Here we go again — tax-and-spend politicians going in the wrong direction.

Colorado families are being asked to believe a familiar lie: the only way to fund education is to let politicians keep more of your money — forever.

Proposition NN is being sold as a solution for schools and teacher pay. But look past the rhetoric, and the proposal is not a serious education plan. It is a backdoor attack on Colorado’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR), dressed up in the language of helping kids. It asks Colorado taxpayers to give up billions of dollars in future TABOR refunds in exchange for an education funding increase that could have been achieved through responsible budgeting and prioritization.

There is a better way. For six years in the General Assembly, I fought to increase education funding by more than $1.3 billion without raising taxes. That is what governing responsibly looks like: setting priorities, making difficult choices and funding schools without breaking faith with the taxpayers who foot the bill.

Now, compare that record with the far-left’s proposal in Prop NN. Over the next 10 years, the scheme would bring in only $9 billion for education. At the same time, it would allow the state to spend billions more in TABOR revenue — roughly $19.5 billion in additional taxpayer dollars, according to the proposal’s projections — without asking voters for permission each time.

This is a bad trade for Colorado families. The deal is essentially this: give the government a permanent claim on money that would otherwise be returned to taxpayers, and in exchange receive an amount for education that barely exceeds what has already been achieved through disciplined budgeting.

And let’s be honest about what those TABOR refunds mean to families. When refunds reached $750 or $800 per taxpayer, Coloradans felt the difference. For some households, that meant as much as $1,600 back in the family budget. That is not money sitting around waiting for politicians to spend. It can be a month of groceries, new winter tires, a couple of car payments, back-to-school clothes, help with a property tax bill or simply enough breathing room to catch up when the cost of everything continues to rise.

TABOR exists for a reason. It protects taxpayers from a government that can always find another reason to spend more. It requires the legislature to live within its means, just as Colorado families do. If a family wants to spend more, it has to find a way to make the budget work. The government should face the same discipline. Prop NN undermines that protection.

Once the state is allowed to permanently keep and spend revenue that otherwise would have been refunded under TABOR, taxpayers do not get that money back. It becomes part of the government’s new baseline. And history tells us once politicians have a new stream of revenue, giving it back is very rarely their priority.

Colorado voters should pay close attention to what Prop NN means beyond education. Proposals to expand the state’s TABOR spending authority can create enormous new room for the government to impose fees and increase existing fees without seeking voter approval.

Under the proposed expansion, for example, if the TABOR refund were $500 million in a given year and the TABOR cap were raised by $4.5 billion, the state could retain the refund and still have billions of dollars of additional room under the cap for new or increased fees.

The biggest insult is the claim all of this is necessary “for the kids.” If lawmakers truly believe education is the priority, they have the power to make it the priority. The money has been there. Colorado has demonstrated schools can receive substantial funding increases without raising taxes or dismantling TABOR.

The problem is not that TABOR prevents lawmakers from funding education. The problem is too many politicians under the Gold Dome want to fund everything else first and then tell voters schools are underfunded. They create a prioritization problem and then ask taxpayers to bail them out.

The consequences do not end with your TABOR refund. Once lawmakers open the door to unlimited retention and spending, every other taxpayer protection becomes vulnerable to the next budget deal. That includes programs such as the homestead exemption. If the state intends to preserve those protections, where is the guarantee? Where is the money? Once the legislature has access to billions in additional revenue, nothing is truly untouchable.

Colorado voters should reject this bait-and-switch. We can fund education. We can increase teacher pay. We can invest in our children. We can do all of those things without giving politicians a permanent blank check. And we have already proven it.

This is not about choosing taxpayers over children. It is about refusing to make Colorado families choose between the two. It is about whether hardworking Coloradans keep more of what they earn, or whether politicians in Denver get a permanent blank check. What Prop NN offers is not reform. It offers surrender: surrender of TABOR, surrender of taxpayer refunds and surrender of confidence the government will keep its promises.

Colorado has already shown there is a better way. We should reject Prop NN and keep fighting for schools without selling out taxpayers.

Barb Kirkmeyer, a Brighton Republican and former gubernatorial candidate, represents District 23 in the Colorado state Senate. She is a member of the legislature’s Joint Budget Committee.