Colorado is a wonderful state to live and thrive in. But as we at The Community Foundation Serving Boulder County know, we are facing some serious challenges here.
Did you know that to get an initiative on the ballot in Colorado — for a statutory change or even an amendment to the state’s constitution — you only need to collect 5 percent of the previous Secretary of State’s vote total? In 2015, that means a mere 98,000 signatures. The state’s legislature can also get initiatives on ballots with a two-thirds vote in both chambers.
Citizens and even special-interest groups outside of Colorado have used the process with great regularity. In fact, Colorado has seen more citizen initiatives than every state in the union, except for California and Oregon.
Colorado has one of the longest constitutions in the nation, with more than 150 amendments. Many of these conflict with one another, making fiscal policy a mess.
A study by the University of Denver and the Colorado Futures Center at Colorado State University highlights a grave concern. By 2024, the state will only have enough tax revenues to cover K-12 education, Medicaid and jails. There won’t be enough funds left over for all of the other basic governmental services, like roads, human services or courts.
A growing diverse and bipartisan group of Colorado leaders are engaged with Building a Better Colorado, an effort to improve policy and the quality of life here.
Join the conversation. Plan to attend the Boulder Community Summit to learn more about the state’s fiscal policy, elections and ideas on how to ensure that Colorado remains a remarkable and special place to live.
Meeting details:
7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 11, 2016
Boulder Valley School District Education Center
6500 East Arapahoe Road, Boulder
If you are interested, RSVP at http://bit.ly/BBCOBoulder!
