The need for targeted property tax relief has come to the forefront of the 2022 legislative session. Many different methods of addressing rising property taxes have been proposed. Some of these aim to cap rates at a fixed amount, similar to California’s Proposition-13 which distorted the housing market and stripped funding from communities. Additionally, $200 million of general fund revenue, which could otherwise be spent on things like schools & infrastructure, has been set aside in our state budget to address property taxes—though the specific mechanisms for doing so remain unclear.

What is clear is that Colorado needs a new tool to provide targeted relief to those who are actually struggling with property taxes. With a budget already constrained by a regressive TABOR cap, we can’t afford to use blunt tools that would send revenue to the highest-earning Coloradans who are doing just fine. Two new proposals, Initiatives 104 & 106, would take into account the vast wage gaps in our state by generating revenue off of luxury homes valued over $2 million. This additional revenue could be used for further affordable housing solutions or to backfill funds cut from other essential services.

Learn more about how these proposals work with our fact sheet above.