DENVER (KDVR) — Colorado lawmakers head back to the Capitol on Friday for a special session to address rising property taxes after Proposition HH failed.
Now, Democrats are looking at a scaled-down, one-year version to lower property taxes by handing out uniform refunds under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. The tax surplus would then help fund local districts, like schools, libraries and fire departments instead.
Bell Policy Center President Scott Wasserman joined “Colorado Point of View” ahead of the special session to walk through the proposals and the pushback.
The leader of the left-leaning think tank said a big criticism of Prop HH was that renters felt left out. Now, Wasserman argues legislators need to focus on helping those who are really struggling.
“So the question right now is: Who needs the most help, and what would make this biggest impact? So this is why we’re talking about the earned income tax credit,” Wasserman said.
Earned income tax credit in focus for special session
Democrats are trying to increase the tax credit for those who make under $65,000 a year.
“I think the data shows that these are the folks who are most on the verge of housing instability. There’s also going to be an attempt to put money into rental assistance,” Wasserman said.
Republicans are instead looking to cut $1.4 billion in property taxes and reduce the state’s income tax to 4%, leaving TABOR refunds alone. Democrats say that won’t work, but there are complaints their proposal is too close to Prop HH.
Wasserman said it’s “sort of” the same.
“This is going to be a very narrowed down package to deliver short-term relief just for one year,” Wasserman said.
Watch the full conversation with Scott Wasserman on “Colorado Point of View” this Sunday at 7:30 a.m. on Colorado’s Very Own Channel 2.
Read More: Earned income tax credit in focus for Colorado special session