Ballotpedia's Top 10 ballot measures in 2019
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By Ballot Measures Project staff
We've compiled a list of 10 ballot measures we will be watching closely on November 5, 2019.
- See more of our 2019 election analysis by visiting our Election Analysis Hub.
Voters in eight states will vote on a total of 32 statewide ballot measures Nov. 5. Ballotpedia is covering 141 local measures in jurisdictions within 17 different states for the November 5 election. Ballotpedia is covering local measures that appear on the ballot for voters within the top 100 largest cities in the U.S. Ballotpedia is also covering all local measures in California and North Carolina.
Below are Ballotpedia's top 10 picks for the most interesting Nov. 5 ballot measures to watch:
Statewide measures
- Washington Referendum 88, Vote on I-1000 Affirmative Action Measure (2019) - Voters will be asked to approve or reject Initiative 1000, which was qualified through a signature petition drive and then passed by the state legislature. The measure would expressly allowing the state to implement affirmative action policies without the use of preferential treatment or quotas (as defined in I-1000) in public employment, education, and contracting. Washington Initiative 200, which voters approved in 1998, prohibited public institutions in the state from discriminating or granting preferential treatment based on race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the areas of public education, public employment, and public contracting. Initiative 200 did not define preferential treatment.
- This measure is one of only two statewide citizen-initiated measures on the ballot in the country this year and is the only veto referendum—a petition effort targeting the repeal of a recently passed law. What's more, it is a veto referendum seeking the repeal of an indirect initiative that was approved by the legislature instead of going to the ballot. This situation has happened two times out of 38 indirect initiatives in Washington's history. In other words, this measure really took a complex and unusual route to get before voters. Proponents of I-1000 first collected signatures to qualify the measure to go before the legislature and potentially on to the ballot. Then the legislature approved the initiative, precluding an election on it. Finally, opponents of I-1000 collected signatures to force the issue before voters in the hopes they would reject it.
- Washington Initiative 976, Limits on Motor Vehicle Taxes and Fees Measure (2019) - This is the other citizen-initiated measure on the ballot in 2019 and the only statewide ballot initiative—a petition effort proposing a new law rather than challenging a recently passed one. It would limit annual license fees for vehicles weighing under 10,000 pounds to $30, except for voter-approved charges. It would also base vehicle taxes on the Kelley Blue Book value rather than 85% of the manufacturer's base suggested retail price and repeal authorization for certain regional transit authorities, such as Sound Transit, to impose motor vehicle excise taxes.
- In 2018, Ballotpedia identified a trend of eight measures in six states designed to limit future taxes through mechanisms such as voter approval requirements, supermajority requirements, or bans on types of taxes. Efforts like Initiative 976 to reduce taxes or fees with revenue dedicated to a specific purpose, however, have rarely reached the ballot in recent history. California Proposition 6 in 2018 would have repealed gas taxes that went into effect one year before the Prop. 6 election.
- Colorado Proposition CC, Retain Revenue for Transportation and Education TABOR Measure (2019) - This measure would allow the state to retain revenue above the state spending cap to provide funding for transportation and education. Without the approval of Prop. CC, the state would be required to refund the revenue to taxpayers. Prop. CC, along with Prop. DD, requires voter approval under Colorado's TABOR amendment because it allows the state to retain revenue that would otherwise be refunded to taxpayers. The Colorado Legislative Council Staff estimated that if the measure is approved, the state would retain $310 million above the TABOR limit in 2019-2020 and $342 million above the limit in 2020-2021. Prop. CC was put on the ballot by the state legislature.
- Since 1992, when TABOR was adopted, through 2018, Colorado voters have decided on 19 ballot measures that would have increased revenue for the state, proposals that required voter approval under TABOR. Voters approved four and rejected 15. Proposition C would end TABOR tax refunds.
- Colorado Proposition DD, Legalize Sports Betting with Tax Revenue for Water Projects Measure (2019) - This measure would authorize sports betting in Colorado and authorize the legislature to levy a tax of 10% on those conducting sports betting operations, with most revenue beyond administration costs and refunds to gambling entities that lose money going to fund state water projects. The proposed statute was put on the ballot by the state legislature. This measure requires voter approval under Colorado's TABOR amendment since it proposes a new tax. As of September 2019, 13 states had active sports betting industries. Colorado is the seventh driest state in the U.S. Proposition DD combines the perennial state issue of water infrastructure with sports gambling and TABOR.
- Pennsylvania Marsy's Law Crime Victims Rights Amendment (2019) - This measure would add specific rights of crime victims, together known as a Marsy's Law, to the Pennsylvania Constitution. As of 2019, 12 states had passed a ballot measure for Marsy's Law, six of them in 2018. Wisconsin voted on Marsy's Law on April 7, 2020. A lawsuit was filed seeking to invalidate Pennsylvania's Marsy's Law amendment. On Oct. 30, Commonwealth Court Judge Ellen Ceisler issued a preliminary injunction pending a final ruling and ordered state officials to not count or certify votes on the measure. Montana and Kentucky Marsy's Laws, both on the ballot in 2018, were ruled invalid by the state supreme courts.
