Polis calls for more property tax relief

Asks for $200M

BY JESSE PAUL THE COLORADO SUN

Gov. Jared Polis wants state lawmakers to deliver an additional $200 million in property tax relief over the next two years, bringing the total respite o ered by the legislature over that period to $900 million, as Democrats and Republicans debate a long-term solution to rising tax bills resulting from skyrocketing property values across Colorado.

If the legislature, which begins its 2023 lawmaking term Monday, approves the expanded relief, it will mark the third time in as many years state lawmakers slap a Band-Aid on the problem that is Colorado’s property tax situation, which has big rami cations for schools and local government entities funded by property tax revenue.

A long-term solution palatable to many people and groups involved in the discussions, however, remains elusive, which is why Polis and the General Assembly keep o ering temporary xes.

Polis made the additional relief request in his supplemental budget request last week. He didn’t say how the relief should be o ered, however, explaining that he will mostly leave that to the legislature.

If the legislature approves Polis’ request — and that’s a big “if” — it will be the second time in two years state lawmakers will have limited the increase in Coloradans’ property tax bills for 2023 and 2024 in anticipation of a jump in property tax assessments. e General Assembly in 2022 cut $700 million from Coloradans’ expected property tax bills for those years.

“Assessments had a greater increase than any of us thought — 26.5%,” Polis said last week during a news conference. “We’re happy with the relief we provided. Assessments came in higher, so it warrants additional relief.” e governor wants the legislature to use $200 million of its discretionary general fund money to back ll tax revenue lost to school districts and other local government entities. State lawmakers may be reticent to hand over the cash, however, given the in ationary budget crunch they face this year.

Senate President Steve Fenberg, D-Boulder, told e Colorado Sun he thinks lawmakers “are open to doing general fund investments” to blunt the impact of rising assess-

“I think it will happen, though, simultaneously with a longer-term (property tax) solution rather than having to do this every year,” Fenberg said. “I think the bigger question is what ways can we solve the structural problem and get property taxes on the more sustainable path for residences as well as for commercial properties.”

Fenberg was referencing a replacement for the Gallagher Amendment, which Colorado voters stripped from the state constitution in 2020. Gallagher prevented residential property tax bills from quickly rising by shifting the tax burden to commercial property owners through assessment rates, which help determine how much property owners pay in taxes. But Gallagher collided with another constitutional amendment, the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, in a way that hamstrung the government entities that rely on property

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