EN
TABOR might promise a government on a diet and fatter refund checks, but Colorado’s wallet feels the pinch. It’s one of the tightest tax laws in the country, quietly deciding what our state can and can’t afford. If this makes you scratch your head or mutter, “Wait, that’s fishy…” you’re in good company.
March 28, 2025
…it’s been sabotaging the fight against hunger and leaving kids to go hungry?
In 2022, voters approved the Healthy School Meals for All (HSMA) program with a powerful mission: to ensure that every child has access to nutritious meals at school, regardless of their family’s financial situation. This vital program has helped feed children who might otherwise go without regular, healthy meals—offering a lifeline for families in need. In its first year alone, HSMA served over 100 million meals across the state, saving families up to $1,300 per child annually.
With the rising cost of food driven by inflation, programs like HSMA are more important than ever. Families are struggling to make ends meet, and without this program, many kids would face hunger or rely on less healthy alternatives. Unfortunately, the overwhelming success of HSMA has led to costs that exceed what was initially approved by voters in 2022. Despite the program’s undeniable importance and widespread support, lawmakers are now considering drastic cuts, reducing funding by millions of dollars. This could force families to face hundreds of dollars in added grocery costs—at a time when food prices are climbing rapidly.
With a state surplus large enough to cover the program’s cost, the real issue is the restrictive TABOR laws, preventing lawmakers from using that extra revenue to support such critical programs. Cutting HSMA would not only undermine its success, but also strip away a vital resource for thousands of children who rely on these meals to stay healthy and focused in school.
TABOR isn’t just forcing cuts to a program that’s saving Colorado families hundreds of dollars—it’s also creating unnecessary chaos. Thanks to a quirky provision in TABOR’s election rules, HSMA has to go back to the ballot this year just to keep the money it’s already raised. TABOR mandates that any program put to a vote must estimate its costs in the first year, and if the estimates are even a tiny bit off, voters must reapprove it.
This creates longer, more complicated ballots, increases costs for the state to administer, and makes it harder to fulfill the promises voters already approved. It’s an inefficient mess that just makes it harder to keep food on the table for Colorado’s kids.
