The Colorado Senate yesterday passed House Bills 1257 and 1258, which would allow voters to decide whether the state can keep excess revenues under the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) and allocate one-third each to transportation, higher education and public schools.
Earlier this legislative session, the Board of Directors of the Colorado Chamber of Commerce voted to support these proposals. The bipartisan legislation is sponsored by Colorado House Speaker KC Becker, Rep. Julie McCluskie, Sen. Lois Court, and Sen. Kevin Priola. Loren Furman, senior vice president of state and federal relations for the Colorado Chamber, testified in support of the bill in committee.
The Colorado Chamber represents a variety of industries across the state, from retailers to manufacturers to energy companies and more. The Chamber’s mission is to encourage a business-friendly environment so companies will want to do business in Colorado, and transportation is key to that goal. Companies need to have the ability to efficiently transport their goods and services from point A to point B, and employees need to be able to get to their jobs easily.
“The mission of the Colorado Chamber is to champion a healthy business climate, and in order to maintain Colorado as a top state for business, it’s crucial that we invest in critical transportation infrastructure to keep up with growth,” Furman said in a statement last month. “In recent years, lawmakers have struggled to address Colorado’s growing transportation challenges and this proposal is a step in the right direction.”
The State of Colorado needs a viable long-term funding source to solve our transportation needs – and these bills allow the voters to decide if this is the best approach. The bills now go to the governor for signature.