The body that makes the final review of ballot measures on Wednesday rejected a proposal to repeal Colorado’s wolf reintroduction program.

The entity known as the Title Board, which is comprised of representatives of the attorney general’s office, the Secretary of State, and the Legislative Council staff, approved a second initiative aimed at ending the wolf program to collect signatures.

The Title Board sided with opponents who claimed Initiative #35 violated the state’s single-subject rule. That claim, which two individuals filed, said the measure had four unrelated subjects:

• To end gray wolf reintroduction

• To remove the “nongame” status of gray wolves, and the use of the sole term “wolves” rather than the term “gray wolves” used throughout the remainder of the wolf reintroduction statute, which could extend the import ban beyond just the gray wolf

• Redefining livestock to include livestock guard or herding animals, which has nothing to do with wolves

• A prohibition on importing wolves (not just gray wolves) from out of state would be unnecessary under the measure’s stated purpose, as contained in the first section

Proposition 114 passed in 2020 with support primarily from Front Range voters and not the communities on the Western Slope, where wolves have been introduced. Since December of 2023, 25 wolves have been brought to Colorado from Oregon and British Columbia. Within a few months, they started preying on livestock in Grand County and, more recently, Eagle and Pitkin counties.

Following the reintroduction, two Oregon wolves formed a pair and produced at least four pups. They were eventually captured due to concerns that the male was responsible for a dozen livestock depredations. The male died shortly after capture — it turned out from an earlier gunshot wound. Four other wolves have also died. Two of the British Columbia wolves were killed in Wyoming, although Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the state of Wyoming have not said how the second wolf died. Another Oregon wolf died after a fight with another wolf, and a fourth died after a battle with a mountain lion.

All told, that leaves the state with 27 collared wolves, including two in Jackson County who traveled to Colorado several years ago from Wyoming.

Dozens of livestock producers, ranchers, ag organizations, county commissioners and wildlife conservation groups, with hundreds of thousands of members, had pleaded with the proponents to pull initiative #35.

Colorado coalition of hunters, anglers opposes 2026 wolf reintroduction repeal efforts

Dan Gates of Coloradans for Responsible Wildlife Management told Colorado Politics that, based on the outreach from the agriculture community and the Colorado Wildlife Conservation Project, which includes his group, the title board probably made the best decision that could be made, given the single-subject issue.

As for the multitude of organizations that came together to oppose Initiative #35, Gates said, “We are pleased to make sure we are trying to do things lockstep with each other and in a collaborative manner, to benefit wildlife management and agriculture production when it comes to wolf restoration.”

Meanwhile, Initiative #13, the measure that has been approved, states simply that the state will end the reintroduction of gray wolves by Dec. 31, 2026.

Critics of both ballot measure pointed out that the state would likely have completed the reintroduction program by then, rendering the issue moot.

The Title Board approved the measure on Feb. 19.

Petition forms are due Aug. 27, and if successful, the measure will appear on the 2026 general election ballot.

Funding, which the advocates have struggled to raise, could make that a tall order.

Ballot measures require 124,238 valid signatures to qualify for the ballot. The standard is to collect at least 200,000. It is not unusual for a campaign to spend $1 million just on gathering signatures.

The group called Colorado Advocates for Smart Wolf Policy raised only $29,000 in its first three months and spent $11,000, with all but $1,000 going to Patrick Davis Consulting, the campaign manager.

In a statement Wednesday, Davis said, “We are disappointed with the State Title Board’s decision to reverse its unanimous April 2, 2025, decision to set a single subject title on Proposed Initiative #35.

“With this decision, the Title Board is denying the owners of livestock guard and herding animals the chance for compensation for losses caused by a gray wolf and denying the professionals at the Colorado Department of Parks and Wildlife the chance to be given flexibility to manage Colorado’s wolf population as they see fit,” Davis said. “Additionally, Colorado voters were denied the opportunity to weigh in on prohibiting wolves from being imported into Colorado.”

That said, he pointed out that Initiative #13 is ready and Advocates for Smart Wolf Policy will begin collecting signatures “immediately.”

Gaspar Perricone, who chairs the Colorado Wildlife Conservation Project, said, “The proposal in Initiative #13, while similar to Initiative #35, doesn’t appear to address the underlying concerns” that were expressed by Colorado Wildlife Conservation Project.

He added: “We continue to look toward proactive solutions that will have a meaningful impact in addressing the underlying issues with the ongoing wolf management plan for landowners and the sportsmen community.”