Colorado Supreme Court to Review Lawsuit Calling Bridge Surcharge Unconstitutional
The Colorado Supreme Court has agreed to review a lawsuit alleging that a fee charged by a state-authorized enterprise to finance, repair, reconstruct and replace Colorado bridges is an unconstitutional tax.
The vehicle weight-based fee of up to $32 has been imposed by the Colorado Bridge Enterprise, a group authorized in 2009 by state legislation and the Colorado Transportation Commission as a way to keep the state’s 3,500 bridges in good working order.
The fee is charged whether or not a vehicle passes over a bridge. It is a graduated fee based on the notion that the greater the weight, the greater the charge because heavier vehicles cause more significant impact and do more to shorten the lifespan of a bridge.
The group suing CBE, TABOR Foundation, says CBE’s bridge safety surcharge is in effect a tax levied without voter approval.
In 2013, a Denver district court judge ruled that the enterprise was constitutional, a decision upheld by the Colorado Court of Appeals last year.
Colorado’s high court said it will hear the case to decide whether an involuntary bridge surcharge levied on vehicle registration is a tax or taxpayer-exempt fee when the vehicle does not cross bridges funded by the surcharge.
The court also said it will focus its review on whether the bridge enterprise must be operated as a self-supporting business and the transactions between the enterprise and customers must be market exchanges taking place in a competitive, arms-length manner.
Evidence introduced during the 2012 trial showed that 168 bridges have so far been identified as eligible for CBE funding.
In 2011, CBE received revenue from the bridge safety surcharge, federal funding and property transfers from the Colorado Department of Transportation. CBE’s total revenue for fiscal 2011 was $78.5 million.
Also in fiscal 2011, CDOT transferred 56 deteriorated bridges and associated design work to CBE, all of them in use at the time of transfer.
