Each year, our Ballot Guide is produced to help educate voters and summarize the statewide ballot measures as well as offering vote suggestions.
As always, we encourage our readers to think freely and make decisions on their own.
In many instances on this year’s ballot, there is no clear cut “yes” or “no” answer.
If you happen to disagree with any of our recommendations, that just means you’re thinking for yourself!
Recommended Vote:
LEAN NO
Our guide starts off with potentially the toughest ballot question of the year…
Amendment G, which will require a 55% voter majority to pass, seeks to expand the homestead exemption on property taxes to more military veterans. The exemption would expand from those with 100% permanent service-related disabilities to include those who are classified as having “individual unemployability” status from a non service-related disability.
We will always stand tall and salute our veterans, but manipulating our respect for those who served our country will only lead to bad policy dividing our population and treating different groups of people differently. Most Coloradans are struggling to cope with property taxes and we need a solution for everyone and not just a select few.
Recommended Vote:
LEAN YES
Amendment H came to be after a web of scandals was exposed where more than 120 judges failed to comply with financial disclosure laws and a likely $2.5 million pay-for-silence scandal came to light.
If passed with 55%, this Amendment will create a new administrative board to preside over ethical misconduct of judges. The board members will be chosen by both the Governor and Colorado Supreme Court.
This isn’t the be-all-to-end-all in court transparency, but it is a step in the right direction.
Recommended Vote:
LEAN YES
Amendment I asks whether persons charged with first degree murder can be denied bail when “proof is evident or presumption is great”.
Because the death penalty was repealed in 2020, first degree murder in Colorado is no longer considered a capital offense, and only those accused of a capital offense can be denied bail under current law.
This Amendment would help close this likely unintended loophole and may keep violent criminals off the street while they await their day in court.
Recommended Vote:
NEUTRAL
This Amendment will remove a section of the Colorado Constitution which defines marriage exclusively as being between and man and a woman. This amendment (which only needs 50% to pass) is intended as a housekeeping measure to align state law with rulings from the Colorado Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court.
The U.S. Supreme Court redefined marriage in the Obergefell v. Hodges case back in 2015. Passage or failure of Amendment J will have no real impact except the continued erosion of the legal definition of marriage. Vote your conscience.
Recommended Vote:
NO
Amendment K seeks to move deadlines up by one week for citizens to file their petition signatures. These changes would provide more of a time cushion for the Secretary of State and County Clerks to finalize their ballots, but it comes at the cost of limiting the voices of citizens and their use of the ballot initiative process.
The bar is already quite high for getting your proposed initiative on the ballot, and there’s no need to make it even higher right now.
Recommended Vote:
NO
Amendment 79 does not have to be a referendum on whether you support or oppose abortion.
Passage (55% or more) affects Colorado taxpayers. Passage will end Colorado’s 40-year ban on taxpayer funded abortions, and public health insurance plans are virtually certain to add abortion coverage mandates.
If you want to limit the size and scope of government, and pay less is taxes and healthcare costs, a “no” vote is the better option.
Recommended Vote:
NO
The Colorado Freedom Force supports school choice.
Unfortunately, Amendment 80 was not drafted properly to be the next, best step towards enhancing school choice in Colorado.
Like other issues we have seen in the past, such as the repeal of the Gallagher Amendment, sometimes there is a wrong way to do it. (Take a look at your property taxes).
Amendment 80, if passed with 55% of the vote, will not expand school choice options for parents or create any new programs for school choice. What it will do is set the stage for a series of different lawsuits on the issue of school choice which could serve as a barrier for future advancement opportunities. It’s best to reject this option in order to proceed with a clearer path in the near future.
Recommended Vote:
NO
Proposition JJ is asking voters to allow the government to keep excess tax revenue which was collected from sports betting.
Thanks to TABOR, these funds cannot be kept without the direct permission of the voters. While the proposition begins with “without raising taxes”, it still asks to keep the revenue collected about the $29 million cap set in 2019. That means this proposition actually is raising taxes.
Regardless of what the over-taxed funds would be used for (in this case it’s “water conservation”), it’s best to return these funds to the taxpayers and let the Legislature take a stab at solving water storage issues during the Legislative Session.
Recommended Vote:
NO
As with every passing year, we owe a huge “thanks” to TABOR, which requires this proposition to be on the ballot even though radical Leftists in the Colorado Legislature already passed it into law. There can be no new taxes without the direct consent of the voters, and they weren’t able to disguise this one as a “fee”.
This proposition is asking voters to slap a 6.5% excise tax on sales of firearms and ammunition in Colorado, on top of the existing 10% Federal tax on handguns and 11% tax on all other firearms.
This is nothing short of a “sin tax”, and we believe that none of our Constitutional Rights should be considered a sin. These rights should never be penalized by taxation, especially the right to keep and bear arms.
Recommended Vote:
NO
The hunting of bobcat, lynx and mountain lion is already well-managed by Colorado Parks and Wildlife, who closely track the population of these animals. An outright ban would throw off the current balance and pose a threat to people recreating in Colorado Parks as well as to the livelihood of farmers and ranchers.
No surprise this proposition is heavily backed by out-of-state animal rights activists with no real idea of what the current situation with these cats is here in Colorado. Please vote “no”.
Recommended Vote:
YES
Proposition 128 would require that anyone convicted of committing violent crimes in Colorado be required to serve at least 85% of their prison sentence before being eligible for parole. Additionally, repeat offenders being convicted for three or more times will no longer be eligible for parole.
If we want to reduce crime in Colorado, we need to actually stand behind the laws we have on the books. Maybe, just maybe a tougher experience in the penal system will serve as a deterrent for those wishing to commit violent crimes in the first place.
Recommended Vote:
LEAN NO
If passed, Proposition 129 will create a new series of licensing and education requirements for a mid-level veterinarian position.
While the surface goal of this initiative might be to try to solve the veterinarian shortage much of Colorado is facing, the bottom line is this is not a place where government meddling and more licensing requirements will create a more positive result in the long term. Let’s allow the free market to sort this one out, not the government.
Recommended Vote:
YES
Proposition 130 seeks to direct the State Assembly to make a one-time appropriation of $350 million from the General Fund to improve officer recruitment, training, and retention as well as add death benefits.
Crime is on the rise across Colorado and this is a step in the right direction toward attracting and keeping quality law enforcement officers.
While the proposition does not specify exactly when the Legislature must make this allocation (it could be never), it does go as far as specifying the funds must come from tax money already in the General Fund and cannot be raised from a new tax or “fee”. That final detail is the reason Colorado Freedom Force recommends a “YES” vote on this proposition.
If passed, we can all lobby our elected officials next year to make the allocation immediately.
Recommended Vote:
NO
Proposition 131 would make significant changes to the way we elect our representation here in Colorado. For primary elections, 131 would move us to an all-candidate primary, otherwise known as a “Jungle Primary”. Then for the general election, the winner would be chosen through a “Ranked Choice” voting system.
On the surface, ranked choice voting seems like a clever way to conduct elections, but it’s a complicated system. Other States in the U.S. which were first to test this idea have run headfirst into numerous problems, including seeing top vote-getters be eliminated and weaker candidates be propped up by the algorithms of the “instant runoff voting” which decides the winner. Trustworthiness is a major concern.
Additionally, this particular Proposition is backed by more than $9M in funding by mega-donors, many of which do not live in Colorado. Their interest in meddling in our elections is sure to benefit them more than it will benefit the average Coloradan.
Remember, if you disagree with any of these recommendations, congratulations, you didn’t need this ballot guide.
The freedom to think and decide for yourself is one of the greatest freedoms we all get to enjoy when casting ballots.
