Measure for Denver schools would raise property taxes again

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(The Center Square) - Denver residents may see their property taxes rise for a second consecutive year to help fund the city’s public schools, which operate on a $1.5 billion budget.

Residents will vote Nov. 3 on Denver Ballot Issue 4A, which seeks an additional $44 million in annual property taxes, with collection beginning next year. If the measure passed, every Denver Public Schools employee would get a raise of $1,750 a year, which would help with the cost of living in Denver, said Rob Gould, president of the Denver Classroom Teachers Association, a union.

This potential property tax increase follows Denver Public Schools' approval of a 2025 property tax levy that imposed $1.4 billion in taxes to finance school operations, repay bond debt and support existing funding requirements. The tax levy was only in effect for 2026.

The 2026-27 budget for Denver Public Schools is approximately $1.5 billion.

Gould told The Center Square that $26 million of the $44 million in additional funding would go toward educators’ salaries, and $9 million would go to city charter schools.  

The union president also said $5 million would increase mental health and special education staff support, and $4 million would go to career and technical education.

Property taxes will increase by $6 per month for the average Denver homeowner, for a total of $72 per year, Gould said.

When neighborhoods have strong schools, property values increase, he added.

Gould noted the $1,750 raise, which the ballot measure would fund, would go a long way in helping educators afford to live in Denver.

If the initiative doesn’t pass, Gould said DPS may need to pull funds from high schools to hire the teachers.

Colorado’s current 4.4% flat tax, which is required under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, has squeezed DPS’ budget, Gould said. He noted DPS  is “doing more with less” year after year.

Kevin Vick, president of Colorado Education Association, said all Colorado students deserve “an exceptional, fully funded public education.”

“But for decades, we’ve starved our schools and educators of the resources they need – and [DPS], our state’s largest district, is no exception,” Vick told The Center Square by email.

Vick, whose organization is the state's largest union of educators, added that “the increased funding will help improve educator retention, which we know is one of the biggest factors in improving student outcomes.”

Jon Caldara, president of the Denver think tank Independence Institute, said DPS continually asks for money, but does not “see better [academic] results.”

Denver voters should look at “past performance as a likely future indicator,” he explained.

If Denver voters approve the ballot initiative, they are “encouraging failed bad behavior, rewarding mismanagement and low test scores,” Caldara noted.

During the 2025-2026 school year, 69% of DPS K-3 students read at or above grade level, according to READ Act assessments. The act was passed by the Colorado General Assembly in 2012, and READ stands for "Reading to Ensure Academic Development."

Meanwhile, 35% of third through eighth graders who took the Colorado Measures of Academic Success fulfilled or surpassed expectations in math.

Given the state’s affordability issues, “the idea people’s mortgages and rents should go up without any sort of guarantee” of an increase in academic performance “is just a bad deal,” Caldara explained.

Caldara pointed out Denver’s public schools have seen declining enrollment in recent years. In 2026, DPS had 81,989 students, down from 83,773 in 2025, according to the school district.

This represents a difference of 1,784 fewer students. DPS’ enrollment has not reached the levels it had before the COVID pandemic in 2019, when it had 86,949 students.

Gould said declining enrollment is due to several factors, including lower birth rates and people moving.

For Fiscal Year 2024-2025, Denver spent $18,375 per student, which was above the state average of $16,845, according to the state Department of Education.

Caldara said the school district’s problem isn't money. 

With the amount of money DPS spends per student, kids could afford some of the city’s best private schools, he said.  

In addition to Ballot Issue 4A, Denver residents and other Coloradans will vote on Proposition NN, which seeks to grow the state’s K-12 public education funding by up to 50% over the next decade.