1-minute voter guide: Denver's 6 ballot measures
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Denver voters will decide five city measures and one school tax on Nov. 3, weighing everything from police hiring rules and utility services to foie gras and school funding.
Catch up quick: Here's what each measure would do, and the case for and against them.
🧾 2H: Auditor's wage-enforcement power — Would cement the auditor's existing authority to enforce wage and workplace laws in the city charter.
- 👍 Makes that authority harder for future city leaders to weaken or eliminate. The office has enforced prevailing wage rules since the 1950s.
- 👎 Makes future changes to the auditor's role more difficult. There's no organized opposition.
📅 2I: Two-year budgets — Would let City Council adopt a budget every two years instead of annually.
- 👍 Gives the city more room for long-term planning and public input.
- 👎 Makes revenue projections riskier, especially given Denver's recent budget shortfalls.
🚓 2J: Police and fire civil service rules — Would loosen rules for hiring and staffing restrictions, including eliminating citizenship requirements for Civil Service Commission members and caps on high-ranking officers.
- 👍 Replaces outdated rules, with backing from police and fire officials.
- 👎 Gives City Council more power to change hiring rules without voter approval. No formal opposition has been filed.
⚡ 2K: Xcel Energy franchise — Would extend Xcel's right to use city streets and other public rights-of-way for 20 years, starting in 2027.
- 👍 Preserves city revenue and funds infrastructure upgrades, including burying power lines. A Denver Climate Office official called it "the strongest energy partnership agreement in the history of Colorado," Colorado Politics reports.
- 👎 Locks Denver into a long-term deal that critics say doesn't demand enough of Xcel, Denverite reports.
🦆 Initiated Ordinance 31: Foie gras ban — Would ban force-feeding birds and selling products made through the practice, including foie gras.
- 👍 Ends a practice supporters call cruel.
- 👎 Limits consumer choice and could hurt restaurants and specialty suppliers.
🏫 4A: DPS property tax — Would raise up to $44 million a year for staff pay, career education, mental health and special education.
- 💰 Would cost the owner of a median-priced home about $72 more a year, per district estimates.
- 👍 Funds $1,750 raises for full-time employees and expands student services.
- 👎 Raises taxes amid concerns about district leadership and spending oversight.