KFKA's Oliver repeated falsehood that Ref. C was “only going to cost us” a fixed amount

Written by Media Matters Staff

Published

Amy Oliver of 1310 KFKA repeated the conservative falsehood that when voters were asked in 2005 to consider Referendum C, they were told it “was only going to cost us 2.9 million [sic] dollars.” However, the Colorado Blue Book expressly stated that its fiscal analysis of Ref. C -- which concluded the state would retain $3.7 billion in revenue -- was an “estimate” and that the exact figure “could be higher or lower.”

During an interview with House Minority Leader Mike May (R-Parker) on her June 21 show, Amy Oliver of 1310 KFKA falsely stated that Referendum C was “only going to cost us 2.9 million [sic] dollars. Then it went up to about 3.4, then it went up to 3.7, then it was up to about 4.25, then 4.5, then 5.2, 5.7, and now we're at 5.9 billion dollars.” In fact, as Colorado Media Matters has noted, the 2005 Colorado Blue Book specified in its analysis of Referendum C that its $3.7 billion figure was an “estimate” of the revenue the state could retain under the measure. Furthermore, the Blue Book specifically stated that the “exact amount of the spending increase could be higher or lower, depending on the economy and the amount of money collected.”

Oliver, who is director of operations for the conservative Independence Institute, was echoing the complaints of Independence Institute president Jon Caldara, who on numerous occasions has made the same baseless claim.

From the June 21 broadcast of 1310 KFKA's The Amy Oliver Show:

OLIVER: Well, there was a press release about a report that highlights Democrats' tax-and-spend mentality. The Referendum C dollars -- do you remember, does everybody remember when they first came out? Referendum C, when Bill Owens stood up there with his, with his Democratic friends and he stood up and he said it's only going to cost us 2.9 million dollars. Then it went up to about 3.4, then it went up to 3.7, then it was up to about 4.25, then 4.5, then 5.2, 5.7, and now we're at 5.9 billion dollars. And Mike, welcome to the show -- but it's not enough.

MAY: It's, it's never enough.

However, as Colorado Media Matters has noted (here and here), the Blue Book analysis of Referendum C explicitly described a figure of $3.7 billion as an estimate of the state revenues that could be spent under Referendum C's provisions. In approving Referendum C, Colorado voters authorized the state “to retain and spend all state revenues” through 2010, suspending the spending restrictions imposed by the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights (TABOR) on state coffers. (emphasis added)

As the Rocky Mountain News reported in a March 21, 2006, article (accessed through the Nexis database), Colorado's economy significantly improved after the Blue Book estimate was released, and thus created increased Colorado revenue spending levels under Referendum C.

Similarly, a December 22, 2006, News article reported, “Thanks to an income tax windfall, Colorado expects to collect $2 billion more in Referendum C money than estimated when voters approved the measure in 2005.” It further noted that "[w]hen Ref C passed, the excess revenue to be collected over five years was estimated at $3.7 billion, which opponents criticized as low. The collection figure now is estimated at $5.7 billion."