Colorado 2016 Ballot Measures

• Amendment T—Colorado Removal of Exception to Slavery Prohibition for Criminals

• Results: 51% No

• NO: It could result in up to 7 percent of the ballots being disqualified due to individuals voting for both parties, which could dramatically alter the results.

• YES: It would no longer prevent one-third of the population from participating in the primary or caucus elections.

It would enable independent voters to participate in major elections without declaring an affiliation with a certain party.

• Proposition 108—Colorado Unaffiliated Elector

• Results: 52% Yes

It would reinstate the use of the primary system in presidential elections rather than the current caucuses held. (More information can be obtained on the specifics of the proposition in The Growl news magazine.)

• YES: It would encourage more widespread voter participation and representation, as caucuses often have to turn down individuals due to room capacities. It would let independent voters contribute, regardless of Proposition 108.

• NO: It would be much more expensive to facilitate. Government officials would have to be hired to account for every single vote and vicinities would have to be retributed for providing a venue to cast votes.

• Proposition 107—Colorado Presidential Primary Election

• Results: 64% Yes

It would legalize assisted death for terminally ill patients with less than six months to live. Physicians would be able to prescribe the use of certain drugs if requested by their patient. Assisted death would no longer register as the crime of felony manslaughter.

• YES: It would grant people the ability to end their physical and mental suffering with the closure of goodbyes rather than being forced to endure a deterioting condition. It bestows back to them their dignity and autonomy with the capacity to choose the path their future takes.

• NO: It would compromise the conscience of doctors who would be conflicted religiously or morally, tarnishing the unbiased relationships between doctors and their patients. There have also been cases where patients have lived longer than the time spans given to them, as they are only estimates.

• Proposition 106—Colorado "End of Life Options Act"

• Results: 65% Yes

It would increase the state tax on a 20-pack of cigarettes from eighty four cents to $1.75.

• YES: It would discourage younger age groups from illegally acquiring tobacco by decreasing its accessibility. The profits from this tax would provide more revenue for the state government that would be contributed to research for health programs.

• NO: It would prevent cigarette tax spending to be appointed to any other areas despite possessing more evident, imminent needs. Low-income smokers would also be plummeted into debt, as it is unlikely they would stop purchasing the packs if they have an addiction.

• Amendment 72—Colorado Tobacco Tax Increase

• Results: 54% No

It would require initiative petitioners seeking to amend the state constitution to collect signatures from each district in the state of Colorado in order to qualify for the ballot. New amendments would need a 55 percent majority vote overall.

• YES: It voices the opinions of Colorado citizens from all across the state who will be affected by the potential changes. It would reinforce the validity of the state constitution that is not intended to be altered easily as a foundational legislation of our government.

• NO: It would discourage many individuals from contributing their propositions, as the costs would skyrocket to the point it would not be feasible. It would also make it easier for efforts to be denied from the ballot rather than addressed, as the veto of one state district would completely destroy their efforts.

• Amendment 71—Colorado Imposition of Distribution and Supermajority Requirements for Citizen-Initiated Constitutional Amendments

• Results: 57% Yes

It would raise the minimum wage to $12 by 2020, gradually increasing in yearly increments. It would exist as one of the highest minimum wages out of all of the states in the country.

• YES: It would elevate the standard of living, and allow people with less opportunities to be able to sustain themselves economically.

• NO: It would strain the abilities of many small businesses, and they would be forced to lay off employees if unable to maintain the higher salary.

• Amendment 70—Colorado $12 Minimum Wage

• Results → 54% Yes

It would establish a new statewide health care system on all residents. ColoradoCare would collaborate with healthcare providers to pay and cover fully for the costs of emergencies, pediatric services, mental health issues, and etc. It would be funded by an additional 10 percent income tax split between employees and employers, but no longer impose deductibles or co-pays.

• YES: It would preserve the safety of all Coloradans, and lessen household spending on health insurance. It would serve as an example for the rest of the country of the action that demands to be taken for all Americans.

• NO: It would increase taxes on businesses and employers, straining them economically. It would also tarnish the relationship between doctors and patients by involving bureaucrats in people’s private health decisions.

• Amendment 69—Colorado Creation of ColoradoCare System

• Results → 80% No

It would no longer force individuals to pay taxes on the profits they reap from letting the government use their private property if it amounts to less than $6,000. This value would be subject to change depending on the circumstances of inflation.

• YES: It would relieve an immense burden off of administrative shoulders. It often costs more to collect than the value the taxes in actuality give the government.

• NO: It would exempt a number of individuals and businesses from certain taxes, effectively increasing the amount others would have to pay in order to account for the loss in profit.

• Amendment U—Colorado Property Tax Exemption for Some Possessory Interests

• Results: 57% No

• It would remove the references to slavery in the state constitution that allows forced, unpaid labor of criminals. Colorado would still maintain the same perspective towards the issue through a separate piece of legislation reworded to emphasize its focus on job opportunities for criminals.

• YES: Slavery is a word that triggers negative connotations from a conflicting time period. It does not represent Colorado values in any shape or form.

• NO: It would create confusion towards the legalities of the forced labor of convicted criminals among Coloradans. The state’s stance is not explicitly clear.