Colorado voters will give water utilities more money by allowing the state to keep all of the sports betting tax revenue it collects if lawmakers approve a measure that would put the issue on the November ballot. may be required to divert funds.
House Bill 1436 has bipartisan support, with Speaker Julie McCluskey (D-Dillon) and Rep. Mark Catlin (R-Montrose) as the lead sponsors in the House, and Sen. Dylan Roberts. Rep., D-Frisco, also has bipartisan support. Cleve Simpson, R-Alamosa, is the lead sponsor in the Senate.
The sports betting program was first approved by voters in 2019 and passed with just over 51% of the vote. The bill would impose a 10% tax on licensed sports betting revenue. A portion of the funds will be used to cover gambling regulatory costs, and the remaining total, up to $29 million, will be funneled into water projects. If the tax collection exceeds his $29 million, Congress will decide how to refund it based on the Taxpayer Bill of Rights.
This Freshwater News article is a collaboration between The Colorado Sun and Water Education Colorado. Also posted at Wateredco.org/fresh-water-news.
That's where House Bill 1436 comes into play.
If House Bill 1436 passes, but voters reject the ballot measure, the bill directs the state to return more than $29 million in sports betting tax revenue collected to sports betting operators . This provision is intended to persuade voters to vote “yes” on this question.
Initial sports betting ballot measures received lukewarm support, but continued voter concerns about water conservation and protection and the high-profile crisis of the drought-stressed Colorado River make the tax issue more likely. If put on the ballot, it could gain broader support, veterans said. said pollster and political analyst Floyd Cirulli.
“I've never seen a poll that contradicted what we knew very strongly at the time: that Coloradans care deeply about water conservation and protection as environmental issues,” he says.
Approximately $43.1 million in sports betting tax revenue will be transferred to water utilities starting in 2021, during which annual cash for water utilities will nearly triple from $7.9 million at the end of fiscal year 2021, according to the Colorado Department of Revenue. It is said that he did. , which will reach $23.7 million in 2023.
Brian Jackson, Western Water Director for the Environmental Defense Fund, spearheaded the 2019 campaign supporting the original ballot measure. A coalition of environmental groups like his is forming to campaign on this latest ballot measure as well, if lawmakers ultimately vote on it.
“Frankly, I never expected to reach that cap,” Jackson said. “But sales and profits snowballed.”
Jackson said the state's projections are that the cap will likely be exceeded in the next year or two, reaching $31 million for the current fiscal year ending June 30 and $35 million for next.
Jackson said early polling shows strong support for the new voting plan among Democratic and Republican voters across the state, but those in favor of repealing the cap are skeptical of the early support. He said he was planning a large-scale campaign, in part because he expected voting to be crowded this November. Lots of questions on topics like property taxes and access to abortion.
“We are going to run a campaign because this is a great opportunity to invest in our state and spread the message about conserving and protecting Colorado’s water,” Jackson said.
Voters approved Proposition II, a similar overtax measure related to tobacco taxes for preschool funding in 2023.
Although little formal opposition appears to have formed at this point, at least one tribal community, the Ute Mountain Utes of Towaoc, has been in a three-year battle with the state over its sports betting program. Among the issues at issue is whether the tribe, as a sovereign nation, is required to pay a 10% tax on its profits, said Peter Ortego, Ute Mountain Ute general counsel.
“We believe federal law is clear that we don't have to pay that tax,” Ortego said. “But we are far apart from the state on this issue.'' Ute Mountain Ute has not taken a position on House Bill 1436.
The Colorado Department of Revenue did not respond to a request for comment about the dispute with tribes over sports betting.
The gaming industry spent millions of dollars supporting its own sports betting voting system in 2019. It is unclear whether he supports or opposes House Bill 1436. The Colorado Gaming Association did not respond to a request for comment.
The bill passed the House and is now before the Senate. The 2024 legislative session ends on May 8th.
