Colorado's 2026 Ballot — What's on It and Where to Learn More

This November, Colorado voters will decide on a record-tying 14 statewide ballot measures, the most citizen-initiated questions in over a century. You'll also see local issues on your ballot. Given how many measures there are and how ballot language often seems designed to confuse, we wanted to provide an overview, look at who's behind some of these measures, and offer some resources you can use to do your own research.

Constitutional Amendments (need 55% to pass):

• Amendment 81 would require police to notify federal immigration authorities in certain criminal cases involving people whose immigration status is in question.

• Amendment 82 would enshrine a constitutional right to buy and sell natural gas for homes and businesses.

• Amendment 83 would establish a constitutional right to hunt and fish using traditional methods.

• Amendment 84 would add a secondary verification step to mail ballots with a requirement to provide a partial Social Security or driver's license number.

• Amendment 85 would require future ballot measures to be written at an 8th-grade reading level.

• Amendment 86 would add new approval requirements for any mid-decade redistricting effort.

• Amendment 87 would create a graduated state income tax, raising rates on income over $500,000/year while slightly cutting rates for lower earners. (Needs only a simple majority since it repeals rather than amends constitutional language.)

Statutory Measures (need a simple majority):

• Proposition NN, the only measure referred by the legislature, would raise the state's TABOR revenue cap to add roughly $500 million/year for K-12 education.

• Proposition 132 would sharply increase criminal penalties for fentanyl possession and distribution.

• Proposition 133 would mandate life without parole for child sex trafficking convictions.

• Proposition 134 would require school and association sports teams to be classified by biological sex.

• Proposition 135 would prohibit certain gender-affirming surgeries for minors and bar state/federal funds (including Medicaid) from covering them.

• Proposition 136 would cap the income tax rate at its current 4.4%, effectively countering Amendment 87 if both pass (the one with more "yes" votes wins on conflicting provisions).

• Proposition 137 would exempt sporting goods sales tax revenue from TABOR limits to boost funding for conservation and wildfire mitigation.

More Insight: Money, Ballot Measures, and You

Colorado's ballot initiative and referendum process lets citizens set public policy directly, without waiting on the legislature. It's a powerful tool, and one that's been used across the political spectrum for decades. But it comes with real tradeoffs: ballots have gotten longer and more complex, and well-funded interests, regardless of which side they're on, can have an outsized ability to get measures on the ballot and shape how they're marketed to voters who may not have time to research every line.

Some things worth considering as you look at this year's ballot: Was a measure referred by the legislature with strong bipartisan support, or did it arrive via a signature campaign funded largely by a small number of donors? Who's actually paying for the ads urging you to vote yes or no, and what do they stand to gain either way?

This Denver Post article examines a well-funded conservative group that has racked up wins on ballot measures in recent elections.

One more question to consider: If you tend to oppose more and more regulations, why would you vote to put more and more rules into the Constitution? Unlike laws enacted by the legislature, changes to the Constitution are difficult to remove or amend and may tie the hands of the legislature when it needs to respond to changing conditions. And we know how things can change quickly.

Resources

Trusted resources for the state initiatives:

• The Colorado 2026 Statewide Ballot Information Booklet (the Blue Book)

• Colorado Secretary of State — Ballot Initiatives, the official source for certified ballot measure text

• Ballotpedia — Ballot Measures

• Colorado Public Radio — Ballot Guide

• Your county clerk's office — for local measures, view a sample ballot on your county clerk and recorder's election page. We're sharing links for Mesa, Delta, and La Plata Counties, but please search your own county clerk and recorder's election page if you live elsewhere: Mesa County | Delta County | La Plata County

• Voting Rights Lab — 2026 Election Risk Heat Map, a research-based resource tracking election administration risk factors nationwide

• The Bell Policy Center's Colorado Ballot Guide

• The Muckraker Ballot Initiative Guide, from Colorado Times Recorder, a left-leaning advocacy outlet; included here as one perspective among the sources above, not as a neutral resource

Other Resources:

• The League of Women Voters of Colorado's Ballot Issues page

• The League of Women Voters of Colorado — Where the League Stands on Initiatives & Amendments, shared for information purposes only

• Western Colorado Alliance has published its own yes, no, or neutral recommendations on the statewide ballot initiatives. Shared for informational purposes only, not as an endorsement of WCA's recommendations.

• For Mesa County residents, Western Colorado Alliance has also given yes, no, or neutral recommendations on local issues. Again, shared for informational purposes only, not as an endorsement of WCA's recommendations.

Thank you for reading to the end. We do urge you to pay attention to your local newspapers and trusted media for more information on municipal and school board measures. If you found this helpful, please share it with your friends and neighbors. And vote. This is our one chance.

— RTB Board of Directors