Amendment 60

Resolution in opposition to the ballot initiative ON LOCAL PROPERTY TAX REVENUE

WHEREAS, the _______________ Board of Education is a public entity that provides educational services to the children in the _______________ School District; and

WHEREAS, a ballot initiative to amend Article X, Section 20 (“Taxpayer Bill of Rights” or “TABOR”) of the Colorado Constitution, which will appear on the general election ballot this November as Amendment 60, would cut in half all local property taxes used for the school district’s general fund and provides no credible means to replace these lost revenues; and

WHEREAS, the loss of 50% of the school district’s local property tax revenues would devastate the public educations provided to this community; and
WHEREAS, the decisions by voters of this school district to override TABOR revenue restrictions would be repealed by Amendment 60; and
WHEREAS, any future voter-approved property tax for the school district’s schools would expire within 10 years; and

WHEREAS, Amendment 60 would defeat and reverse the decisions of local communities on how to raise and allocate local resources, including public education, and consequently, eliminate local control of local budgets, including those of local boards of education; and

WHEREAS, Amendment 60 would reduce the local revenues available to local boards of education and severely impact the ability of school districts to effectively maintain an infrastructure to respond to the needs of educating Colorado’s children;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, the ________________ Board of Education officially declares its opposition to Amendment 60.

Dated this ____ day of _____________________, 2010.

Amendment 61

Resolution in opposition to the ballot initiative ON public borrowing

WHEREAS, the _______________ Board of Education is a public entity that provides educational services to the children in the _______________ School District; and

WHEREAS, a ballot initiative to amend the Colorado Constitution, which will appear on the general election ballot this November as Amendment 61, would ban the use of any kind of debt by the State of Colorado and severely restrict the ability of local school districts to issue debt or to utilize appropriate and prudent business practices in managing the finances of the school district; and

WHEREAS, Amendment 61 would severely limit the ability of local communities to determine the appropriate use of local funds by this school board, including bonding and other appropriate and prudent debt obligations, for building and other capital needs; and

WHEREAS, Amendment 61 would disallow state funding programs that provide the means for some school districts to have sufficient cash flow to meet operating costs during the early parts of the school year (due to the timing of the collection of property tax revenues), and thus potentially cause school closures or reductions in education services; and
WHEREAS, Amendment 61 would prohibit or severely and unnecessarily constrain the ability of local school districts to use appropriate and well-established business practices in their normal day-to-day operations, such as refinancing bonded debt at a lower interest rate and using lease-purchase agreements to fund office equipment and furnishings; and

WHEREAS, Amendment 61 would eliminate prudent and cost-effective state programs that assist local school districts such as BEST (Building Excellent Schools Today) that permits many school districts to build new schools; and

WHEREAS, Amendment 61 would result in the elimination of the resources available for public education programs and cause further cuts in public education at a time when public education is already suffering from cuts in resources that diminish the educational services and opportunities available to Colorado’s children; and

WHEREAS, Amendment 61 could be economically devastating to the Colorado economy by eliminating jobs and deterring out-of-state companies from doing business in Colorado or with Colorado public entities, including school districts;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, the ________________ Board of Education officially declares its opposition to Amendment 61.

Dated this ____ day of _____________________, 2010.

Proposition 101

Resolution in opposition to the ballot initiative on Motor vehicle, Income and Telecommunications Taxes and Fees

WHEREAS, the _______________ Board of Education is a public entity that provides educational services to the children in the _______________ School District; and

WHEREAS, a proposed ballot initiative to amend the Colorado Statutes, which will appear on the general election ballot this November as Proposition 101, requires the reduction of public resources and valuable public programs, including public education, by radically reducing certain specific ownership fees and taxes; and

WHEREAS, Proposition 101 would reduce the state budget by over one billion dollars, forcing drastic and unsustainable cuts to public education, as well as health care, and dozens of other critical public services; and
WHEREAS, Proposition 101 would cause school districts to lose specific ownership taxes, including losses of up to _______________ by this district; and
WHEREAS, current economic difficulties and the resulting budget cuts, including cuts to the State Education Fund, are already in violation of the Article IX, Section 17 of the Colorado Constitution, as well as the Colorado Constitution’s mandate that the State establish and maintain a “thorough and uniform system of public schools” throughout Colorado; and
WHEREAS, the budget cuts that would result from Proposition 101 would ensure that the mandates of the Colorado Constitution could never be met;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, the _______________ Board of Education officially declares its opposition to Proposition 101 because it would cripple the ability of the state to meet its obligations to establish and sufficiently fund public education in the State of Colorado and devastate the ability of local boards of education throughout the state, including this Board, to adequately serve the educational needs of children in the community.
Dated this ____ day of _____________________, 2010.

Please add your name to Great Futures’ open letter to voters: we won’t let another year go by without giving voters a chance to improve resources for public education!

As the House sponsor of HCR10-1002, the “DECIDE” referendum, I have some bad news and good news for public education supporters in Colorado.

The bad news is that DECIDE won’t be on the ballot in November.  Although a majority of representatives voted for DECIDE on final passage (35-30), we were unable to reach the two-thirds majority necessary to put DECIDE on the ballot.

I am disappointed that Colorado voters won’t be given the opportunity to DECIDE in November whether to give the legislature the ability to avoid deep cuts to education in 2011.

But those of you who know me know that I’m always looking forward, and planning to build toward future victories.

So let me tell you the good news and what’s next. We accomplished so much, just by proposing and supporting DECIDE.

• We changed the debate about education funding, taxes and TABOR. (Just look at all the press coverage!)  Until Great Ed and the Great Futures coalition brought DECIDE forward, cuts to schools, colleges and universities were considered inevitable.  DECIDE has reminded the legislature and Colorado voters that we have the power to change course and do what’s right for our kids.
• You shook the Capitol.  The flood of emails and calls, the huge turnout at the hearings, and the eloquent, heartfelt testimony from such a diversity of backgrounds, were like nothing I’ve ever seen on school funding.  Seeing that sea of red in the hearing room, with testimony from DECIDE supporters from age 8 to 80, Democrats and Republicans, business owners, clergy, students and educators, made me proud, and hopeful for the future of Colorado.
• Great Ed Action and Great Futures Colorado — and you — are building the army we’ll need for meaningful budget reform. You and thousands of others, are now part of a vibrant, grassroots coalition that has united P-12 and higher ed, and is ready to take the next steps to put Colorado back on the path to investing in our children and our future.

So here’s the question.  Are you ready to keep fighting for better funding for education in Colorado? If so, here’s your first chance to take action by adding your name to Great Ed’s open letter to Colorado voters.

With the momentum of DECIDE at our backs, we must show Colorado that this is just the beginning, and that we will keep fighting until we have given Colorado’s future generations a proud legacy of a great education for every child.

With DECIDE, we’ve made a real difference — and we’ve only just begun.  Thank you for your support and for everything you do for Colorado’s kids, schools, colleges, and universities.

UPDATE: Read the news here

On March 24, the Great Futures Colorado Campaign unveiled a proposed referred measure called DECIDE: “DECIDE: Education Cuts or Invest in our Democracy and Economy.”

Congrats to Sam Adams, comedian, sports guy and Great Ed Video star, who defeated all comers in the amateur competition at the Great American Comedy Festival.

Even better, Sam was invited to compete with the pros, and has advanced to the finals at the Johnny Carson Theater in Norfolk, Nebraska.