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Prop NN asks homeschool families to keep footing the bill for schools they don’t use
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Colorado Home Educators of Colorado, Approved, Commentary, State

Prop NN asks homeschool families to keep footing the bill for schools they don’t use

By Colleen Enos | Commentary, Christian Home Educators of Colorado As Colorado home-educating families tighten their belts, the state relentlessly demands more of their money to fund a public school system that they are not a part of. The kicker is that Colorado also wants to keep their Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) refunds forever. Frequently, when we are trying to solve a problem, the easiest “solution” is to throw more money at it. Then, we all feel good that we have done something and supposedly solved the problem. The issue, however, is that increased funding does not equal excellent or improved student outcomes. The Independence Institute reports that Colorado’s per-pupil funding has risen 27% since 2021, even while student enrollment has declined. But gettin...
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Prop NN supporters say the money is guaranteed and K-12 only. The law says otherwise.
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Prop NN supporters say the money is guaranteed and K-12 only. The law says otherwise.

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice The official campaign for Proposition NN tells Colorado voters the measure "requires a minimum 2% annual funding increase" for local school districts. The Yes on NN campaign tells voters the measure "requires a minimum 2% annual funding increase directly to local school districts." Source: Yes for Colorado Kids The state's largest teachers union goes further. On its campaign page, the Colorado Education Association says the money "is limited to K-12 only and cannot be used for anything else." The Colorado Education Association's Prop NN campaign page, captured Sept. 20, 2026. Source: Colorado Education Association Neither statement matches the law voters will be asked to approve. Prop...
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What DSA teaches college students, and the environment it operates in
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Rocky Mountain Voice, National, Top Stories

What DSA teaches college students, and the environment it operates in

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice DSA's own internal survey shows something specific: more than 80 percent of members 25 and older who responded hold a bachelor's degree. DSA's youth section has spent the last decade building a structured campus operation, with its own curriculum, its own labor strategy, and in at least one Colorado classroom, a university course built to recruit. That operation runs through Young Democratic Socialists of America, DSA's youth and student section.  Join YDSA and you're automatically a DSA member too. It has grown rapidly over the past decade and is, by its own account, the place where a lot of its future organizers get their start. YDSA has grown from roughly a dozen chapters in 2016 to more than 150 today, s...
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Colorado Taxpayers Face Billion-Dollar TABOR Refund Money Grab Under Proposition NN
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Taxpayers Face Billion-Dollar TABOR Refund Money Grab Under Proposition NN

By: Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics A coalition that includes the state teachers’ union on Tuesday launched a campaign for a ballot proposal that would reduce more than $1 billion in taxpayer refunds and spend the money on education. The measure is among several campaigns taking shape this year over state revenue. Broadly speaking, one side has long sought to raise more money, arguing what the state collects is insufficient to pay for services and programs. The other side counters that current revenues are sufficient but used unwisely, and what policymakers need is fiscal discipline. Referred to the ballot by the state legislature via Senate Bill 135, the average Colorado taxpayer would lose about $7,300 in TABOR refunds between the 2026-27 and 2036-37 fisca...
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“Regardless of party”: Colorado’s teacher unions say one thing. A decade of records shows another.
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

“Regardless of party”: Colorado’s teacher unions say one thing. A decade of records shows another.

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Colorado teachers are Republicans. They are Democrats. They are unaffiliated. They work in every county in the state, in every kind of classroom, for every kind of family. Their union says its political spending reflects that same range. The money says something else. RMV examined contributions from 13 Colorado teachers union entities across 22 data files between 2016 and 2026. Every identifiable contribution to a school board or state legislative candidate went to a Democrat. Not most. Not nearly all. Every one. Zero went to a Republican. The Colorado Education Association Victory Fund — the independent expenditure committee for the state’s largest teachers union — filed its political mission with the Colorado Secr...
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How the nation’s largest teachers union taught schools to cut parents out
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

How the nation’s largest teachers union taught schools to cut parents out

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice In April 2025, Dustin Gonzalez stood before the Jefferson County school board and told them what had happened to his family. A school-appointed therapist in Lakewood, he said, had affirmed his daughter's gender transition without his knowledge. His ex-wife initiated proceedings to take his visitation. A court-appointed investigator never accused him of abuse or harm. A judge ruled anyway that his inability to affirm was sufficient grounds to reduce his parenting time — and limited it to every other weekend, Gonzalez shared on X. "It started in your schools," Gonzalez told the board. "Your systems made it possible, and your silence made it personal. You never once thought, 'Shouldn't the father be involved, too.'" He de...
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Critics Warn Democrat Plan Would Eliminate TABOR Refunds For A Decade
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Critics Warn Democrat Plan Would Eliminate TABOR Refunds For A Decade

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics Colorado voters could decide this fall whether billions of dollars that would otherwise be returned as refunds under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights should instead go to public schools under a ballot measure unveiled Thursday by Democrats. Supporters say the proposal would address chronic underfunding in K-12 education, while critics argue it takes money away from taxpayers and amounts to sidestepping the state’s constitutional spending limits. Supporters have insisted that schools are underfunded to the tune of billions of dollars, while one study says revenue and spending by schools have significantly grown in the last few years, with a noticeable shift toward non-instructional spending. Under the proposed ballot measure, the am...
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Democrats Push Plan to Eliminate TABOR Refunds For The Next 10 Years
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Democrats Push Plan to Eliminate TABOR Refunds For The Next 10 Years

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics Colorado voters could decide this fall whether billions of dollars that would otherwise be returned as refunds under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights should instead go to public schools under a ballot measure unveiled Thursday by Democrats. Supporters say the proposal would address chronic underfunding in K-12 education, while critics argue it takes money away from taxpayers and amounts to sidestepping the state’s constitutional spending limits. Supporters have insisted that schools are underfunded to the tune of billions of dollars, while one study says revenue and spending by schools have significantly grown in the last few years, with a noticeable shift toward non-instructional spending. Under the proposed ballot measure, the am...
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Colorado Teachers Union Pushes Ballot Measure Targeting TABOR Spending Limits
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DENVER7, Approved, State

Colorado Teachers Union Pushes Ballot Measure Targeting TABOR Spending Limits

By: Blair Miller | Denver7 DENVER — The largest union of Colorado educators rallied outside of the Capitol on Thursday, calling on lawmakers to refer a measure to the ballot that they believe is a solution to funding struggles plaguing schools in the state. The measure that the Colorado Education Association (CEA) is spearheading is centered upon the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights (TABOR), which voters approved in 1992. TABOR limits the amount of money the state government can keep and spend, while requiring voter approval to keep excess funds collected. Without that voter approval, extra revenue is refunded to Colorado taxpayers. The CEA would like voters to decide if they would like to raise the TABOR spending cap, which was called "outdated" several t...
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Teachers Union Pushes Polis To Block Federal Scholarship Option For Families
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Complete Colorado, Approved, Commentary, State

Teachers Union Pushes Polis To Block Federal Scholarship Option For Families

By Ari Armstrong | Complete Colorado Will the Colorado teachers’ union be so spiteful toward private education options that they will deny Colorado families money from privately funded scholarships promoted by federal tax credits? We soon will find out. I first learned of the program in question when the Colorado Sun published Jay Stooksberry’s op-ed on the matter on August 19. As Stooksberry explains, buried within the One Big Beautiful Bill was the Education Choice for Children Act, which allows individuals to “make tax-deductible donations up to $1,700 to scholarship organizations.” Before a state’s families can take advantage, Stooksberry adds, the governor must opt in and “approve a list of qualifying scholarship organizations the year before the donations can ...
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