My regular reader (Hi Jeff!) will recall I often leap atop my rickety soapbox of idealism to spout off on the issues of the day. And a recent Colorado Politics story on one group’s reaction to the recent property tax increases caught my perhaps naïve eye.

It seems a conservative group called “Advance Colorado Actions” is unhappy with the recent and remarkably large property tax increases felt by many Coloradans. Their website says “Advance Colorado Action is an issue advocacy organization that believes in a smaller, more accountable government. We will support policies that increase economic opportunity and greater government transparency. We will oppose policies that would be harmful to Colorado’s economic wellbeing, and efforts to unnecessarily grow the size and reach of government.” They end with the provocative phrase “This is Our Colorado.”

As reported in CoPo, the ACA is seeking signatures to get a ballot measure on the November ballot to cap property tax increases at 4% statewide, unless voters specifically approve of a larger increase. Now, I understand where this is coming from. Colorado has seen a remarkable and even a little bit scary increase in property values. Heck, the house I bought as an Air Force captain back in 1997 for $225,000 would now fetch, if Zillow is to be believed, a stunning $755,000. Because Colorado is a great place to live, lots of people want to do just that, and demand is high. That demand, coupled with other economic factors, has boosted valuations, well, lots and lots.

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As noted in the story, some Colorado markets were especially red-hot over the last couple of years, so it was not a surprise when valuations jumped, but the sticker shock was shocking, with more than 40% increases in places like Denver, Arapahoe County and Douglas County. These increases have generated lots of outrage and this apparently new group, Advance Colorado Action has popped up to fight this battle. If you visit their website, you’ll see it is a barebones affair, with the “about us” link only containing a restatement of their mission statement noted above.

No individuals are named, and the “office” they list is a post office box in a strip mall shipping and mailing company in the lovely city of Lafayette. That alone doesn’t make them or their views wrong, but I always find it interesting when the individuals behind an operation are not readily listed. The CoPo report did hear from the “senior advisor” to ACA, a fellow named Michael Fields. Fields asserts that Initiative 50, should it reach the ballot and be passed, would protect Colorado families “that are worried about the next 30% or 40% increase in their property taxes.”

OK, but as I am already atop my soapbox, I feel the need to again rage against the initiative process. We have a republic, wherein we elect people to be our advocates. And it is their duty to become deeply immersed in the details of important issues. Having a referendum, with low-information voters (relative to tax policy) being asked if they want to lower their taxes, is not responsible governance.

The fact is most of us have seen significant increases in the value of our homes and property. I won’t for a moment claim an increase in taxes is ever a pleasant thing. But property taxes are based on, well, property values and as values rise and fall, so too will taxes.

And the ACA folks (person?) definitely don’t like Gov. Jared Polis’s Prop HH plan to use TABOR funds to help mitigate the huge property tax increases. Given that I’m anti-TABOR anyway, I do think the Governor’s proposal is a good idea, but we’ll see what folks think come Election Day in November.

The worst part of the ACA’s proposal is that it creates a specific limit – 4% – on future increases. The problem, of course, is that 4% is a rather arbitrary number, unmoored from the actual economic realities that may face future state governments. It appears, at least to me, to be a feel-good number that hides the real motivation: a basic anti-tax and “small government” view of the world. I must say, I do find it refreshing to see the ACA folks advocating for a traditional GOP point of view, given all the craziness we’ve seen in that party over the last, oh, I dunno, six years or so?

I’m not clever enough to know the single exact and proper response to the double-edged impact of rising home values. But I don’t think that a single fix, with an arbitrary new fixed tax rate, is a good idea. This is why we have a legislature, folks. Oh, and if you read my last column, you may recall I urged them to meet year-round, so they can respond to things like this.

Simply put, we shouldn’t have initiatives on the general election ballot at all. We should have those elected to govern, well, govern. And we certainly shouldn’t support an arbitrary tax rate because it feels good. I’m not saying you should enjoy paying higher taxes, but I am suggesting if you enjoyed seeing your home values rise dramatically, you shouldn’t be too surprised to see the tax bill increase as well.

Hal Bidlack is a retired professor of political science and a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel who taught more than 17 years at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.