- Pennsylvania's Marsy's Law amendment is the 2019 measure that spurred the most campaign contributions. The support campaign reported $6.15 million in contributions, all of which came from the Marsy's Law for All Foundation. No opposition contributions were reported. Ballotpedia identified $102.26 million in total contributions to the support campaigns for the 12 Marsy's Law ballot measures that were on ballots between 2008 and 2018. Henry Nicholas, the co-founder of Broadcom Corp., and the organization Marsy's Law for All—which was founded by Nicholas—provided 97 percent of the total contributions.
- Texas Proposition 4, Prohibit State Income Tax on Individuals Amendment (2019) - Proposition 4 would amend the state constitution to prohibit the state from levying an income tax on individuals. The Texas State Constitution currently requires the state legislature to seek voter approval in a statewide referendum before enacting an individual income tax. Legislators can put such a measure on the ballot through a simple majority vote. If Proposition 4 passes, removing the ban on individual income taxes would require another constitutional amendment, which needs a two-thirds vote in each legislative chamber and voter approval.
- The Texas State Legislature placed Proposition 4 on the ballot in one of the closest votes of the past 25 years. In Texas, a two-thirds vote is required to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot, and Proposition 4 passed with exactly the required 100 votes in the state House and one more than the required 21 votes in the state Senate. It tied with Proposition 1 (2005), Proposition 2 (2005), and Proposition 12 (2003) for having the narrowest margin of approval in the legislature since at least 1995. Most Democratic state legislators (65 percent) opposed Proposition 4. Republican legislators, along with 29 percent of Democratic legislators, supported the constitutional amendment.
Local measures
- Tucson, Arizona, Proposition 205, Sanctuary City Initiative (November 2019) - It would do the following
- declaring in city code that Tucson is a sanctuary city;
- restricting law enforcement officers from actions to determine a person's immigration status under certain conditions;
- prohibiting officers from contacting federal law enforcement agencies to determine a person's immigration status; and
- prohibiting city employees from inquiring about a person's immigration status, among other policies.
- This citizen initiative would make Tucson the first city in Arizona to enact sanctuary city policies.
- New York City Ballot Question 1, Elections Charter Amendment: Ranked-Choice Voting, Vacancies, and City Council Redistricting Timeline (November 2019) - This measure would establish ranked-choice voting to be used for the city's primary and special elections beginning in 2021. As of 2019, the city's charter provided for plurality voting—also known as first-past-the-post—and run-off elections, depending on the office and type of election. Question 1 would allow voters to rank in order of preference up to five candidates, including a write-in candidate. Question 1 also contains two other proposals related to the timing of elections and redistricting. The New York City 2019 Charter Revision Commission put Question 1 on the ballot, along with four other questions. The last charter revision commission tasked with a full revision of the city charter put proposals on the 1989 city ballot.
- If this charter amendment is approved in November 2019, New York City would become the most populous jurisdiction in the U.S. to employ the ranked-choice voting election method. Maine, as the only state to use ranked-choice voting for statewide elections, is currently the most populous jurisdiction to feature the election method. As of 2019, ranked-choice voting is used or has been approved but not yet implemented for elections in 24 cities and counties in 12 states.
- San Francisco, California, Proposition F, Campaign Contribution Restrictions and Advertisement Disclaimer Requirements (November 2019) - This citizen initiative would enact the following requirements for campaign advertisement disclaimers and restrictions on campaign contributions:
- a ban on limited liability companies or partnerships contributing to candidate committees;
- a ban on contributions to a city supervisor, the mayor, the city attorney, or any candidates for these positions from someone with certain levels of financial interest in any matter concerning zoning, city planning, or land-use changes; and
- requirements that specify how advertisements must display funding and what donation threshold requires a disclaimer.
- Gordon Mar, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, supports Proposition F and said, "Faith in government requires faith in our electoral process, and dark money, pay-to-play, and corporate influences are all marks against the trust the public places in us."[1] The San Francisco Chronicle opposes Proposition F and argued, "The trouble is that its [Proposition F] limit on donations from those with land-use matters before the city singles out developers—one special interest that doesn’t seem to be having its way with anti-development San Francisco—and ignores the influence of organized labor and others who consistently get what they want."[2]
- Albuquerque, New Mexico, Proposition 2, Democracy Dollars Program Initiative (November 2019) - This citizen initiative would create a program called Democracy Dollars that would provide eligible city residents with $25 vouchers they could give to a participating candidate to fund their campaign. Proposition 2 would make Albuquerque the second jurisdiction in the U.S. (after Seattle) to adopt government-disbursed vouchers.
See also
- 2019 ballot measure election results
- 2019 ballot measures
- List of ballot measures by state
- List of ballot measures by year
- Ballot Measure Scorecard, 2019
- Ballotpedia's Tuesday Count for 2019
- Local ballot measure elections in 2019
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See also: Elections by state and year.
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