Initiative 27: Experts weigh in on property tax ballot initiative
Residential property taxes would drop to 6.95 percent from 7.15 percent, and non-residential property tax rates would drop to 26.4 percent from 29 percent
A ballot measure designed to lower property taxes moves closer to a statewide vote. Colorado Rising State Action turned in over 190,000 signatures to the Secretary of Stateâs office on Monday.
and last updated 2021-08-03 08:40:31-04
COLORADO SPRINGS â A ballot measure designed to lower property taxes moves closer to a statewide vote.
Colorado Rising State Action turned in over 190,000 signatures to the Secretary of Stateâs office on Monday. What s been happening over the last few years is a huge rise in home values, the assessment rates that people got are a lot higher than they used to be. Our houses are worth more, but that doesn t mean you have more money in your pocket to be able to pay for the property taxes. Seeing the strain this could
Educators, parents react to state s plan for $173M COVID-19 testing program next fall
To ensure in-person learning during the upcoming school year, the state plans on launching a statewide covid-19 testing program for school districts.
and last updated 2021-07-08 08:05:59-04
COLORADO SPRINGS â To ensure in-person learning with minimal disruptions, the state plans to launch a new coronavirus testing program at school districts statewide.
The Colorado Department of Health and Human Services says the program will be geared toward K-12 educators and students, and utilize $173 million in federal funds. The goal of the program is to provide access to frequent testing opportunities to help slow disease transmission, particularly among students too young to be vaccinated.
Colorado is at a crossroads for early childhood education and colleges are trying to help
Scott Dressel-Martin
Colorado is working to add a department of early childhood education and universal pre-k within the next two years. However, the changes come as colleges work to address an educator shortage and barriers for teachers in earning degrees.
and last updated 2021-07-05 20:02:34-04
DENVER â Colorado is at a critical crossroads for early childhood education. Last month, Governor Jared Polis signed a bill to create a new department of early childhood education.
The department, a result of HB21-1304, will be up and running by next July and will be tasked with figuring out how the state will implement universal pre-k by 2023.
Initiative 25: Colorado coalition proposes tax hike on marijuana to fund educational programs
A Colorado coalition is pushing to raise taxes on recreational marijuana to help fund tutoring, after school, and mental healthcare programs.
and last updated 2021-06-30 07:43:33-04
COLORADO SPRINGS â A Colorado coalition is hoping to get a proposal on the November ballot that would raise taxes on recreational marijuana to fund tutoring, after-school, and mental health programs.
Learning Opportunities for Coloradoâs Kids is spearheading the Learning Enrichment and Academic Progress (LEAP) program or Initiative 25 to help children make up for pandemic-related learning loss and address the needs of disadvantaged students. The measure would ask voters for a five percent excise tax increase on recreational marijuana which would raise an estimated $137 million annually for educational programs. It would also create the Colorado Learning Authority within the state education departmen
, which will be effective Sept. 1 through Aug. 31, 2024.
The contract negotiating team consisted of teachers, district human resources staff, other administrative staff, the school board president and a representative from Ski Country UniServ, which is a local affiliate of the Colorado Education Association.
Chief Finance Officer Kara Drake led the negotiations team and presented the major changes in the contract to the school board for approval at its June 17 meeting.
Drake said the contract was ratified by membership of the teachers union, and the negotiating team met seven or eight times to work through the details of the contract.
The biggest change for teachers comes in their salary, as a two-year plan was outlined to get the starting salary to $50,000. Base salaries for the upcoming school years will increase from $44,530 to $48,500. Discussions regarding salary for the 2023-24 school year will be reopened and finalized closer to the start of that year.