Colorado: Bill

The U.S. House of Representatives — on its second try — passed a bill to preserve 2 million acres as wilderness in nine states, including 315,000 acres in Colorado.

On March 11, the bill failed, by two votes, to get a necessary two-thirds approval for a procedural vote.

Republican Reps. Doug Lamborn of Colorado Springs and Mike Coffman of Aurora voted against the bill then and voted against it Wednesday.

The two lawmakers said they objected to the sweeping nature of the legislation — a collection of 170 different bills — and its estimated $10 billion price tag.

"When there is a $9 billion maintenance backlog on the Park Service land that we already have, why are we spending $10 billion that we will have to borrow to acquire even more land?" Coffman said in a statement.

Avoiding further chaos for an already-strapped state budget, the Colorado Supreme Court today ruled that a 2007 law that allowed local property taxes to grow did not violate the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights.

The seven-member court overturned a May 2008 district court ruling that said the law, which kept local mill-levy rates from going down, violated TABOR's requirement that voters approve any additional tax increases.

The court flatly rejected that argument advanced by opponents of the law, which included the Mesa County Board of Commissioners. The court said that was because voters in 174 of the state's 178 school districts had voted to cast off limitations under TABOR, allowing them to keep property tax revenues.

Following a nearly 10-hour debate Monday that stirred up partisan tensions, the Senate gave initial approval to a bill that would lift a key constraint on the state budget.

Arguments over repealing the budget provision ended only after Democrats cut off debate despite the objections of angry Republicans that Senate rules were being abused.

Named after the lawmakers who sponsored it in 1991, the Arveschoug-Bird provision limits growth in the state's general fund to no more than 6 percent a year. Money collected beyond that limit goes to roads and other construction needs.

SB 228, sponsored by Sen. John Morse, D-Colorado Springs, would repeal the 6 percent limit as well as the automatic transfers of money above the limit to roads and other projects.

If the legislature were a fraternity, this might be Hell Week.

Or at least, float-building night.

Today is the deadline for House and Senate bills to be heard and sent to the other chamber, so lawmakers worked into the night Tuesday hearing bills in committee or debating bills on the floor.

Another long day is expected today as the legislature inches toward the midpoint of its four- month session.

Lawmakers killed a plastic bags bill, approved increasing a tire-recyling fee and debated at length a key transportation measure. They also wrestled with one of the most complicated provisions of the state budget, known as Arveschoug-Bird, the 6 percent general fund spending limit.