Nash Herman

Another messup at hick-puff. #TABOR, despite progressive complaints, has not restrained the growth of government. open.substack.com/pub/coloradoac…

At the Capitol this past week, Senate Bill 135 passed committee, framed as an education funding bill. But the fine print tells a different story. The bill would alter TABOR’s limits and could permanently end TABOR refunds. Only a small fraction of the new revenue would be required to go to education in the first year, while roughly $600 million could flow into the state’s General Fund for “any other purpose.” That means much of the money wouldn’t necessarily reach classrooms, teachers, or students, it would simply give lawmakers a blank check. #copolitics

Share this video with everyone you know that lives in Colorado because the Democrats are bringing 2 of the worst bills our state has seen in decades to completely GUT TARBOR! Thank you @NashHerm for coming on the stream to break this all down. We have to VOTE NO on both of these measures if they make it to the ballot this November! youtu.be/nqmIDXrasYI

The case for independent audits of Colorado elections #copolitics #coleg #cosos This part will disappoint angry people on Twitter: Relax. Put the pitchforks down. I am not relitigating the 2020 election, or mail ballots, or even Tina Peters. But I am saying people don’t trust elections like they used to. And here in Colorado we can do a rather simple thing to reverse that. And progressives should want it most. Saving democracy is all the rage now, and as far as political slogans go, it’s a pretty damn good one. But saving democracy isn’t just about protecting Colorado from President Donald Trump, whatever that vagary means. It’s about fortifying our democratic institutions so the voters’ true will is clearly and verifiably stated. This is where I’d usually rant about how the legislature going around our Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) is more of a clear and present threat to democracy than anything Trump is doing in Colorado — but why state the obvious? Those hell-bent on taking your money will do anything to make sure you can’t vote on it. Again: Save Democracy — Protect TABOR! ‘Trust us’ isn’t proof Confidence in elections isn’t determined by how often some official says the system works. It’s determined by whether the public believes the system is beyond suspicion. Our republic depends on that. And the secretary of state’s office just insisting our elections are fair and honest? That’s not enough. Saying “trust us” isn’t proof. They need to prove it. And they don’t. Not really. When you buy stock in a publicly traded company you have confidence the financial information is accurate because an outside, independent auditing firm checks the books and certifies them. Been the law since 1933. Apparently, elections didn’t get the memo. Colorado’s voting system operates in a way publicly traded companies could never: it audits itself. That doesn’t engender confidence. Now before the Tina Peters acolytes start pointing fingers, I am in no way saying any Colorado elections were rigged or tampered with. I am saying if you want people to believe the results the Secretary of State declares, her office shouldn’t be the one doing the auditing. Or put differently, if Trump-hating progressives want to shut up election-denying MAGA die-hards, simply having outside election audits would go a long way. Counties do the hands-on work, but the critical decisions are made at the top. Right now, the Secretary of State determines which races get audited, what statistical method is used, and what “risk limit” applies. That determines how many ballots get checked. And here’s the kicker: the current system incentivizes auditing the “blowout” races. If a candidate wins by 9,000 votes, you only must sample a handful of ballots to confirm the result. Easy peasy. If a candidate wins by 30 votes? Now you must check a lot more ballots. That’s expensive, time-consuming, and annoying. Bureaucrats hate work. So what does the SOS audit most? The landslides. The current setup rewards picking races easiest to validate rather than races that most need validating. That’s not corruption. That’s human nature. And a little bureaucratic laziness. The case for independent audits And human nature is exactly why we use independent auditors everywhere else. An outside firm or office, with its reputation on the line, would likely choose differently. Besides, it’s just terrible practice for the secretary of state to audit the secretary of state. Even Enron’s accountants would call that sketchy. The beauty of an outside audit is you remove the political suspicion. An independent commission — or maybe the State Auditor’s office — would decide which races are audited, the statistical methods, whether best practices are followed. Nothing about ballots, machines, or voter IDs so the left can’t gasp “suppression.” What changes is who verifies the work. And that matters. If Democrats truly believe Colorado elections are secure — and they say they do — then an independent audit only strengthens that claim. In fact, it’s politically brilliant. Imagine a Democrat secretary of state saying, “Our elections are secure — and we’ve removed all doubt by putting audits in the hands of independent experts.” That’s not voter suppression. That’s voter reassurance. And it beats the current line: “Trust the system. It audits itself.” We don’t save democracy by telling skeptical voters to shut up, but by making the system more trustworthy. An independent auditor is not an accusation. It’s insurance. Even for progressives. Especially for progressives. If the legislature won’t make this change, it’s our responsibility to ask every secretary of state candidate whether they will.

