Colorado legislature refers measure to November ballot that would allow state to retain excess tax revenue above TABOR c
The Colorado General Assembly referred a state statute to the Nov. 3, 2026, ballot that would allow the state to retain and spend revenue collected above constitutional limits to fund K-12 education programs and operating costs. Legislators passed the statute on May 12, 2026.
Introduced as Senate Bill 135 (SB 135) on March 5, 2026, the measure would allow the state to retain excess tax revenue equal to its fiscal year spending on public K-12 education, thereby effectively increasing the cap set by the Colorado Taxpayers' Bill of Rights (TABOR). SB 135 would also dedicate at least half of the total surplus, in addition to 2% of the state's K-12 education expenditures for that fiscal year, to K-12 schools. The remaining surplus funds would be allocated to a children's account in the general fund, which can be used for programs "that prepare children to be successful in school," such as full-day preschool and child care.
The bill initially passed the Colorado State Senate by a 23-12 vote on April 27, 2026, with 23 Democrats voting in favor and 12 Republicans voting against it. The Colorado House of Representatives approved an amended version of SB 135 by a vote of 42-21 on May 9, 2026, thereby sending it back to the state Senate for final approval, with 42 Democrats voting in support and one Democrat and 20 Republicans voting against it. The state Senate approved the amended version of SB 135 on May 12, 2026, by a vote of 23-12, with 23 Democrats voting in support and 12 Republicans voting against it.
Speaking in support of SB 135, state Sen. Jeff Bridges (D-26), one of the bill's sponsors, said it "guarantees that K-12 is the primary beneficiary of this" and that it "[has] the potential to be one of the most transformative measures for K-12 funding." Ken Vick, president of the Colorado Education Association, which is a union supporting SB 135, stated that it "[gives] voters the opportunity to decide whether Colorado should invest the revenue it already collects in public education without raising taxes or asking Coloradans to pay a dollar more.”
https://news.ballotpedia.org/2026/05/13/colorado-legislature-refers-measure-to-november-ballot-that-would-allow-state-to-retain-excess-tax-revenue-above-tabor-cap-to-fund-k-12-education/