Vote on the Ballot Issues!

Sometimes people don’t vote on a ballot issue because they don’t know much about it. Another, maybe worse, scenario is that sometimes people vote on an issue thinking they understand it, but they don’t. A goal of this site is to decrease the frequency of those two scenarios.

The non-presidential election years typically have lower turnout especially among younger voters. It’s the kind of year that a bad ballot issue might slip through if people aren’t paying attention or don’t bother to vote. The recent controversy over the Jeffco school board decisions reminds us that it is important to vote the whole ballot every year and to understand what you are voting for.

This year the legislature didn’t refer any ballot issues to the voters. The county, city and school district all referred tax measures. The city also included two “permission” ballot measures.

We’ve seen most of the issues on the ballot before in one form or another. An exception is Prop 105 to label genetically engineered foods. Oregon also has a similar issue on their ballot this year. Interestingly, Oregon and Colorado had citizen panels of 20 members hear both sides of the issue and then vote on the issue. The favor-vs-oppose votes were 9-11 and 11-9 respectively in the two states.

Two items not on the ballot this year, though they have been much in the news, are fracking and gay marriage. Our member of Congress Jared Polis pulled his anti-fracking measures in early August after cutting a deal whereby Gov. Hickenlooper creates a task force on oil and gas to propose legislative solutions to the controversy. Meanwhile, our clerk and recorder Hillary Hall bravely began issuing marriage licenses to gay couples this summer in late June after the US 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Utah’s ban on gay marriages unconstitutional, stopped in July when the CO Supreme Court ordered her to stop, and finally this past week after the Supreme Court refused to hear the case on appeal got the okay and began issuing marriage licenses again.

Each ballot issue has its own blog entry if you would like more information or you would like to make comments about the ballot issue. Please limit comments on this blog entry to general comments about the process or the election.

Please vote the whole ballot. In general, the further down the ballot you go, the more your vote counts! At the bottom of this blog entry are other ballot issue websites as well as a link to the County Clerk’s website. The links will be updated as more information becomes available.

STATE OF COLORADO

VOCABULARY

Amendment = Constitutional change
These can only be changed by a voter-approved constitutional amendment.

Proposition = Statutory change
These can be modified by the Colorado General Assembly.


Initiatives - denoted by numbers
Electors signed petitions to put these on the ballot.

Referenda - denoted by letters
The General Assembly or City Council put these on the ballot with a 2/3 supermajority vote or majority vote respectively.


Amendment 67
Change Criminal Code’s Definition of Person and Child
Requires that “person” and “child” in the criminal code and in state wrongful death statutes include “unborn human beings”
NO

Amendment 68
Horse Racetrack Casino Gambling
Allows casino gambling at Arapahoe Park racetrack near Aurora with some of the proceeds going to a new K-12 education fund
no

Proposition 104
School District Open Meeting Requirements for Collective Bargaining
Requires school district collective bargaining negotiations to be held in public
no

Proposition 105
Labeling Genetically Engineered Food
Requires a label on most foods for sale containing genetically engineered components
leaning toward yes


BOULDER COUNTY

Ballot Issue 1A
County-wide Flood Recovery Sales and Use Tax
Raises sales tax by 0.185% for 5 years to pay for flood recovery, victim assistance and to reduce risks of future flood damage
leaning toward no

Ballot Issue 1B
Human Services Safety Net Mill Levy Extension
Continues for 15 years the 0.9 mill levy increase approved by voters in 2010 to restore and increase human services funding in the aftermath of the recession
leaning toward yes


CITY OF BOULDER

Ballot Issues --> New taxes
Ballot Questions --> Others

2A (Ballot Issue)
Temporary Tax Increase for Community, Culture, and Safety
Imposes a new 0.3% sales and use tax for 3 years to improve central Boulder including as far south as Chautauqua and as far east as the Dairy Center of the Arts
for

2B (Ballot Question)
City Council Executive Sessions Related to Boulder’s Electric Utility
Permits through the end of 2017 closed city council meetings solely for the purpose of discussing legal matters and negotiation strategy around the municipal electric utility
for

2C (Ballot Question)
Affirming the City’s Right to Provide Telecommunication Services
Requests permission (as required by state law) for the city to provide telecommunication services – in particular, broadband – to residents and businesses
for


BOULDER VALLEY SCHOOL DISTRICT RE-2

3A
$576M Bond
Increases property taxes for 30 years to pay for repairs, upgrades, new programs, a new school in Erie and replacement of 3 existing elementary schools
no


GOVERNMENT SITES

Boulder County Clerk and Recorder – Elections Division
http://www.bouldercounty.org/elections/pages/default.aspx
See a sample ballot, check your voter and ballot status, find a ballot drop-off location and more. You may also contact the Elections Division at 303 413 7740.

Blue Book Online (Colorado Legislative Council)
http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/CGA-LegislativeCouncil/CLC/1200536134742
The real name of the Blue Book is the 2014 State Ballot Information Booklet. Available in English and Spanish.

Boulder County 2014 Election Webpage
http://www.bouldercounty.org/gov/about/pages/countyballotissues.aspx

City of Boulder 2014 Election Webpage
https://bouldercolorado.gov/elections

City of Boulder Central Records Webpage
https://documents.bouldercolorado.gov/weblink8/Browse.aspx?startid=121434&row=1&&&dbid=0

Boulder Valley School District Website
http://bvsd.org/pages/home.aspx


MEDIA SITES

Boulder Weekly Election Guide 2014
http://www.boulderweekly.com/article-13470-election-2014-vote-guide.html

Daily Camera Election Webpage
http://www.dailycamera.com/local-election-news

Denver Post Election 2014 Webpage
http://www.denverpost.com/election2014


NON-PARTISAN SITES

Ballotpedia
http://ballotpedia.org/Colorado_2014_ballot_measures

League of Women Voters
LWV of Boulder County http://lwvbc.org/2014election.html#s05
LWV of Colorado (English and Spanish) http://lwvcolorado.org/ballot-issues.html
This LWV of Colorado web page also contains a great “Think Before You Ink” statement to help voters decide whether or not to sign initiative petitions.


COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS' SITES

Boulder Chamber of Commerce
http://boulderchamber.com/business-advocacy/eye-ballot-2014/

Boulder Tomorrow
http://www.bouldertomorrow.com/#!hottopics/c1xcs


PARTISAN SITES

Boulder County Democratic Party Voter Guide
http://bocodems.org/
Download the Voter Guide from the home page.

The Boulder County Republicans, Libertarian Party and Green Party don’t have ballot issues recommendations posted on their websites at last check.


WEBSITES ABOUT JUDGES ON THE BALLOT

Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation
http://www.coloradojudicialperformance.gov/review.cfm?year=2014

Clear the Bench Colorado
http://www.clearthebenchcolorado.org/evaluations-2014/