KEY TAKEAWAY: Colorado residents will lose more than $7,000 in TABOR refunds over 10 years under a Democratic proposal to divert the money to K-12 education. If approved by the full Senate, its next stop is the House. Colorado senators on Friday gave preliminary approval to a proposed ballot measure that would take billions of dollars in Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights refunds and use the money for K-12 education. An analysis of the proposal says about 75% of what would otherwise go to Colorado residents wouldn’t actually go to K-12 schools. Instead, those dollars would go into the state’s general fund pot — to be used by lawmakers for whatever purposes they choose. The proposal’s title expressly states that it is for K-12 education funding. If approved by voters, Senate Bill 135 would increase the current TABOR cap by the amount the state spends on K-12 education, currently about $4.5 billion per year.…