WILL ADVANCE COLORADO PULL THEIR PROPERTY TAX BALLOT MEASURES? We talked yesterday about the Governor being very afraid that we would vote to lower our property taxes on November's ballot so he is scheduling a Special Session that last week of August. Why then? Because if Advance Colorado, who is running the ballot measures, is going to pull them it needs to be before September 6th, which is the deadline to pull it. I've got Advance Colorado's Kristi Burton Brown on today at 12:30 to discuss what has to happen for them to take them off the ballot, but here it is in its entirety:
Key Points About the Property Tax Bill in the Special Session
Background
• Polling shows one of the most concerning issues to Colorado voters this year is property taxes.
• Property taxes rose by 30%, on average, across the state last year.
• Homeowners have expressed they cannot afford another spike. They want a guaranteed permanent property tax cut and cap.
• Under current law, homeowners will see another property tax increase next year.
• Advance Colorado sponsored two ballot measures – Initiatives 50 and 108 – to permanently cut and cap property taxes.
Lead Up to a Special Session
The threat of Advance’s ballot measures pushed the legislature and Gov. Polis to pass a bill during the 2024 legislative session that created nearly $1B in annual property tax savings. However, at that time, the Democrat legislators refused to take a deal that would have increased the savings to $1.6B and cap the full property tax bill.
Now that 50 is on the ballot and 108 turned in sufficient signatures to be on the ballot in November, the legislature and Gov. Polis came back to the table and have agreed to pass a bill that permanently cuts and caps property taxes.
The Special Session Bill
The agreement: the legislature will pass and the Governor will sign a bipartisan bill guaranteeing permanent property tax relief in the form of a cut and a cap. These cuts and caps would be locked in by TABOR and could not be changed without a vote of the people. Specifically, the bill will:
Cut the effective residential property tax rate to 6.3 or 6.4% depending on assessment growth; (It’s currently set to go up to 6.7% next year.)
Cut the commercial property tax rate to 25%; (It’s currently at 29%.)
Install a property tax cap of 5.25% for local governments and 6% or inflation growth cap for school districts. (The legislative session bill instituted a 5.5% cap for local governments and had *no* cap for school districts.)
The bill also requires a key component from Initiative 50 – “TABOR for property taxes.” If a local government wants to opt out of the property tax cap, it will have to go to a vote of the people. Clear and non-biased language in the ballot question is required by the bill.
In exchange for Colorado putting a permanent property tax cut and cap in law – that ensures property taxes do not go up again next year and cannot spike again the future – Advance Colorado will take 50 and 108 off the ballot, locking in a guaranteed property tax win for homeowners and businesses.
We'll see if the Legislature goes along or if we vote this in in November.
THE WINE YOGI HAS GROCERY STORE WINE TIPS And she's answered the age old question "how do I find good wine in the grocery store" in this blog post. She also has a cool class this weekend but it's already sold out. She's on at 2:30.
WE SEEM TO HAVE HIT PEAK BREWERY And local breweries are struggling compared to the Glory Years a short time ago. One local brewery is doing something COMPLETELY different in an effort to keep chugging along (see what I did there?) and I'm talking to FlyteCo Brewing's new venture as FlyteCoworking Monday through Friday to create a work space in North Denver. Rarely does a co-working space have ample free nearby parking, an expansive outdoor patio and take place in an aviation-themed brewery space right off Tennyson. (Photos here.) The private co-working space will be open Monday-Friday. The space will transition to the normal FlyteCo open-to-the-public brewery starting at 2 p.m. Monday-Thursday and at 11 a.m. on Friday. Membership will be quite limited to ensure members will always have space for themselves and their guests. Of course, the space will have WiFi, on-site beverages, and affordable pricing. Find their location here. Owner Jason Slingsby joins me at 1 to discuss.
WHY SHOULD THIS ALLEGED MURDERER BE GIVEN DEFERENCE? I don't understand why a judge overseeing the case of a Regis professor accused of murdering his wife would prevent expanded media coverage. I truly don't get it. Why does he deserve deference? In my mind he is simply an accused murderer in a somewhat high profile case because of his position at Regis, but why can't ABC 7 do a deeper dive?
WHEN WILL KAMALA BE ASKED ABOUT JOE'S DECLINE? A new poll shows that a whopping 73% of voters believe Kamala knew about Joe Biden's decline and didn't do anything. I'd love to see her asked this question but she's not going to do any interviews because she knows the press is on her side and will let her avoid it.
CAMPAIGNS VS THE MEDIA John Stossel lays it out.
DIA IS #4 ON A LOOOOOONG LIST A list of Loonnnng walks in airports that is. Denver International airport has the 4th longest walk from check in to gate in the country. Yay?
THE HARRIS ECONOMIC PLAN IS BASED SOLELY ON POLLING Not on actually solving problems. I guess we're going to hear the details at some point but you can read this about it here.
COFFEE WILL KILL YOU AGAIN And now an Indian study says that if you consume more than four cups of coffee or just TWO energy drinks a day you increase your chance of heart attack and stroke. You should always know your blood pressure and other numbers that would indicate you need to cut back.
IF TRUMP STICKS TO THIS MESSAGE HE CAN DEFINE KAMALA But playing this to party faithful at a rally isn't going to get it done.
CREDIT CARD LOUNGES ARE SPROUTING UP EVERYWHERE NOW And I will be the first to admit I LIKE this perk of an expensive credit card a LOT. Now the lounges that have previously been in airports and other venues are now showing up in New York City for the right kind of customer. Read more here.
CHICAGO COPS SAY THEY ARE READY FOR PROTESTS And I will see first hand what is going to happen next week in Chicago when thousands of Pro-Hamas protesters are planning on showing up to disrupt the DNC. Read about their concerns here.
THE CAT HUNTING BAN WOULD BE VERY COSTLY And send the mountain lion population soaring which would be devastating for our elk and deer populations. Possibly our pet populations too as they cats move close to people. This is a terrible idea that needs to die.
TGIF EREBODY And you should read it here.
DISNEY IS TRYING TO FIX THEIR PRICE PROBLEM After jacking up prices over and over again in the last five years Disney is seeing the result: reduced spending at their theme parks division. Fewer people are willing to pay the gigantic entry fees to visit what used to be the Happiest Place on Earth. Now Disney is trying to right the ship by offering tickets at different tiers and prices and discounted packages if you stay in one of their overpriced hotels. Good luck, Disney, you have no one to blame but your own greed.
FIVE PHRASES TO GET AHEAD AT WORK According to a coach who works with executives. Read them here and incorporate them to make yourself seems smarter at work.
WATCH CHUCK AND ME IN OUR JAPAN VIDEO! We do these every year and if you ONLY saw the behind the scenes of these....hooboy.
THIS CELEBRITY DOESN'T UNDERSTAND HOW TO DO IT Watch below or click here.
WANT TO WIN A PAIR OF TICKETS TO THIS WEEKEND'S GAME?
THE CLIPPERS NEW HOME IS PRETTY FLY
NO GEN Z, YOU DON'T NEED TO GET CUTE ON A RESUME I get it, you don't have a lot of "work" experience so you think you need to pad your resume. Don't. Just don't. Gen Z is adding "skills" to their resumes that are just...special. No capital letters or punctuation, introductory letters that look like a dating profile, these people need serious help here.
THE SAN ANTONIO ZOO WEIGHS IN ON RAYGUN'S PERFORMANCE And crushed it.