Eleven statewide ballot measures are certified to appear on the November 3 ballot in Colorado. Ballotpedia identified 30 committees supporting and opposing 10 of the measures. The 30 committees had raised $39,321,079.49 and had spent $32,226,098.34 according to reports due on October 5 that covered information through September 30. The next reports are due on October 19.
Eight of the 11 measures on the ballot were placed on the ballot through citizen petition drives and concern wolf reintroduction, abortion restrictions, citizenship requirements for voting, national popular vote, paid medical leave, gambling, and taxes.
The citizen-initiated measures are Amendments 76 and 77 and Propositions 113 through 118. Campaigns surrounding the citizen-initiated measures raised 77.11% of the funds ($30.3 million of the $39.3 million total) and accounted for 78% of the expenditures ($25.3 million of the $32.2 million total).
The state legislature referred a state statute to the November 2020 ballot that would increase tobacco taxes and create a new e-cigarette tax to fund various health and education programs (Proposition EE). The committees supporting Proposition EE raised $3.6 million. Opponents raised $3.5 million.
The state legislature referred two constitutional amendments: Amendment B would repeal the Gallagher Amendment and freeze current property tax assessment rates. Amendment C would amend charitable gaming requirements. Amendment B supporters raised $1.6 million, and opponents raised $202,730.
Ballotpedia did not identify committees supporting or opposing Amendment C.
The two largest contributors to 2020 ballot measure campaigns were the Sixteen Thirty Fund and the North Fund. The Sixteen Thirty fund has given $3,083,667.64 in total to Colorado Families First supporting a paid family and medical leave program and to Abortion Access for All opposing abortion restrictions. The North Fund has given $3,200,000.00 million to the same committees.
In 2018, Ballotpedia tracked $1.185 billion in contributions to the ballot measure campaigns supporting and opposing the 167 certified 2018 measures. Campaigns supporting and opposing the 13 statewide ballot measures on the 2018 ballot in Colorado raised $70.4 million, ranking Colorado #6 among states with the highest ballot measure campaign contributions in 2018. California was #1 with $369 million.
So far in 2020, Ballotpedia has tracked $872.6 million in contributions to committees supporting or opposing the 128 statewide measures. Contribution totals increase rapidly in October due to pre-election campaign finance reports. Colorado currently ranks #4 among states with the highest ballot measure campaign contributions.
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