(1)A protest in writing, under oath, together with three
copies thereof, may be filed in the district court for the county in which the petition
has been filed by some registered elector, within fifteen days after the secretary of
state issues a statement as to whether the petition has a sufficient number of valid
signatures, which statement must be issued no later than thirty calendar days after
the petition has been filed. If the secretary of state fails to issue a statement within
thirty calendar days, the petition is deemed sufficient. Regardless of whether the
secretary of state has issued a statement of sufficiency or if the petition is deemed
sufficient because the secretary of state has failed to issue a statement of
sufficiency within thirty calendar days, no further age
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(1) A protest in writing, under oath, together with three
copies thereof, may be filed in the district court for the county in which the petition
has been filed by some registered elector, within fifteen days after the secretary of
state issues a statement as to whether the petition has a sufficient number of valid
signatures, which statement must be issued no later than thirty calendar days after
the petition has been filed. If the secretary of state fails to issue a statement within
thirty calendar days, the petition is deemed sufficient. Regardless of whether the
secretary of state has issued a statement of sufficiency or if the petition is deemed
sufficient because the secretary of state has failed to issue a statement of
sufficiency within thirty calendar days, no further agency action is necessary for
the district court to have jurisdiction to consider the protest. During the period a
petition is being examined by the secretary of state for sufficiency, the petition
shall not be available to the public; except that such period must not exceed thirty
calendar days. Immediately after the secretary of state issues a statement of
sufficiency or, if the petition is deemed sufficient because the secretary of state
has failed to issue the statement, after thirty calendar days, the secretary of state
shall make the petition available to the public for copying upon request.
(2) (a) If the secretary of state conducted a random sample of the petitions
and did not verify each signature, the protest shall set forth with particularity the
defects in the procedure used by the secretary of state in the verification of the
petition or the grounds for challenging individual signatures or petition sections, as
well as individual signatures or petition sections protested. If the secretary of state
verified each name on the petition sections, the protest shall set forth with
particularity the grounds of the protest and the individual signatures or petition
sections protested.
(b) Regardless of the method used by the secretary of state to verify
signatures, the grounds for challenging individual signatures or petition sections
pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subsection (2) shall include, but are not limited to,
the use of a petition form that does not comply with the provisions of this article,
fraud, and a violation of any provision of this article or any other law that, in either
case, prevents fraud, abuse, or mistake in the petition process.
(c) If the protest is limited to an allegation that there were defects in the
secretary of state's statement of sufficiency based on a random sample to verify
signatures, the district court may review all signatures in the random sample.
(d) No signature may be challenged that is not identified in the protest by
section number, line number, name, and reason why the secretary of state is in
error. If any party is protesting the finding of the secretary of state regarding the
registration of a signer, the protest shall be accompanied by an affidavit of the
elector or a copy of the election record of the signer.
(2.5) (a) If a district court finds that there are invalid signatures or petition
sections as a result of fraud committed by any person involved in petition
circulation, the registered elector who instituted the proceedings may commence a
civil action to recover reasonable attorney fees and costs from the person
responsible for such invalid signatures or petition sections.
(b) A registered elector who files a protest shall be entitled to the recovery
of reasonable attorney fees and costs from a proponent of an initiative petition who
defends the petition against a protest or the proponent's attorney, upon a
determination by the district court that the defense, or any part thereof, lacked
substantial justification or that the defense, or any part thereof, was interposed for
delay or harassment. A proponent who defends a petition against a protest shall be
entitled to the recovery of reasonable attorney fees and costs from the registered
elector who files a protest or the registered elector's attorney, upon a
determination by the district court that the protest, or any part thereof, lacked
substantial justification or that the protest, or any part thereof, was interposed for
delay or harassment. No attorney fees may be awarded under this paragraph (b)
unless the district court has first considered the provisions of section 13-17-102 (5)
and (6), C.R.S. For purposes of this paragraph (b), lacked substantial justification
means substantially frivolous, substantially groundless, or substantially vexatious.
(c) A district court conducting a hearing pursuant to this article shall permit
a circulator who is not available at the time of the hearing to testify by telephone or
by any other means permitted under the Colorado rules of civil procedure.
(3) (Deleted by amendment, L. 95, p. 435, � 13, effective May 8, 1995.)
(4) The secretary of state shall furnish a requesting protestor with a
computer tape or microfiche listing of the names of all registered electors in the
state and shall charge a fee which shall be determined and collected pursuant to
section 24-21-104 (3), C.R.S., to cover the cost of furnishing the listing.
(5) Written entries that are made by petition signers, circulators, and
notaries public on a petition section that substantially comply with the
requirements of this article 40 shall be deemed valid by the secretary of state or
any court, unless:
(a) Fraud, as specified in section 1-40-135 (2)(c), is established by a
preponderance of the evidence;
(b) A violation of any provision of this article or any other provision of law
that, in either case, prevents fraud, abuse, or mistake in the petition process, is
established by a preponderance of the evidence;
(c) A circulator used a petition form that does not comply with the provisions
of this article or has not been approved by the secretary of state.