Colorado squeezed its state finances into a straitjacket called the taxpayer bill of rights in 1992. TABOR, a constitutional amendment limiting the growth in public revenue, worked even better than advertised. Government shrunk drastically.
There were side effects, however – fiscal and political. First, services – health care, roads and bridges, schools and universities – worsened. Next, for the first time in 30 years, the Republican Legislature turned Democratic.