Colorado Proposition HH defeated 60% to 40% with 1.2 million votes counted

UPDATE: Colorado's Proposition HH, which deals with property taxes, was defeated Tuesday. As of about 9:20 p.m., over 756,000 people voted against it and about 491,000 voted in favor. For our explainer on Prop HH, read below:

Colorado's statewide election is Tuesday and on the ballot – in addition to any local elections, depending on where you live – are several initiatives. One of those is Proposition HH, which deals with property taxes and refunds under the Colorado Taxpayer's Bill of Rights, also known as TABOR.

In short, a "yes" vote would reduce the impending increases in local property taxes while increasing the state spending limit – an effective tax increase, which is why it needs to go to the ballot. A "no" vote would keep them as they are. 

The longer version is a bit more complex and people supporting either side of the issue have leveled accusations about what a vote in either direction would actually do. Proposition HH is essentially voters deciding whether or not to enact SB23-303, the full language of which can be read here.

A "yes" vote for HH, according to Ballotpedia, would mean the following:

• Reducing property tax rates;
• Allowing the state to retain and spend revenues that it would otherwise be required to refund to residents under TABOR;
• Creating a new, increased cap on state revenue, allowing the state to retain and spend additional revenue each year up to the Proposition HH Cap;
• Allocating revenue to local governments to make up for decreased property tax revenues; and
  
• Creating a limit on local government property tax revenue.

What supporters and opponents say

Support and opposition to SB23-303 were split down party lines in the State House and Senate with no dissenters or holdouts on either side. Views toward HH appear to also be informed by party politics and how that influences economic policy. 

Supporters

Those in favor of Prop HH, who tend to be Democrats and liberals, argue that not only will property taxes be reduced if it passes, but local government agencies and schools will get more funding, as it would allow the state to keep the money it currently refunds to residents through TABOR checks.

Prominent supporters of HH include Gov. Jared Polis and State Senate President Stephen Fenberg, both Democrats, as well as the Colorado Democratic Party.

RELATED: Gov. Jared Polis signs property tax bill designed to bring relief to homeowners

"Because of the very strong economy and very strong TABOR surplus, we are able to do both: we are able to not jeopardize or cut funding for our schools and provide important property tax relief today," Polis said at a bill signing for SB23-303 earlier this year.

"If you want to cut your property taxes next year and make sure your local schools and fire departments are funded, you should vote FOR Proposition HH," Scott Wasserman, president of the liberal Bell Policy Center, wrote on X, formerly Twitter. "If you are worried about what the size of your TABOR rebate will be 8 years from now, vote no & brace for chaos."

"The only thing that makes Colorado stand apart from other states when it comes to education is how little money we put toward our schools, not how we spend it. That's why we need to support Proposition HH," he wrote in another tweet.

As far as fundraising goes, supporters of HH -- almost entirely the group Property Tax Relief Now -- have raised over $2.5 million as of Nov. 3 and spent $1.8 million of that, according to state campaign finance data. Its biggest donors include the Sixteen Thirty Fund, Education Reform Now Advocacy Inc., Gary Advocacy LLC, Boldly Forward and Colorado billionaire and philanthropist Pat Stryker.

Opposition

Critics of HH, who lean conservative, Proposition HH is a tax increase that takes away TABOR refunds while providing neither meaningful property tax relief now, nor long-term reform to control future tax increases.

Prominent opponents of HH include State House Minority Leader Mike Lynch, a Republican, and the Republican Party of Denver.

Michael Fields, president of the conservative Advance Colorado Institute, is the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit where he argues Proposition HH violates the state's single-subject rule – which prohibits bundling several issues on a ballot measure – and contains misleading ballot language.

"Proposition HH greenlights the largest tax increase in Colorado history and also takes away your TABOR refund," he said in a video he posted on his X, formerly Twitter. "Don't trust the ballot language; it's misleading. It's trying to hide what it actually does. What this actually does, is not fix the property tax crisis that we have, but goes after our Taxpayers' Bill of Rights."

RELATED: Opponents of Colorado's property tax ballot measure call it "deceitful"

"Proposition HH would reduce the residential assessment rate by only 0.065% and exempt $40,000 from a home's value for tax purposes. But those changes will not reduce property taxes," said Ben Murrey, director of the libertarian-leaning Independence Institute's Fiscal Policy Center. "Whether HH passes or fails, property taxes across Colorado will go up the most in state history. It's not a tax reduction, but the ballot language doesn't tell you that. It says the measure will 'reduce property taxes.' Not true. It would only slightly scale back the record increase in property taxes."

Opponents also point out that if voters agree to hand their TABOR refunds over to the state, that money would not necessarily go to education or local backfill, as HH promises. If voters approve HH, future legislatures can extend it and spend the money however they want.

Organized opposition to HH – broken up into several groups such as No on HH, Americans for Prosperity Colorado Issue Committee, the TABOR Coalition and Taxpayers for a Better Deal – have raised over $2.3 million and spent over $2.2 million.

Top donors to the cause of defeating HH include Advance Colorado Action, Defend Colorado, Americans for Prosperity, Ready Colorado and Colorado businessman William Witter.

How to vote

You can check your voter registration online, and if you're not registered, you can do so right there. In Colorado, you can register and vote until the polls close at 7 p.m. on Election Day if you are voting in person.

Most Coloradans should have received their ballots in the mail already. If you choose to mail your ballot, it needs to be in the hands of your county clerk's office's election officials by 7 p.m. on Tuesday. So if you haven't decided by Monday morning, you should put your ballot in a drop box to avoid any issues with a mailed ballot being delayed.

And of course, you can also vote in person. To see the location of all drop boxes and voting locations in the state, click here.

Results

For election results, which don't start to come in until the evening of Nov. 7, click here.