A law isn’t working if it has to be suspended for government to properly do its job.

Voters in Colorado amended the state constitution to strictly limit government’s growth and spending. The move backfired and voters on Tuesday decided that the only option they had was to suspend the fiscal limits for five years and to use the $3.7 billion that would have been refunded to taxpayers to pay for vital programs.

The rebuke illustrates dramatically the flaws in the Taxpayers Bill of Rights, called TABOR. Supporters of the measure have submitted signatures to the Maine secretary of state to have TABOR placed on the ballot next year. It’s too late to stop the signature collection part of the campaign, but that doesn’t make TABOR good public policy.

Colorado passed its version of TABOR in 1992. Since then, the spending and tax limits have left government chronically underfunded. Republican support of the measure led to electoral collapse, as both chambers of the state Legislature fell into Democratic hands for the first time in more than 40 years. Republican Gov. Bill Owens, who originally supported TABOR, joined with Democratic legislators in working for its suspension.

Colorado has had more than a decade to discover the effects of TABOR. Voters found that despite their high per capita income and a well-educated population, their government was unable to do its job when starved of resources.

While the spending and tax restrictions proposed in Maine differ slightly from the law in Colorado, that state’s experience demonstrates how the idea is unsustainable.

Supporters of the Maine TABOR say that the vote proves the law works. The power to decide government taxing and spending policy was left to voters. But voters in Maine have never lost control of their government. They elect the governor, representatives and senators – along with local officials – and can change the lineup anytime they like. Having to undo a law does not validate it. It proves that it’s unmanageable.

By looking to Colorado, hopefully Mainers can see that the sales job on TABOR does not match the reality.