School tax hike would waste your money

Referendum C set TABOR’s tax baseline at the highest amount collected between 2005 to 2010. Ref C’s big-spending advocates promised that its tax burden would last only five years. But Coloradans still pay $1 billion each year. Now our state wants Amendment 66, an additional $1 billion annually. Rather than its ever-expanding bloated budget, the state should eliminate inefficiencies and consolidate or privatize government functions.

Education consumes 37 percent of the budget, roughly $10,000 per pupil. Still, despite billions of tax dollars spent on education, pupil achievement remains essentially flat. Moreover, the state will impose more regulations, taking yet more control of their children’s schooling away from parents.

High taxes stifle the economy, reduce the amount individuals have to spend, and limit the ability of businesses to expand or to maintain employee benefits.

Amendment 66 carries a $1 billion price tag that will grow every year. Its goals cannot be measured. Colorado taxpayers deserve better.

Dems insult our intelligence

After weeks of uncivil wrangling, the Democrat-controlled state legislature passed a flurry of gun-control bills. The purported justification for violating our Second Amendment rights is public safety. Despite extensive data, the bills’ supporters aver that draconian gun-control measures are required to reduce violence. Before the newly-passed bills have even been signed, though, those legislators introduced a bill to repeal the death penalty. But isn’t the death penalty supposed to deter violence?

Is this a case of rampant illogic, callous deceit or blatant hypocrisy? Do the Democrat legislators think that we voters are mere unthinking silly-putty? I hope that they’re wrong.

Can we keep America exceptional?

President Obama insists that America is not exceptional. Yet for his flawed economic policies to work, he must rely on an amazing degree of exceptionalness. Like any nation, we are not exempt from the consequences of ill-considered choices. We have the advantage of observing the outcome that decades of overspending and social profligacy have caused in Europe -- welfare dependency, oppressive taxation and insurmountable debt. And riots.

America is indeed exceptional in many important ways: freedom, innovation, opportunity, honor. But bloated government outlays and intrusive, business-thwarting regulations bring economic collapse, even here.

Tax-hungry Centennial wants it all

Centennial's city council, at its 13 August meeting, authorized a November ballot proposal allowing the city to "retain and spend excess revenues." TABOR, our Taxpayer's Bill of Rights in the Colorado constitution, permits a government to retain a limited amount the prior year's revenue increased by the inflation rate plus the percentage increase in real property valuation. Revenue collected above that threshold must be returned to the taxpayers. About 65% of Centennial's revenue is already exempt from that revenue cap. The remaining 35% is temporarily exempt as well. The exemption expires on 31 December 2013. The city's ballot measure would seek to make that expiring exemption permanent.

Several obvious paths should be considered before voters approve granting the city permanent exemption on all of its revenue.

* While continued economic recession still depresses the city's revenue, voters could approve another temporary waiver. Granted that elections are costly, but the city holds elections every other year anyway for city council members and every fourth year for mayor.

* If the amount to be returned is unreasonably small for the cost and effort needed, voters could allow the city to retain excess revenue until the return amount reached some practical, cost-effective figure.

* Rather than asking permission to retain excess, Centennial could lower its taxes and fees. Thus the city would not have the problem of excess revenue.

Lower taxes and fees would promote economic growth and jobs, thus increasing both the city's revenue and the people's well-being. Even the IRS refunds over-payments.