July 06, 2023 02:24 PM UTC

State Senate Republicans Demand To Waste Even More Time

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• by: Colorado Pols

This morning, the Colorado Senate Republican Minority called for Gov. Jared Polis to convene a special session of the Colorado General Assembly over the summer–a call that has left plenty of us wondering who is in charge of the minority of Colorado’s august body–since they don’t appear to have consulted with even their own Republican allies:

Today, the Colorado Senate Republicans called upon Governor Jared Polis to convene a special legislative session to address two immediate crises the people of Colorado are facing: the release of violent criminals back onto the streets, and skyrocketing property tax increases.

So the first issue cited in this release is something that both sides agree is an issue that needs to be addressed: a ruling last month by the Colorado Supreme Court interpreting Colorado’s repeal of the death penalty in 2020 to mean that capital crime suspects must be granted some form of bail. Since this ruling, judges have adapted by imposing sky-high cash-only bonds that have the practical effect of keeping suspected murderers in jail pending trial. 9NEWS reported on the issue last month:

A spokesperson for Democratic Governor Jared Polis said he supports changes in this area to prevent first-degree murder suspects from getting out on bail, and he called upon the state legislature to fix this “unintended consequence” even if that means a referred constitutional amendment.

Lawmakers go back to session in January 2024. Governor Polis could call for a special session, but [Sen. Rhonda] Fields said she wouldn’t be in favor of that.

“I would want to do the research and see what other states are doing regarding this matter and see if there is a legislative fix for it,” she said.

The Republican House Minority agrees that next January is the appropriate time to address this, notably failing to explicitly join the Senate GOP’s call for a special session while they work “with DAs and local law enforcement to draft law-and-order legislation for the next session.”

If there was any chance that Gov. Polis might accede to the Senate GOP’s demand for a special session to address this issue, the House GOP not being on board should put an end to that. But as readers know, that’s probably not the whole story behind the House wanting no part of this: from House Minority Leader Mike Lynch’s point of view, the last thing he needs is a special session for his fractious caucus to grind to a halt at their whim–whether Lynch makes a deal to stop them or not. While the House GOP was by most accounts responsible for the majority of the monkeywrenching in the regular session this year and not the Senate, any Republican demand for more time gaveled in to engage in the same performative obstruction should be viewed dimly based on how Republicans used the time they had.

That’s especially true for the second half of the Senate request for a special session, which is all about how much Republicans dislike the upcoming Proposition HH property tax stabilization measure on the ballot this November.

“Constituents have shared their recent property valuations demonstrating a 400% increase.” Senator Cleave Simpson (R-Alamosa) stated. ”Coloradans can’t afford this huge property tax increase and Proposition HH will not fix this issue. We must come together in a special session to provide immediate and thoughtful property tax policy.”

Everyone knows that property values have jumped in recent years, though we haven’t heard of an actual 400% valuation increase that doesn’t have a logical explanation like building another house. However exaggerated that claim is, homeowners certainly have benefited from that increase in equity–but naturally, nobody wants to pay taxes on it. Proposition HH is intended to limit the pain for property owners while ensuring that long-underfunded local public schools, the principal beneficiaries of property taxes, don’t get screwed in the rush for tax relief for homeowners.

Whether you like Proposition HH or not, Proposition HH is on the ballot, and it’s not coming off, making a call for a special session to debate a currently nonexistent alternative to Proposition HH before voters get their say at the polls a silly non-starter.

All told, it’s probably good for Senate Republicans to have fired off this press release during a holiday week in the middle of vacation season–because for their sake it’s better off forgotten.

Next time, at least get both minorities nobody is obliged to listen to on the same page.