Live at 6pm w/ @NashHerm rumble.com/v772wh6-warnin…

An added note, and I know this ship has long sailed, but it still drives me crazy that referred de-Brucing measures can get away with declaring in the ballot title that it isn't a tax increase. Retaining excess tax revenue that you would otherwise be constitutionally obligated to refund is absolutely a de facto tax hike. #copolitics

Another TABOR fight may be on the horizon. Some Colorado lawmakers are proposing a measure that would redirect taxpayer refunds toward K–12 education spending instead. Supporters call it a funding solution. Critics say it bypasses TABOR’s promise of taxpayer refunds. Read more: denvergazette.com/2026/03/06/ano… #thinkfreedom #copolitics @DenverGazette

Not to mention, the new TABOR limit would be tied to education funding. Look no further than CO’s bloated healthcare spending to see how similar perverse incentives would impact the state budget… completecolorado.com/2026/02/23/med… @CompleteCO @i2idotorg #copolitics

SB26-135 must be opposed by all Coloradans who support our Taxpayer's Bill of Rights!

🧵Some more fun details from this proposal. LCS is projecting that SB26-135 would cost Colorado taxpayers $817 million in money that would otherwise be refunded to them in just its first year alone. #copolitics However...

Bottom line: If this passes, say goodbye to your TABOR refunds. Not for 10 years, but forever. No more temporary income tax rate cuts or lump sum checks. In exchange, the legislature gets a permanent infusion of tax $ to band-aid over its recent profligacy, one that perversely gets bigger in years when the private sector performs better. #copolitics

New Bill Eliminates TABOR Refunds in Colorado, SB26-135 Takes Our Tax Money! New video: youtu.be/p14NG-bcoUI Colorado Democrats in the State Legislature are trying once again to subvert our Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) with a new bill that would allow them to keep our tax refunds! If this bill passes, Coloradans can expect to never see a TABOR refund again. Of course, the proponents of Senate Bill 135 want our tax refund money to go to schools… (and sneakily, other government programs). Never mind that Colorado schools have MORE money than ever! Never mind that school enrollment is down! Never mind that Coloradans are struggling with tough economic conditions! These greedy politicians want to take every penny than can from hardworking Coloradans. Coloradans need to stand up, speak out and push back against this latest attempt to take our money. In this video, Natalie Menten @ColoEngaged explains the missing information in this bill, what the media isn’t telling you, and why this bill is much worse than most people know.

... Taxpayer's Bill of Rights, or #TABOR. Camacho argues that TABOR is a “Frankenstein's monster” that grew beyond its noble intentions and its ... i2i.org/rep-sean-camac…

Colorado lawmakers announced Thursday they are introducing a school funding measure that would raise the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights (#TABOR) revenue ... denver7.com/news/local-new…

TABOR is built on a simple premise: if government wants more of your money, it should ask voters first. So why do some lawmakers keep trying to rewrite that history? Rep. Sean Camacho’s latest critique of TABOR gets the facts wrong—and the stakes for taxpayer accountability. Read more: i2i.org/rep-sean-camac… #thinkfreedom #copolitics

Colorado lawmakers may send voters a ballot measure to raise the TABOR spending cap and direct billions more to K-12 education. But as the Independence Institute told Denver7: “Colorado is spending more on K-12 education than ever before despite declining school populations.” So the real question for voters: Is the issue funding—or how the money is being spent? More: denver7.com/news/local-new… #thinkfreedom #copolitics

Colorado conservatives blast Democratic plan to redirect TABOR refunds for 10 years buff.ly/ghFqC1F

There's a fun bait-and-switch element in this proposal. It's being sold as an education funding measure (i.e., trade your TABOR refunds for higher teacher pay), but it's actually an open-ended blank check for government spending. Any additional retained surplus tax $ after school district transfers goes to the General Fund and can be spent on “any other purpose.” #copolitics

Always helpful to see who's on board with a multi-billion dollar tax hike/tax refund clawback after spending so much time talking about "affordability." #copolitics

Gov. Polis eyes taxpayer refunds as a budget wound band-aid. that and other headlines from around the state in Complete Colorado's Monday update. Link in first reply.