During an informal “retreat” last Saturday, Pueblo City Council talked about creating a “street maintenance utility” that would be funded by a fee, which really is a euphemism for a tax. The only difference between the two is that council could impose the fee outright, without the need to ask for voter approval as required of all new taxes and increased tax rates under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights in the Colorado Constitution.

No decision was reached, but right off the bat we recommend that City Council level with the people of Pueblo and call the proposed tax what it is, a tax. There are exceptions under TABOR for legitimate fees, of course, but to extend the term to the general functions of government, such as street maintenance, goes too far.

We withhold specific judgment on the proposal until council gets serious about the details. For example, how much would the tax/fee cost taxpayers? (Loveland, for example, charges homeowners about $2 a month for a street-repair fund) And would the city of Pueblo collect it as yet another line item on annual property tax assessments or, perhaps, add it to monthly water bills?

Read more at The Pueblo Chieftain.