonsense about funding for education. Just because a state doesn’t spend a lot of money on education does not mean the quality of that education is not good. States like Colorado and Utah may not spend a lot of money on K-12 education, but I would bet that both rate than the bottom 10 in terms of test scores and graduates.
To recap: more money for public education does not directly equate to better public education.
October 4th, 2005 at 8:49 pmcorrection to my last post:
I meant to say, “both would rate BETTER than the bottom 10.”
October 4th, 2005 at 8:50 pmBy your polls, Phinga, the repub led states are the ones that are in need of tutoring. I see that great Northeast dem led states are doing well. Hmmmmmmm
October 5th, 2005 at 11:38 amThe corporate media machine at work again. Read this; http://mediamatters.org/items/200510070001. It’s short and to the point.
October 7th, 2005 at 11:01 pmI am conflicted about Prop A. I support most of the groups that will benefit from its passage, and I am not totally against taxing myself to provide the needed support. I am, however, adamantly against continuing subsidies to corporate interests that make Prop A’s passage appears necessary.
Take K-12 education as an example. The state prohibits school districts from imposing any tax or impact fee on corporate developers. As a result, property owners must tax themselves to build new schools, the need for which was created by corporate developers, or allow their kids to be educated in overcrowded schools.
I’ve never before voted against a measure for K-12 education, but I will not continue to increase my taxes so state politicians give more and more tax subsidies to developers. At the very least, voters in school districts should be given the choice of imposing taxes or impact fees to build additional schools generated by development.
It will be a difficult choice for me come election day, but right now I’m leaning against voting for Prop A.
October 8th, 2005 at 7:29 pmI think that TABOR is a good thing. The less taxes for everyone, the better. I am responsible for my own health and no one else’s. I will pay to send my children to private school or have my wife home school them. I would never leave anyone I love to the government’s care.
To me it seems that all liberals care about are the rights to a free ride and sodomy.
I don’t care about what holes you plug, or if you abort yourselves. Just stay the hell away from my paycheck!
October 9th, 2005 at 2:55 am#29 - PP, would you like to take some of our illegal alien children off our hands here in the land of “fruits and nuts”. You can share our pain in the education department. Our public schools are horrible!!
October 10th, 2005 at 6:44 pm[…] Think Progress ” TABOR’s Spectacular Failure […]
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