Ruling Democrats at Colorado’s legislature have a reflexive urge to raise taxes. Think of it as a collective case of obsessive-compulsive disorder. 

Problem is, they can’t act on their urge without voters’ permission — thanks to the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights in our state constitution. Asking voters to raise taxes is of course risky; they’re often enough unsympathetic. Go figure.

So, the would-be tax hikers at the state Capitol instead have come up with assorted schemes over the years for raking in more revenue while sidestepping the need to seek voter approval. Imposing fees in lieu of new taxes, for example, requires only the governor’s signature — and nowadays funds a significant share of state spending.

The latest attempt to sneak in a tax hike through the back door is to “decouple” Colorado’s tax code from federal taxes. It would pump more tax revenue into state coffers — and out of the public’s pockets. And it wouldn’t have to go to the ballot.

The state lawmakers who are proposing that path, as reported this week by Colorado Politics, claim they only are going after big business. They would, in fact, be coming after all of us.

Currently, Coloradans’ state taxes piggyback on their federal returns. That means when state taxpayers file each tax season, their adjusted gross income on their federal returns serves as the baseline for their state returns, as well. That makes filing state taxes a comparative breeze for most Coloradans. More important, it lowers their tax bill by passing through to their state taxes any tax relief Congress has enacted into the federal tax code.

The Democratic majority at Colorado’s Capitol isn’t happy about that. That’s particularly so because the Republican Congress passed sweeping tax relief last year. Colorado’s legislative leaders have called that “devastating” because it also stands to lower the adjusted gross used as the basis for Coloradans’ state tax bills. That leaves state lawmakers less money to spend.

Instead of welcoming the windfall for rank-and-file taxpayers, our Democratic legislature has introduced a package of bills to make up the lost revenue. They’re calling it “rebalancing.” 

The main thrust of their legislation is to neutralize any state impact from an array of federal tax deductions and exemptions for business as well as individuals. The tax breaks range from deductions businesses can claim for interest they pay on loans to expand, to the sales tax exemption for downloaded software. 

In other words, the state would start taxing such items if the bills pass — and presto! Another backdoor tax hike. Clever, eh?

It would be onerous enough if it were just the filers who have to fork over the extra cash. But as is always the case with tax hikes, there would be collateral damage, too. 

First, all Colorado taxpayers would end up paying the tab after it’s passed on to them in cumulative price hikes that cover the cost of higher taxes on our state’s providers of goods and services. It would drive the inflationary price spiral.

It also would backfire in another way Colorado simply cannot afford: It would pile yet another burden on businesses — which create most of our state’s jobs — amid what already is being perceived as an anti-business climate. As business observers noted in Colorado Politics’ news report, Colorado has been losing ground in national business rankings. A Colorado Chamber of Commerce-commissioned study found it is the sixth-most-regulated state in America. 

Hike taxes on job creators, and they’ll avoid Colorado like the plague. All because our legislature can’t budget within its means.