Lakewood City Council Proposes Permanent Lift of TABOR Limits for Extra Sales Tax Revenue
Council Member Stewart Advocates for Stable Funding to Improve City Infrastructure and Services
According to CBS NEWS, the Lakewood City Council has decided to put a measure on the ballot that would make the current lift of TABOR (Taxpayer Bill of Rights) limits permanent. This law lets Lakewood keep extra sales tax money that TABOR doesn’t allow, but it will end next year.
The council wants people to decide in November if they want this policy to last forever. The head of the Budget and Audit Committee on the City Council, Rebekah Stewart, says that stable funding is important for fixing up the city’s old services and facilities.
Lakewood raised the limits on TABOR in 2017. The city has used the extra money, about $8 million a year, to pay for important things like parks, public safety, and road work. Stewart says that this money is very important for keeping city services running easily and reassures people that the money will still be used in the same way.
Even though she is worried about how this might affect people in the future, she thinks that making the exemption permanent will help the city plan for the future and give them a steady flow of money.
Opponents Raise Concerns Over Permanent TABOR Exemption; Voters to Have Final Say
Some people, like Natalie Menten, a TABOR rights activist, and Wendy Schrader, a community member, are against the move. Menten believes that making the exemption permanent would take away the voters’ right to choose in the future.
Schrader is worried that people might want to get their money back directly instead of putting it into city projects. Stewart says that making changes to the community with the money is a better use of it than giving small refunds. In the end, voters will decide what will happen with the bill in the next election.