Though an off-year election there were two significant tax votes yesterday that we had our eyes on. The first was a proposed constitutional amendment in Texas to ban a wealth tax. The second was a ballot measure in Colorado that would have reduced the required automatic tax refunds provided if revenue triggers were met. Voters in those states spoke loud and clear on both proposals. 68% of Texas voters approved the wealth tax ban and 60% of Colorado voters told state officials not to mess with the required tax refunds.
Here is a summary of the two proposals:
Texas Prop 3: “The constitutional amendment prohibiting the imposition of an individual wealth or net worth tax, including a tax on the difference between the assets and liabilities of an individual or family.” – 68% yes vote
Colorado Prop HH: “Shall the state reduce property taxes for homes and businesses, including expanding property tax relief for seniors, and backfill counties, water districts, fire districts, ambulance and hospital districts, and other local governments and fund school districts by using a portion of the state surplus up to the proposition HH cap as defined in this measure?” – 60% no vote
We previously wrote about both of these policies (proactively adding taxpayer protections to the constitution and providing automatic tax refunds) in this blog post.