Milton Friedman’s Vision in a Time of Crisis
Remarks Prepared for the Milton Friedman Birthday celebration, sponsored by the Friedman Foundation and the Independence Institute.
Colorado’s Budget: TABOR Still Working
The federal bailout is not stabilizing our state budget, but is in fact exacerbating the structural deficit in the budget.
A Fiscal Roadmap for Colorado
Colorado appears to be at a crossroads similar to that in California in the late 1980s. At that point California was a dynamic growing economy. That prosperity reflected a fiscal constitution that kept the growth of government in line with the growth of the private economy. California’s GANN Amendment, which was a precursor of the TABOR Amendment in Colorado, limited the growth of state revenue and spending to the sum of inflation and population growth. In the late 1980s, under pressure from the education employee lobby, the California legislature abandoned the GANN Amendment, and the rest is history.
The 6-percent Cap Works
The lesson is clear: if politicians truly are interested in the poor they should pursue policies to promote economic growth, not policies to retard economic growth — like SB 228.
Amendment 59 Would Give the Education Lobby a Blank Check
Amendment 59 will exacerbate budget problems such as those encountered during the recent recession.
Judge Habas Pursuan
(May 2008.) Author: DISTRICT COURT, CITY AND COUNTY OF DENVER COLORADO PDF of full Paper Scribd version of full Paper THIS MATTER comes before the Court for a court trial, commencing on May 5, 2008. The Court took testimony, received exhibits, and heard argument from all parties. The evidence was closed, subject to this Court’s […]
TABOR Benefits Colorado’s Citizens: A response to misleading Video
In 2005 the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) released a video to help defeat proposed measures like Colorado’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) in other states. Voters in several states are considering such measures in 2006, including Maine, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, and Oregon. The CBPP video’s message is that TABOR devastates the economy and the ability of government to fund schools, roads and health care. By understanding the truth, however, viewers will note that they have nothing to fear from passing their own TABOR. Unfortunately, they may not recognize the CBPP video for the highly misleading propaganda piece that it is.
‘Beware the Sin of Californication’
I want to preach to you today about the evils of Californication. Californication shows a terrible lack of moral fiber. Californication seems like fun at first, but has serious consequences down the road. And down that road we will surely go if Referenda C and D pass. The parallels between Colorado and California are astonishing. […]
Poll Shows Little Support to Weaken TABOR or Raise Taxes
The results of a new poll commissioned by the Independence Institute and the Colorado Club for Growth shows a lack of voter support for modifying Colorado’s Taxpayers Bill of Rights (TABOR) or seeking a TABOR override (known as De Brucing).
According to a scientific survey by the nationally-recognized polling firm TelOpinion Research, only 33 percent of likely Colorado voters who voted in the most recent election approve reducing their TABOR tax refunds or removing the so-call ratchet mechanism…
More than half (52%) of the survey’s 600 respondents altogether opposed weakening TABOR or giving up $500 million in tax surplus refunds. Only 33% are in favor of a proposal.
Citizens to Politicians: We Like TABOR
Colorado citizens not only understand, they support the specific provisions of TABOR.
Learning to Live Within Colorado’s Tax and Spending Limits
The Colorado Commission on Taxation has just completed a survey of Colorado citizen attitudes toward the tax system. This is an important survey because it reflects the views
of ordinary citizens rather than that of politicians or special interest groups. It reveals some hostility to taxes and a low trust in the efficiency of government. This skepticism
toward taxes and government efficiency is directly related to the size of government; citizens have more confidence in local government, less confidence in state government,
and least confidence in our federal government.
Should Colorado Spend $50 Million On Studying Disney- Style Mountain Monorail?
Enough studies! If this tax grab passes, it will add, at minimum, another three years until we even begin to fix the traffic problem on I-70. Despite the impression given, this proposal does not build a monorail, or anything else, in the mountain corridor. It is just another study replicating work being done by the Colorado and Federal Departments of Transportation. It will, however, cost every couple in Colorado about $40 out of their tax refunds.
