Colorado’s ballot initiatives make us all like elected legislators. We get to decide important policy for the decades.

Here’s some background. If you’re wondering why some ballot issues get letters and others get numbers, it’s because letter initiatives originate by a two-thirds vote of the legislature while numbered initiatives originate from citizen signature gathering.

Another interesting technical feature: constitutional amendments require 55% majority of voters to pass while statutory initiatives, that is, initiatives the legislature can change, require 50% majority. These indicators may be helpful in a first level of decision-making as to the appropriateness of the ballot questions.

Tax issues are usually controversial, but Amendment G may defy that trend. It gives veterans with disabilities that may not be service-related but do prevent employment a break on property taxes. About 3,700 veterans fit this category. These veteran homeowners would receive approximately $590 in property tax reduction on a million-dollar property.

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Sports betting Proposition JJ will allow the state to keep tax revenue above about $29 million for necessary water projects. The excess revenue currently is rebated to licensed sports betting operators, not to bettors or citizens. That’s straightforward.

The legislature put up Proposition KK for a 6.5% excise tax on firearms and ammunition sales. The tax affects $600 million in sales per year and will generate up to $39 million in the first year for various social services including $30 million to help crime victims and $1 million for school safety.

The tax will add about $36 on to handgun prices, $60 for long guns and $20 for ammunition. Colorado had 414 firearm homicides in 2023. The state had 16 incidents of mass shootings with 76 people killed or injured in 2023. Clearly, there is a large cost to citizens for firearm injuries and deaths that the excise tax will put resources toward remediating.

Another firearm-related issue, Proposition 127 to prohibit bobcat, lynx and mountain lion hunting or trapping, has attracted considerable attention. Proposition 127 will set a possible 364-day jail term and/or fines up to $1,000 for violation of the prohibition to kill big cats. The usual purposes for managing these animals will still apply, such as for protecting human life, livestock and personal property.

Lynx are included in the prohibition but there have been no reported lynx killed in Colorado. About 880 bobcats are killed per year and 500 mountain lions. Hunters argue big cat hunting licenses support the state’s wildlife management system. Farmers and ranchers may lose livestock based on the prohibition. There are echoes of arguments over wolf re-introduction by initiative.

The proposition does not involve re-introducing species into Colorado. It addresses leaving 1,380 cats annually to live without threat from humans. A recent scientific study from the World Wildlife Fund’s Living Planet report indicates earth has lost more than 70% of its wildlife since the 1970s due to human interaction with nature. Big cats are an integral part of nature’s self-management. Allowing big cats to live without hunting or trapping should help preserve the state’s natural ecological balance.

Courts and crime receive attention from this year’s constitutional and statutory initiatives. Breaches in judicial discipline have been a serious problem. The legislature wants to correct ethical abrogation with Amendment H to create an independent board for judicial misconduct hearings that include more public documentation of any misconduct. Currently, judges run judicial misconduct hearings with maximum confidentiality. Amendment H will eliminate insider overview of taxpayer-supported judges and courts and reduce instances of improper confidentiality.

Also on ballots are the ratings of judges for their judicial performance. Every judge evaluated “meets performance standards.”

Colorado has ended capital punishment for first-degree murder. The question of Amendment I is whether individuals accused of first-degree murder when proof is evident or presumption of guilt is great should receive an opportunity for bail. Currently, judges will have to set bail for these individuals. The amendment will allow judges to deny bail based on their discretion.

Proposition 128, parole eligibility for crimes of violence, addresses how much prison time for violent crime individuals will serve before parole eligibility. A no vote allows convicted individuals to serve 75% of their sentence minus earned time to receive discretionary parole eligibility.

A yes on the proposition increases prison time served to 85% with no earned time. If a person is a three-time violent crime offender, parole is not an option. Earned time encourages convicted individuals to progress toward positive professional, personal and educational goals.

The proposition asks us citizens to determine if an extra two years in state prison based on a 20-year court ordered sentence for a first or second conviction of a violent crime will reduce violent crime activity, rehabilitate prisoners and protect public safety. The cost of retaining inmates for two more years will range from $12 million to $28 million by 2044.

The 2024 State Ballot Information Booklet is a must-read before voting. Legislators run bills and vote on legislation to make Colorado a better place to live. In this election, it’s our turn, as citizens, to make those decisions.

Paula Noonan owns Colorado Capitol Watch, the state’s premier legislature tracking platform.