Property tax reform bill advances as special session’s first day reveals tension

The scope of the Colorado legislature’s special session to cut property taxes took clearer shape on its first day Monday as lawmakers shot down a slew of ancillary bills but made progress on a marquee ballot deal.

Legislative leaders and the governor are pushing House Bill 1001, a $248 million cut to property taxes statewide that, most importantly to them, could result in initiatives 50 and 108 being yanked from November’s ballot. If passed by voters, those measures, which are backed by conservative and business-oriented groups, would force even deeper cuts to the state’s assessment rate — which directly affects local property tax bills — and put in place a strict cap on how much tax revenue can increase each year.

The bill passed its first hurdle late Monday afternoon, winning approval 8-3 in the House Appropriations Committee, and progressed to a full debate on the House floor.

But that debate won’t happen until Tuesday, drawing out the special session by at least one more day beyond the three-day minimum for a bill to become law. That means lawmakers now will meet at least through Thursday.

As financial projections were refined, the potential impact came into clearer view Monday. Sen. Chris Hansen, a Denver Democrat, said an average homeowner in an area with typical mill levies would see a reduction in the ballpark of $77 a year — though the impact would vary with local circumstances. Those reductions also may only partially offset tax growth in some areas.

The measure is being sponsored by House Speaker Julie McCluskie, a Dillon Democrat, and House Minority Leader Rose Pugliese, a Colorado Springs Republican.

A series of local governments asked the committee to amend the bill, but none more consistently than local fire districts. Firefighters from several districts bristled at the proposal of deeper cuts to property tax rates as they already struggle to keep up with higher day-to-day costs and the ever-increasing danger of longer fire seasons.

Lawmakers on the committee, however, highlighted the choice they saw between the cuts in the bill and the risk of “draconian” cuts from the initiatives.

Most lawmakers and people testifying agreed the risk was too great.

“We are faced with the choice of responsible governance, and I really believe that we have to pass a bill to make sure that these terrible initiatives are taken down, while providing additional responsible relief that ensures that critical services are protected,” said Rep. Kyle Brown, a Louisville Democrat, before voting to advance the measure.

The firefighters said they preferred to fight the ballot measures during the fall campaign season than face more death by a dozen legislative cuts.

If fire departments can’t keep their doors open, Elizabeth Fire Department Chief T.J. Steck warned in an interview, it will also jeopardize homeowners’ ability to secure insurance, much less afford it.

“I would ask that you vote no (on this bill), simply because we would have a chance to survive,” he said.

The groups backing the initiatives, including Advance Colorado and Colorado Concern, reiterated their pledge to pull the measures in a letter to the legislature Monday morning — if the legislation, as agreed upon, is signed by Gov. Jared Polis.

They struck the deal with legislative leaders and the governor in the weeks leading up to the special session. It includes specific assessment rate figures, caps on revenue increases and language on how local governments would need to ask their voters to override the caps.

The opacity of the deal — what its edges are and a feeling among some lawmakers that they’ve been called back simply to rubber-stamp it — has been a simmering point of tension among the Democratic majority. That tension came to the fore during the committee meeting.