Repeal & Reenact Earned Income Tax Credit Increase

During the first extraordinary session of the seventy-fourth general assembly, which occurred in November 2023, the general assembly enacted House Bill 23B-1002 (HB 1002), which increased the amount of the state earned income tax credit (credit) for 2023 from 25% to 50% of the amount of the federal earned income tax credit as a means of refunding excess state revenues for the 2022-23 state fiscal year that TABOR requires to be refunded in the 2023-24 state fiscal year.

On December 28, 2023, a member of the house of representatives (house) filed a lawsuit alleging that the house failed to follow the constitutional requirement that the house read a bill at length unless such reading is waived by the unanimous consent of all house members present when enacting HB 1002 and that HB 1002 therefore must be declared null and void. litigation was filed concerning House Bill 23B-1002's compliance with section 22 of article V of the state constitution providing for the reading of bills at length unless there is unanimous consent to waive such readings by the members present, and the filing of that litigation has created uncertainty for persons eligible for the earned income tax credit and state government regarding the amount of the credit for the 2023 income tax year and the amount of state revenue that may be expended in the current state fiscal year.

To remove address this uncertainty by removing any doubt arising from the lawsuit regarding the constitutionality of the law enacted by HB 1002, the bill repeals and reenacts that law.

(Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.)

(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)