By Carolyn Martin (CHEC Director of Government Relations)

Upcoming Election

Mail ballots will begin being mailed out to all registered voters on Friday, October 8th. Despite nagging questions and lagging confidence in our election system, it is important we continue to take our responsibility as citizens seriously and vote. If possible, consider getting involved in the process by volunteering to be a poll watcher or working as an election judge (students are also eligible). 

What will be on your ballot in 2021?

• State law clarifies the types of proposals that may appear on a statewide ballot in odd-numbered years. Odd-year election proposals are limited to state matters arising under TABOR. These types of proposals include a new tax, a tax rate increase, an extension of an expiring tax, a tax policy change directly causing a net revenue gain, and emergency taxes. They also include the creation of multiple-year fiscal obligations or debt, an increase in the assessment rate for a class of property, the weakening of a state limit on spending, and voter-approved revenue changes. **

(**Taken from a recent legislative council staff memo. For more information on the history of ballot initiatives, read the full memo.)

State Ballot Issues:
Amendment 78 (Amendment to the CO Constitution) Requirements for Spending Custodial Money. Stops government departments, agencies, and programs from spending money without legislative oversight. 

Proposition 119 (Change to CO Revised Statutes) Learning Enrichment & Academic Progress (LEAP) Program. Please, see my blog post on this issue (formerly known as Initiative 25). I have grave concerns about the implications of this new government program on possible future regulations of home educators.

Proposition 120 (Change to CO Revised Statutes) Property Tax Assessment Rate Reduction and Voter-Approved Revenue Change. Lowering the residential property tax assessment would certainly help families mitigate the increased taxes the legislature passed during this year’s legislative session. Unfortunately, the legislature also saw fit to change the law in anticipation of this ballot proposition in an attempt to circumvent it. 

Read former Senator Kevin Lundberg’s analysis on these statewide issues here.

Didn’t receive your blue book in the mail from the state?
Find the 2021 Blue Book prepared by the Legislative Council of the CO General Assembly here. 
To access more in-depth fiscal impacts prepared by the state, go here.

Local Ballot Issues:
Check your municipality for ballot measures and school board candidates.
Go here to see your sample ballot (after entering your information).

Voting is an important civic duty! Inform yourself and others. And since Civics is a required subject for all homeschool families, include your children in this process for an excellent “real life” lesson. If possible, take your ballot to your clerk and recorder’s office and vote there rather than mailing it in! 

Trusting in the mighty power and grace of Jesus,
Carolyn Martin, CHEC Director of Government Relations 
carolyn@chec.org

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About the Author: Carolyn Martin

Carolyn Martin serves as CHEC’s Director of Government Relations, working for you and other liberty-loving families to protect homeschool freedom, parental rights, and religious liberty at the state capitol. Subscribe to the CHEC blog for Carolyn’s regular updates here, learn more about legal issues in Colorado here, and donate to support Homeschool Freedom here. Contact Carolyn directly at carolyn@chec.org.