Backers of a proposed tax increase for K-12 schools haven’t formally announced which ballot measure they’ll push for the November election, but a recent filing with the state strongly hints at the likely finalist.
The format of petitions for what’s currently called Initiative 22 has been approved by the Department of State. Petition format approval is the last formal step before petitions for a ballot measure can be circulated.
Initiative 22 would raise state individual income tax rates to generate an additional $950.1 million a year to fund Senate Bill 13-213, the proposed overhaul of the state’s school funding system. The initiative proposes a two-step increase in rates.
The initiative also would repeal the annual K-12 increase formula contained in Amendment 23, passed by voters in 2000. Instead, a minimum of 43 percent of current tax collections would be devoted to K-12 support. The revenue raised by the new rates, called the “income tax increment,” would go into a special account to be used for “educational reforms and programmatic enhancements” above current levels of school funding.
The business-oriented civic group Colorado Forum originally filed 16 versions of tax increases. They varied in how much money would be raised, in tiers of tax increases and in whether they would change Amendment 23 and change another constitutional provision governing property taxes.
The group proposed multiple measures from which it could pick and choose based on the preferences of the various interest groups that Colorado Forum hopes to recruit to its coalition. There has been intense behind-the-scenes debate, particularly among business groups, about whether to propose a flat increase on all taxpayers or a tiered system under which higher-income residents would pay more.
Some business groups have been pushing for the flat tax while others say a tiered proposal is necessary to win support among lower-income voters.
Gail Klapper, director of Colorado Forum, told EdNews recently that a formal announcement about the chosen version could come early next week. She’d previously said that a two-tier version including changes to Amendment 23 seemed to be the plan most likely to be selected.
If a different version is ultimately chosen, Colorado Forum would have to get that petition format approved, a fairly quick process.
Colorado’s current income tax rate is 4.63 percent of federal taxable income for all individual taxpayers. Initiative 22 would impose an additional .37 percent on taxpayers earning up to $75,000 a year. Taxpayers who earn more than that would pay the additional .37 percent on the first $75,000 of income and an increase of 1.27 percent on the amount in excess of $75,000. This paragraph was expanded on June 14 to provide a full explanation of the impact on taxpayers earning more than $75,000.)
Initiative 22 does not include a proposed change in the Gallagher Amendment, which governs property taxes. Some other versions propose a change in Gallagher’s effect on residential taxes for schools in an attempt to stabilize local district revenues.
Supporters have until Aug. 5 to gain the 86,105 signatures needed. Many political experts feel at least 100,000 signatures should be gathered to provide a cushion for invalid signatures. Given the short amount of time available, the campaign is expected to use paid petition circulators.
If Initiative 22 makes the ballot it will be assigned a different number.