Colorado 2008 ballot measures

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Fourteen statewide ballot propositions were on the November 2008 ballot in Colorado.

Colorado was slated to have 18 measures on the November 2008 ballot but just hours before the October 2, 2008, deadline, union sponsors of four controversial amendments announced they had struck a deal with business interests, leading them to pull all four measures from the ballot. (Because ballots were already being printed, the measures appeared on the ballot, but the withdrawal resulted in no votes for those measures being counted.)

In 1912 Coloradons voted on 22 ballot measures. The closest any subsequent election year has come to that is in 2008 and 1972. Fourteen measures were on the ballot in both of those years.

• With 10 initiatives on the 2008 ballot, the historical total of Colorado citizen initiatives increased to 206 since the beginning of the process in 1912. Of those, 72 have been approved by voters, and 134 have been defeated.

• See Colorado 2008 citizen initiatives for a list of Colorado initiatives that did not make the 2008 ballot.

On the ballot

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Result
CICA	Amendment 46	Affirmative action	State and local government agencies prohibited from affirmative action	d
CICA	Amendment 47	Labor and unions	Union contracts under which employees are required to pay union dues.	d
CICA	Amendment 48	Abortion	Definition of 'person' in the Colorado Constitution to include any fertilized egg, embryo or fetus	d
CICA	Amendment 49	Paycheck protection	Bar automatic union dues deductions from public employee payrolls	d
CICA	Amendment 50	Gambling	Allow municipalities to extend hours of limited gaming operations, increase maximum bet	a
CICA	Amendment 51	Taxes	Increase state sales tax to fund services for developmentally disabled	d
CICA	Amendment 52	Taxes	Increase severance tax, create the Colorado Transportation Trust Fund	d
CICA	Amendment 54	Elections and campaigns	Close a remaining loophole in Colorado election law by banning the practice of "Pay to Play"	a
CISS	Amendment 58	Taxes	Eliminate tax credit for property taxes paid for payers of the severance tax	d
CICA	Amendment 59	State spending	Create state education fund savings account	d
LRCA	Referendum L	Elections	Lower the age of a candidate for the Colorado House and Senate from 25 to 21	d
LRCA	Referendum M	Admin of gov't	Eliminate obsolete provisions in the constitution about land value increases	a
LRCA	Referendum N	Admin of gov't	Eliminate obsolete provisions in the constitution about intoxicating liquor	a
LRCA	Referendum O	Direct democracy measures	Change signature requirements for qualifying an initiated constitutional amendment for the ballot	d

Not on the ballot

The measures in this list filed signatures, but were not on the 2008 ballot for a variety of reasons.

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Result
CI	Amendment 53	Law enforcement	Criminal liability for executives of businesses found guilty of criminal conduct
CICA	Amendment 55	Labor	Just cause for employee discharge or suspension
CICA	Amendment 56	Health care	Every employer that employs 20+ employees to provide major medical health care for employees.
CI	Amendment 57	Labor	Employers to maintain a safe and healthy workplace for their employees
CICA	Initiative 82	Affirmative action	Would prohibit the state from discriminating against any individual.

See also

• List of Colorado ballot measures
• Procedures for qualifying an initiative in Colorado
• Laws governing the initiative process in Colorado
• History of Initiative & Referendum in Colorado
• Petition drive deadlines in 2008
• 2008 ballot title challenges

External links

• 2008 State Ballot Information Booklet, English version (Blue Book)
• 2008 State Ballot Information Booklet, Spanish version (Blue Book)
• Initiatives submitted for review and comment
• FaceTheState.com: The 11 initiatives still seeking your support
• Ad targets backers of anti-union measures
• Colorado Ballot Amendment Reference
• Colorado 2008 Sample Ballot

Additional reading

• Spending a hard sell with voters
• Rocky Mountain News: Editorial: "Ballot deal wasn't a bribe," Oct. 5, 2008
• Denver Post: Opinion: "Fast forward through the attack ads, dear friends," Sept. 13, 2008
• Denver Post: "Checking signatures takes eyes for detail," Aug. 27, 2008
• Wall Street Journal: Will Colorado Ballot Measure on Race Hurt Obama?," Aug. 10, 2008
• Ballot initiatives could set record
• Campaigns submit petitions at the 11th hour
• More business measures awaiting Colorado ballot
• Colorado petitions filed to end oil, gas tax break
• Ritter energized about removing oil, gas tax break
• Lengthy ballot awaits Colorado voters
• Petitioners get measures in just before deadline
• Crowded ballot: Initiative inflation could set record
• 329,000 signatures for two union measures
• 18 initiative campaigns bunker down for general election season
• New site created - Colorado Ballot Initiatives Reference