This story by Sara Wilson appeared on Colorado Newsline on August 22, 2023.
The Colorado Supreme Court rejected a challenge to the constitutionality of Proposition HH, the ballot measure this year that would slow property tax increases by adjusting the amount taxpayers get back from the state.
The court found that under precedent it does not have jurisdiction to review the proposition or the legislation that created it until voters approve it. Justice Richard L. Gabriel noted in the court’s opinion that after it is enacted, the court could review the law for its constitutionality.
The lawsuit was brought by Republican elected officials, some county governments and the conservative group Advance Colorado. It argued that Proposition HH violates the state Constitution’s single subject rule and the ballot language is not clear and leaves out details of how the proposition works.
“Prop HH clearly violates the single-subject provision of our Colorado Constitution. While it should have been struck down before even going to the ballot, voters are smart — and they’ll send a clear message to the politicians at the Capitol this November,” Advance Colorado President Michael Fields said in a statement.
He and other opponents argue that the proposition has at least four subjects: property tax assessment rate reductions, a request that voters approve the state’s retention of more taxpayer money, an appropriation for the state’s housing development grant fund, and a permanent change of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights refund formula.
“[C]ourts lack subject matter jurisdiction to review a legislative referendum for compliance with the single-subject requirement of the Colorado Constitution unless and until it has been approved by the voters,” the court’s opinion reads, referencing the precedent case from 1996.
Additionally, the court rejected the claim that the proposition is overly confusing.
Proposition HH would reduce the tax assessment rate for residential properties to prevent property taxes from rising as quickly as they would otherwise. To backfill lost property tax revenue that local governments rely on, it would alter the formula that the state uses to calculate how much refund money taxpayers are entitled to under TABOR.
“Far right Republicans are doing everything they can to deny hardworking families and seniors a much-needed tax cut this year, and we’re glad to see the Colorado Supreme Court affirm what the District court already ruled — Proposition HH is constitutional,” Senate President Steve Fenberg said in a statement. “We look forward to Coloradans being able to vote on tax relief in November so that working families and seniors can afford to stay in their homes and our economy isn’t harmed by sudden tax hikes.”