Like many Western states, Colorado has a process whereby its voters can enact or amend state laws and even the state’s constitution. And do we ever love to use it. To those unfamiliar with its details, however, it can be bewildering.
But in reality, the way ballot measures appear reflects a carefully organized and deliberate structure designed to ensure fairness, consistency and continuity. Moreover, it works.
At the state level, Colorado law provides for initiatives and referendums. (Bad Latin, but Associated Press style.) Both are proposals put to the voters, and neither are subject to a veto.
Initiatives involve a process that includes drafting the proposed measure and checking that it meets with state law as to form and language. The ballot measure must be written so that “yes” is a vote for change, while “no” is a vote for the status quo. And it must meet the constitutional requirement that it address a single subject.
Backers must then collect valid signatures numbering more than 5 percent of the total votes cast in the last election for secretary of state, now 98,492.
Referendums have many of the same requirements, but not the signatures. They are proposals referred to the voters by the state Legislature or another political subdivision.
Either can change state law or alter Colorado’s constitution. And the labeling system reflects those four possible combinations.
Constitutional changes appear on the ballot as amendments. Statutory measures are called propositions. Referred amendments are given capital letters A-Z. Initiated amendments are numbered 1-99. Referred propositions are labeled with double letters AA through ZZ, while initiated propositions are numbered 101 through 199. So on this year’s ballot, Amendment U is a constitutional referendum, while Proposition 106 is statutory initiative.
Even the order on the ballot is predetermined. Referendums are first, initiatives follow. And within each category, revenue measures precede other issues.
Colorado’s constitution guarantees that voters in cities, towns and municipalities also have the power of both referendum and initiative, although the process can be different.
Statutory counties like Montezuma (as opposed to home rule counties – Weld, Denver and Pitkin) have referendums but not initiatives. Examples include the measure on this year’s ballot to opt out of SB 152. There, too, the numbering is systematic: 1 means a county issue; 2 means municipal; 3 means schools; 4 is for cross-jurisdictional measures; 5 special districts. After that, a letter is assigned based on which was submitted first.
It is a seemingly complex system, but each step is simple and straightforward. Self-governance requires order, which must also be fair to all. There is enough to argue about without doubting the process as well.
