Gov. Jared Polis Opposes Amendment 87 Amid Questions Over Personal Tax Savings
Gov. Jared Polis opposes Colorado’s Amendment 87, a ballot proposal to replace the flat income tax with a tiered structure, but has declined to specify his own potential tax savings if the measure fails this November, The Denver Post reported.
Polis Opposes Amendment 87 While Declining to Disclose Personal Tax Impact
As Colorado voters prepare to decide on a graduated state income tax this November, outgoing Democratic Gov. Jared Polis has emerged as one of the measure’s most prominent opponents. The proposed amendment would end Colorado’s flat 4.4% income tax, lowering rates for low-income earners while implementing a tiered system reaching up to 8.4% on income over $1 million. The Bell Policy Center, the Colorado Fiscal Institute, and Great Education Colorado champion the measure to fund education, projecting a $2 billion revenue increase in its first year. Polis has campaigned heavily against it, calling it dangerous and arguing it harms businesses and jobs. Yet, despite his net worth estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars, a spokesperson for Polis declined to specify how much taxable income the governor reported for the 2025 tax year when asked directly by The Denver Post.
Eric Maruyama, a spokesperson for the governor, explained that Polis files a personal financial disclosure document required by law. That filing shows a gross income between roughly $4.5 million and $8.8 million for last year, including between $250,000 and $499,000 from a redacted source. However, Maruyama stated that the personal financial disclosure does not reflect taxable income because it requires tax-exempt income to be reported and ignores current-year losses or prior-year carryovers.
If that reported gross income were entirely taxable, calculations indicate Polis would owe between $155,000 and $330,000 more in state income taxes under Amendment 87, representing an increase of about 80%. When interviewed by Denver7, Polis acknowledged that wealthy individuals, including himself, should pay more taxes, but argued that Amendment 87 is the wrong mechanism and creates unintended consequences.
The Denver Post Editorial Board Urges Voters to Reject the Graduated Tax
The debate extends beyond the governor’s office. The Denver Post editorial board urged voters to cast a ‘no’ vote on Amendment 87, arguing that the threat of losing major employers outweighs potential revenue gains. The editorial board concluded the risk to large corporations is too high, pointing to warnings from business leaders that major companies might relocate to lower-tax states. The board noted that Colorado’s Fortune 500 headquarters dropped from ten in 2023 to seven, citing the departure of two firms and the relocation of QVC to Pennsylvania. While acknowledging that most new corporate revenue would stem from out-of-state companies with Colorado sales, the editorial board cautioned that firms without in-state sales, such as defense contractors, could leave.
Gov. Jared Polis won’t say how much in higher taxes he’d personally avoid by defeating Amendment 87 https://t.co/4pBQDf3HKC pic.twitter.com/LvfTahUMqG
Supporters of the measure argue that the state tax code currently relies heavily on the middle class, and Department of Revenue data for 2020 show filers across income tiers paid effective rates below statutory levels. Despite those concerns, the editorial board determined that maintaining the flat tax causes less damage to the state economy than driving away large employers.
Historical Tax Filings and Prior Disclosures Shape the Debate
Questions regarding the governor’s personal tax obligations echo previous disclosures. During his 2022 reelection campaign, Polis released a single tax return showing that he and his husband, Marlon Reis, reported over $1 million in revenue and $315,000 in losses on their 2021 joint Form 1040, resulting in a gross income of roughly $733,000. After claiming $148,700 in deductions, their taxable income stood at $585,151, which would have resulted in an additional tax burden of $2,200 under Amendment 87.
Polis, who amassed his wealth after selling an e-greeting card company for $780 million in 1999, has historically utilized legal methods to minimize his tax liabilities. A 2021 investigation by ProPublica revealed that Polis paid no federal income taxes in 2013, 2014, and 2015, and recorded an overall federal tax rate of 8.2% between 2010 and 2018.
As the November election approaches, the precise scale of the governor's personal financial stake if Amendment 87 fails remains undisclosed, leaving voters to weigh the economic arguments against the state's changing tax laws.