After weeks of Colorado Democrats suggesting they’d be open to changing a 1992 voter-approved amendment to the state constitution that limits government growth, lawmakers are now seeking a lawsuit to overturn it. 

Democrats on Monday introduced a resolution that, if passed, would direct the state’s legal arm to file a lawsuit in state district court on behalf of the legislature claiming that the Taxpayer Bill of Rights — or TABOR — is unconstitutional. 

Party members have been on a collision course with TABOR this session as the state contends with a $1.2 billion budget shortfall that is forcing deep cuts to programs and services. Lawmakers project budget deficits will only continue in the coming years, with Democrats blaming the problem on TABOR’s restrictions on revenue and spending. 

Under TABOR, the state’s budget cannot increase beyond the rate of population growth plus inflation. Any excess revenue the state collects must be remitted to taxpayers, colloquially known as TABOR refunds. 

Democrats have criticized the formula as an imperfect model that constrains spending even when the state’s economy is doing well. They say it kneecaps their ability to respond to rising needs, like health care. 

Increased demand for long-term care through Medicaid, for example, is a primary driver of this year’s budget expenses, and lawmakers have lamented that spending caps don’t allow them to keep up with inflationary pressures in the health care industry — which outpaces the statewide inflation rate upon which TABOR is based. 

“When you’ve got an older, grayer Colorado, their need for services from the state is greater,” said House Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon, in an interview last month. “Right now, Colorado is projecting inflation rates lower than 3%. That’s great, except that health care costs aren’t below 3% — those have risen dramatically these last few years.” 

McCluskie has been among the state Democrats who’ve signaled an appetite for taking another crack at TABOR reforms, referencing a successful 2005 ballot measure that suspended the revenue cap for five years. She told reporters in February, “This is a time maybe for us to be having those conversations again.”  

Two weeks ago, Sen. Jeff Bridges, D-Greenwood Village, chair of the state’s Joint Budget Committee, told reporters, “There will need to be something done to address the structural deficit we currently have.”

TABOR requires that tax policy changes that may increase taxes be decided by voters. Ballot efforts in recent years that would have eaten away at or entirely eliminated TABOR refunds have failed. 

The resolution introduced on Monday, however, would circumvent the ballot box by asking the courts to overturn TABOR, which lawmakers claim deprives the legislature of essential governing powers, namely assessing taxes and appropriating money for public purposes. 

Doing so violates the Colorado Enabling Act and the United States Constitution, the resolution claims.

State Republicans have vowed to defend TABOR from any overhaul attempts by the legislature. In a statement last month, the Senate GOP defended the measure as one that has broad voter approval. 

“Year after year, ballot initiative after ballot initiative, the people have reaffirmed their support for TABOR and rejected unchecked government growth,” Senate Republicans said. “Any attempt to weaken or destroy the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights is a direct attack on the will of Colorado’s voters. It isn’t just a policy debate.”

Monday’s resolution has strong support from Democrats, with 31 sponsors in the House and 12 in the Senate. Democrats hold a 43-22 majority in the House and a 23-12 majority in the Senate.