Ritter signs soda, other tax bills
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Gov. Bill Ritter Wednesday signed nine bills that end or suspend a variety of tax exemptions, mostly affecting business. The one that may be most noticed by consumers is a levy on soda and candy.
The measures, pushed through the legislature despite Republican opposition, are projected to raise $15.6 million in revenue for the current, 2009-10 budget year and $132.6 million for 2010-11, providing part of the answer for the state’s budget balancing riddle. They generally were backed by education groups who feared K-12 cuts would be even steeper without the revenue.
Cuts in state K-12 support could be $250 million to $350 million or more in 2010-11, depending on how you calculate it. Higher education is on target to take a $60 million cut in state and federal support, although increased tuition will maintain overall higher ed revenue at a bit more than current levels.
The legislature passed and Ritter signed the bills based on a 2009 Colorado Supreme Court ruling that certain taxes could be adjusted without voter consent, as would otherwise be required under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights.
The candy-and-soda tax is contained in House Bill 10-1191. The other eight measures involve direct mail supplies, fuels used in industry, a tax on some software, out-of-state retailers, some restaurant supplies, agricultural supplies, alternative fuel vehicles and net operating losses. Two other measures involving conservation easements and enterprise zones are still pending in the legislature.
As expected, the House Finance Committee Wednesday killed House Bill 10-1295, which would have allowed parents to take substantial tax credits for the cost of private schools and even for home schooling. The bill failed to advance on a 4-6 party line vote, and the committee Democrats killed it with a 6-4 vote.
It was the second such proposal killed by the panel in as many days. On Tuesday the committee dispatched House Bill 10-1296, a more limited proposal that would have allowed lower-income families to take smaller tax credits for private school tuition.
Wednesday’s victim, HB 10-1295, was sponsored by 25 Republicans and would have allowed annual credits of $500 for part-time and $1,000 for full-time home schooled students. Private school students would have been eligible for a credit equal to half of average state per-pupil aid to schools.
People who provided scholarships for private school students also would have been eligible for tax credits.
Legislative staff analyses estimated that even though the state would have lost income tax revenue because of the bills, it would have saved more in per-pupil aid to school districts. Local districts, of course, could have lost big money.
Such “voucher-like” bills are kind of ritualistic. Republicans, especially more conservative ones, like to introduce them to make a statement. But, they’re anathema to Democrats (and traditional school groups like the Colorado Education Association) so go nowhere as long as Democrats are in the majority.
In 2003, when the GOP controlled the legislature and the governor’s office, lawmakers passed a bill by Republican Nancy Spence of Centennial, then in the House but now a senator, that created a limited, pilot voucher program focused on at-risk students.
But, in 2004 the Colorado Supreme Court struck down that law, ruling it violated the school local control provisions of the state constitution.
Later that year Democrats took control of both houses, making vouchers and tax credits non-starters ever since.
The House and Senate both dug in backlogs of floor work Wednesday. Here’s what happened on education-related bills:
- House Bill 10-1026 – Incentive grants for quality childcare programs, House preliminary approval
- Senate Bill 10-081 – Creation of farm-to-school task force, Senate final approval
- Senate Bill 10-150 – Transfer of schools lands revenue to current K-12 spending, Senate final approval
- Senate Bill 10-059 – Tax check off for D.A.R.E. program, Senate final approval
- Senate Bill 10-111 – Charter schools ability to contract with BOCES, Senate preliminary approval
- Senate Bill 10-088 – Allowing community college academic majors, Senate preliminary approval
Use the Education Bill Tracker for links to bill texts and status information.
Sucessful tax Bill. Thanks Bill. Hello taxes.
Googbye failed Bill.
i can see that bill ritter has finally learned from the wisdom of obama and knows that spending the most money will make colorado a great state. bill better hope that he can spend fast enough to get colorado the best but he can look to obama to learn more wisdom on how to spend fast and much. it is so good to see these people learn from obamas true information and we know that we all want obama as president because he will bring us true hope and change. it is only those rich right wing nuts that will drink those sodas-the common man is not that rich to have that luxueries.
art
Art – you have again lost control of your capital key and your mind. Here is a corrected copy for you;
“I can see that Taxritter has learned nothing from the lunacy of Obama and knows that spending the most money will make us a broke state. Nothing he spends will get this state moving. Using Scotch whisky is much better than soda-pop, just for your information.”
geneo,
Catching that capitol letter thing was nice of you. Of course you are still hung up on right winged media. William ritter is a good learner from the best of obama and will make this co state like the great usa. In time all will see the true information of obama and know that he is doing his election promises. Looks like more people are seeing that there vote for obama was the best. Lieing people say obama is a liar but we know that we voted for obama because we are reasonable and not to be lied to. Getting the best for colorado is good for ritter to do and he will see that everyone wants this. Obama must have had a little chat with ritter last week and it worked. Ritter sees the smartness of obamas big spending to make the state and usa the best ever. It only means that right winged nuts will not be the only people with health care. Getting health care to all people in colorado can be paid for with candy taxes. How else can we help all the people or race in colorado? This is why us reasoned people gave obama our votes as he is helping everyone.
