Gov. Jared Polis has ushered Coloradans through dark times these past 12 months, and his State of the State address did well to highlight those who have been fighting the novel coronavirus’ devastating impacts on the front-lines of health care in this state.
“As Coloradans, we face down tough times with grit, and overcome them together. And when I became governor, I knew that leading our state through good times and bad — but especially through darkness, whenever and however it came — would be my most important responsibility,” Polis said Tuesday as Colorado lawmakers returned to the General Assembly to re-start the 2021 legislative session.
So what is Polis’ pandemic legacy? He acted fast to shutter the ski industry and close restaurants when almost a year ago it became clear the virus was already in the advanced stages of circulation in Colorado. Then he was faster than many states’ leaders to lift restrictions trying to find the right balance between saving lives by reducing community spread and staving off financial ruin for this state’s small businesses.
We think he has struck a good balance. Colorado’s economic recovery might be slower than some states, but we also have suffered fewer deaths per capita than many locations, and for that we are grateful. It makes it all the more frustrating that with the government going to extraordinary lengths to save as many lives as possible, a handful of lawmakers in the legislature can’t be bothered to don a mask, even in the hope that it might prevent the spread of a disease that for some is a death warrant.
While we haven‘t agreed with all of Polis’ priorities for the COVID vaccine, we cannot argue with his success – almost 60% of those 70 and older vaccinated, a group that accounts for the vast majority of deaths. Lives are being saved.
Looking forward, the pressing question is how the state should spend about $1 billion in one-time stimulus dollars from the federal government. Polis has outlined a smart plan – short term tax relief for businesses, shovel-ready infrastructure projects, and investments in education to remediate learning loss from COVID.
Saving small businesses from closure — and the important services and jobs they provide — should be top-of-the list for Colorado lawmakers. In 2008 big banks and auto industries got bailouts. Today the companies shouldering the brunt of closures, capacity restrictions and the reduced in-person commerce that is occurring by choice need a bailout. Save small businesses.
Colorado is in dire need of infrastructure investment and putting stimulus dollars into needed projects would keep the economy moving, creating jobs.
Finally, lawmakers should consider – after making schools whole for the budget cuts and loss of enrollment they suffered during COVID – pouring money into meaningful programs that this summer will help make up for the very real loss of instruction time. There’s also a bipartisan effort afoot to rewrite the state’s school finance formula. This is badly needed to make school funding equitable.
We are glad lawmakers are still pursuing establishing some sort of a public option that would provide an affordable health insurance program alongside other plans on Colorado’s Obamacare marketplace, however, as Democrats said themselves, they should watch the progress at the federal level, especially with U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet’s Medicare-X proposal, so as not to create a redundant program at the state level.
Polis’ tax reform proposals are ambitious and should be considered altogether as a package with the goal of it being revenue neutral, unlike the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act which maintained most of the loopholes but still reduced revenue across the board, increasing the federal deficit. Eliminating tax expenditures (i.e. tax credits, tax deductions and tax breaks) to offset more fair and overall beneficial tax rate reductions or targeted tax reductions (i.e. eliminating the business personal property tax and eliminating state income tax on social security) is sound public policy. Also included in that proposal should be talks of creating a new gas tax or fee to fund transportation. Coloradans will be much more likely to support higher taxes for infrastructure in Colorado, if they can be assured the tax increase isn’t being funneled away for other purposes.
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