DENVER — Colorado Attorney General John Suthers said he is disappointed the Colorado Supreme Court decided to uphold the 2007 statewide property tax increase, passed without a vote of the people.
“Given the Court’s history with the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, I am not surprised by the decision, but I am nonetheless disappointed,” Suthers said. “The dissent is eminently better reasoned than the majority’s opinion. I remain convinced that the Colorado Constitution dictates that the voters decide when their taxes should be increased.”
2007’s Senate Bill 199 froze school district property tax rates that would have otherwise declined as property values rose, resulting in a net revenue increase for nearly every school district in Colorado.
Denver District Court Judge Christina M. Habas agreed with the Attorney General’s opinion that the legislation was unconstitutional in a May 2008 order: “However well-intentioned and commendable the purpose and consequences of SB-199, this Court must be concerned only with enforcement of the Colorado Constitution.”
“With all due respect to the Supreme Court, the district court got this right,” Suthers said. “The Supreme Court’s decision today represents a fundamental erosion of Colorado taxpayers’ rights.”