Pritchett School District property tax increase of up to $120,000 a year for staff, with no end date
School tax increase
Raises the district's property taxes by up to $120,000 a year for staff, from the 2026-27 fiscal year, with the levy rate set each year to produce that amount and no end date.
Pritchett School District RE-3
Kim's Recommendation
NO
Vote No on Pritchett School District RE-3 Ballot Issue 4A
Issue 4A raises property taxes in the Pritchett district by up to $120,000 every year, with no end date, and lets the district collect and spend the money outside TABOR's limits without returning to voters. The money is tied to recruiting and retaining staff, a cost that recurs, so the increase is meant to last.
The district's notice shows its spending rising from $1,519,548 in 2022-23 to $1,814,694 in 2025-26. A permanent tax increase is a lasting commitment for every property owner in the district, and I want an increase like this one to carry an end date, so voters can judge its results before they decide whether to continue it.
I recommend a no vote on Pritchett School District RE-3 Ballot Issue 4A.
Kim Monson
Host, The Kim Monson Show · President, Colorado Union of Taxpayers · Colorado Voter's Guide 2026
Certified ballot question
SHALL PRITCHETT SCHOOL DISTRICT RE-3. BACA COUNTY, COLORADO, TAXES BE INCREASED UP TO $120,000.00 ANNUALLY FOR THE 2026 - 2027 FISCAL YEAR AND EACH FISCAL YEAR THEREAFTER FOR THE PURPOSE OF PROVIDING ADDITIONAL LOCAL PROPERTY TAX REVENUES TO ADDRESS THE FOLLOWING EDUCATIONAL NEEDS: • ATTRACTING, RECRUITING, TRAINING, DEVELOPING AND RETAINING HIGHLY QUALIFIED INSTRUCTIONAL AND SUPPORT STAFF TO PROVIDE A HIGH QUALITY EDUCATION FOR THE CHILDREN OF THE DISTRICT AND TO MEET OR EXCEED REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL AND STATE REQUIREMENTS, WHICH REVENUE SHALL BE THE SOLE RESPONSIBILITY OF LOCAL TAXPAYERS BY IMPOSING AN INCREASE IN THE PRESENT ANNUAL MILL LEVY IN AN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO PRODUCE THE ADDITIONAL AMOUNT SPECIFIED ABOVE, WHICH TAXES SHALL BE DEPOSITED INTO AND EXPENDED FROM THE GENERAL FUND OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT AND SHALL BE IN ADDITION TO THE PROPERTY TAXES THAT OTHERWISE WOULD BE LEVIED FOR THE GENERAL FUND, WITH SUCH. TAXES TO BE COLLECTED AND SPENT WITHOUT LIMITING THE COLLECTION OR SPENDING OF ANY OTHER REVENUES OR FUNDS BY THE DISTRICT AND WITHOUT FURTHER VOTER APPROVAL, NOTWITHSTANDING THE LIMITATIONS OF ARTICLE X SECTION 20 OF THE COLORADO CONSTITUTION OR ANY OTHER LAW?
A yes vote means
The district could increase its mill levy each year to raise up to $120,000 for its general fund, for recruiting, training and retaining instructional and support staff.
A no vote means
This question would not authorize the additional property tax of up to $120,000 a year.
A Levy for Staff Recruiting and Retention01
Pritchett School District RE-3 Ballot Issue 4A asks whether district taxes shall be increased by up to $120,000 a year, starting in the 2026-27 fiscal year and continuing "EACH FISCAL YEAR THEREAFTER." The question sets no end date. The district would raise the money by increasing its present annual mill levy by an amount sufficient to produce it, so the rate is set each year to raise the amount, up to $120,000.
The money is for "ATTRACTING, RECRUITING, TRAINING, DEVELOPING AND RETAINING HIGHLY QUALIFIED INSTRUCTIONAL AND SUPPORT STAFF" to provide a high quality education and to meet or exceed federal and state requirements. It goes into the district's general fund, on top of the property taxes the district already levies for that fund, and the question says the revenue "SHALL BE THE SOLE RESPONSIBILITY OF LOCAL TAXPAYERS."
A yes vote raises the district's property taxes by up to $120,000 a year with no end date. A no vote does not authorize the increase.
Outside the TABOR Limits02
The district could collect and spend the money "WITHOUT LIMITING THE COLLECTION OR SPENDING OF ANY OTHER REVENUES OR FUNDS BY THE DISTRICT AND WITHOUT FURTHER VOTER APPROVAL," notwithstanding the limits of the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights (TABOR) or any other law. The district would not need another vote to continue collecting and spending this revenue.
What the District Spends03
The district's ballot notice reports its fiscal year spending, the figure TABOR limits: $1,519,548 in 2022-23, $1,647,219 in 2023-24, $1,792,606 in 2024-25 and $1,814,694 in 2025-26. It estimates $1,753,104 for 2026-27 without the increase, and $120,000 as the first-year increase 4A would authorize. The notice puts the change from 2022-23 through 2026-27 at $233,556.
Comments Filed on the Measure04
The comment filed in favor, as summarized in the notice, says a yes vote "will help Pritchett School District to recruit and retain quality teachers and support staff through competitive compensation and enhance student support services." The notice states that no comments against 4A were filed by the constitutional deadline.
The question is Baca County's only local ballot question this year. Voters in the district decide it in Baca County's November 3, 2026, mail ballot election.