art
And what were those election promises again Art.
deke,
exactly the things we see good obama doing. you are not one that thinks obama is a liar are you?
art
What good things are those, unReasonableArt? I bet you think Carter did great things too, huh? Yea, I happen to be one of millions of people who think Obama is a liar. Fortunately, the Republicans finally grew a pair, and are standing up to him and his reckless agenda. How is it Art, that you can advocate reckless spending the way you do? I’m still waiting for a coherent thought from you. Your brown-nosing is really getting annoying. Think for yourself for once.
matt,
So sorry that you do not see the good of obama. All that right winged media of cheny is trying to make obama as a liar. They do not see that obama is working today with right winged people for bi-partisons for the health care, that he has the world give better relations to the usa and they liek us again. It is sad to think that you think so many of the usa majoritys believed a lie. Really hard to image that you think the majority of the usa voted for obama and his true information and you think they were beleiving in a lie of information. Ed stien still knows that obama is the best president for the usa and has done his election promises and can do those promises by spending the most money and running companys like gm that need help in doing better.
art
Art,
It’s a shame that you would call good evil, and evil good. Obama is an evil man, more so, are his policies. Obama wishes to impose his heinous will on, and destroy everything that made this country great. The people have spoken time and again against the ‘health’ care policies of this adminstration, only to be shunned into oblivioin, thereby proving that this debate, that this battle is NOT about healthcare, but rather power hungry lunatics bent on a communist state. The sheeple that elected him, elected a personality. Obama campaigned on personal traits, and eluded real issues. Obama is leftist, and leftist can’t debate the merits of their beliefs. Why do I say that? Because when you compare liberty to slavery, the choices are clear. Conservatives preach liberty, responsibility, choice and freedom. Liberals preach dependance on government (welfare, healthcare), blame somebody else (mortgage crisis,), anything goes (political correctness, label people who dont’ agree with you as homophobic, sexists, bigots, etc.) and slavery to your neighbors (Cash for Clunkers, Higher Taxes etc.).
Obama doesn’t care about bi-partisianship. Quite frankly, neither do I. You won the election, you pass health care. O wait, you can’t! It’s the democrats holding it up! They had a filibuster proof majority, and couldn’t get it done! Can’t blame the republicans! Can’t blame CNN, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, NBC, they did their best to get it passed.
Why are you so interested in other countries liking us? They’re envious (translate that as Socialist) of the United States success because we’re free! It’s not our fault they can’t get their act together and be prosperous.
If so many of us believe a lie, is the same true that a majority of Americans believed the lie when Obama campaigned on Hope and Change? Where is it? Who’s the liar?
Matt
P.S. GM should have failed.
Re; P.S.
Remember when the libs were telling us if GM went bankrupt, people would lose confidence in the company and nobody would buy their cars? They said that. Then they bailed out GM. Then GM went bankrupt after the libs gave them all our (and our children’s a and grandchildren’s money). . . Well ?? If anyone had a brain they would never vote for a Democrat again. Of course, their voters are not required to have brains, just feelings.
Following up on my last line; . . not required to have brains, just feelings.”
Over at Powerline blog are lots of analysis of todays’ health care meeting where O. demonstrated his ignorance on many levels. One particular episode is documented by John Hinderocker. It is titled, Why Obama Hates insurance Companies.” Hinderocker ends with the line; “The more we see of Barack Obama, the stranger he appears to be. Either that, or he is cynically making stuff up to play to an audience that is ignorant with respect to insurance, and much else.” If you are interested, read it at;
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2010/02/025686.php
You’re Gene, which sucks, because I liked GM. Now, unfortunately, I’m morally obligated to buy a FORD! I’d been wanting a Buick Enclave for the last couple of years, but now, I ‘ainna gonna do it!”
Matt,
If you can hold off long enough to where GM gets the goberment paid paid back . . if ever?. . that Buick Enclave would be good to buy. While I have no love for the UAW, it is built near Lansing, Michigan in a new plant and ought to be a great car.
Aaarrrtt? Where are youuuu? Hello, Aaarrtt?
Here is a great FAIL link to a commercial by the Soda Ad Council. They show a super market in the Bronx that will be effected by the new tax, but look at all the crap that this woman is buying with her soda! this needs to be about nutrition education and not a penny per bottle of sugar water
http://nineteen80snore.com/2010/03/15/no-taxation-without-carbonation/
This is not about health or nutrition, idiot.
It is only about raising money. Taxes for the government. That it all.
There is no such a thing as a Proposed Tax Bill that gets passed by legislatures that should n’t involve voters input. It is the voters,consumers that are forced by law to pay these increase in taxes no matter what they buy or consume. All proposed tax increases should be voted on by the taxpayers. Legislatures should have absolutely no authority to raise taxes on anything without asking the voters on their consent. After all, we are a nation run by the consent of the governed, and no government entity either local,state, or federal should have the authority to arbitrarily raise taxes on any product or service without the voters imput and consent. Any and all local, state and federal lawmakers who do raise taxes without the consent of the governed should be voted out or even recalled by the voters of their respective states or localities immediately Taxation without representation of the governed need to be stopped immediately..