CCLP testifies in support of legal action against TABOR

by Bethany Pray, Esq.| Apr 8, 2025

Equity work, Legal Advocacy, Legislative Updates, News, Research and Policy Analysis

On Monday, April 7, 2025, Bethany Pray, CCLP's Chief Legal and Policy Officer, provided testimony to the House Finance Committee in support of House Joint Resolution 25-1023, Require General Assembly TABOR Constitutionality Lawsuit. CCLP is in support of HJR25-1023.

Chairman Snyder and members of the committee,

I am Bethany Pray, and I'm the Chief Legal and Policy Officer of the Colorado Center on Law and Policy, a statewide anti-poverty organization advancing the rights of all Coloradans, and I speak in support of House Joint Resolution 1023. Over the past decades, TABOR's funding restrictions have eroded our rights as U.S. citizens. Three examples:

• In 2012, the state reached settlement on a federal suit about excessive wait times for criminal defendants who needed competency evaluations and restoration services, the so-called Jail Wait case, violating their 14thAmendment [due process] rights. Failures to comply due to inadequate funding led to new litigation in 2015 and again in 2018. Every year, the state must pay millions of dollars in finesbecause of noncompliance. That's because of TABOR.

• In 2024, the state settled a class-action, G.A. v. Bimestefer, on behalf of Medicaid-enrolled youth who could not access the intensive, community based behavioral health services that Medicaid must provide and were forced, instead, into restrictive institutional settings, violating civil rights law and the Medicaid Act. Looking at states that faced similar litigation, we know it will cost $20-30M a year to comply. This year, we're spending just $4M. That's because of TABOR.

• In 2023, the U.S. DOJ sued the state of Colorado for violating the ADA's integration mandate - inappropriately institutionalizing Coloradans in nursing homes. That case settled in 2024. Under the Long Bill, the in-reach program for folks in nursing homes who couldlive in the community will be funded at $600k less than in 2024-25. That's because of TABOR.

Courts have established that lack of funding is no excuse for non-compliance, so Colorado is running a giant risk here. But what we should really care about is that we are failing as a state to ensure that Coloradans get the protections due to all U.S. citizens. That's tragic. Please support House Joint Resolution 1023.

Update: HJR25-1023 passed the House Finance Committee on 4/7/2025 and will be heard on the House Floor next.

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