Colorado: A New Chapter in its Perpetual Recovery

Abstract

DOI 10.1515/cjpp-2012-0030 Calif. J. Politics Policy 2012; 4(3): 91–116 Research Article Scott T. Moore* Colorado: A New Chapter in its Perpetual Recovery Abstract: The 2010 election saw the election of Democrat John Hickenlooper as Colorado Governor as well as the sound defeat of financially crippling ballot initi- ates, ‘The Dirty Three.’ Combined with a new partisan split between the two leg- islative chambers and the term limitation of several extraordinarily experienced Joint Budget Committee members, the stage was set for new tensions and unan- ticipated compromises within Colorado’s legislative budget process. The new Governor, keen to appease House Republicans, negotiated K-12 cuts, employee pension cost-shifts, reserve fund recharging, cash fund transfers, tax exemption restoration, and cigarette sales tax renewal. At the same time, the legislature passed significant fee revenues while rebuffing Republican attempts to reduce fees established under Governor Ritter’s leadership. From strategic accommoda- tions with legislative Republicans thought both unnecessary by the Democrats, Hickenlooper emerged from the session as much a puzzle as opening day. To others was left the task of proposing structural solutions to the long term revenue problems faced by the state under its Taxpayers Bill of Rights. Keywords: 2010 Colorado elections; 2011–2012 budget; Colorado General Assem- bly; John Hickenlooper; state budgeting; state fiscal policy *Corresponding author: Scott T. Moore, PhD, Associate Professor of Political Science, Department of Political Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523, e-mail: scott.moore@colostate.edu 1 Introduction The impacts of the 2010 elections figured heavily for the 2011 budget. That year, budgeting featured a partisan split between the two legislative chambers, impos- ing a 50–50 split on a very inexperienced Joint Budget Committee. At the same time, Colorado inaugurated a new governor in Democrat John Hickenlooper, a “pro-business Democrat” whose approach to state finances were to depart from those of his predecessor, Bill Ritter.