(1) (a) The director of research of
the legislative council of the general assembly shall prepare a ballot information
booklet for any initiated or referred constitutional amendment or legislation,
including a question, as defined in section 1-41-102 (3), in accordance with section 1
(7.5) of article V of the state constitution.
(b) The director of research of the legislative council of the general
assembly shall prepare a fiscal impact statement for every initiated or referred
measure, taking into consideration fiscal impact information submitted by the
office of state planning and budgeting, the department of local affairs or any other
state agency, and any proponent or other interested person. The fiscal impact
statement prepared for every measure shall be substantially similar in form and
content to the fiscal notes provided by the legislative council of the general
assembly for legislative measures pursuant to section 2-2-322. A complete copy of
the fiscal impact statement for such measure shall be available through the
legislative council of the general assembly. The ballot information booklet shall
indicate whether there is a fiscal impact for each initiated or referred measure and
shall abstract the fiscal impact statement for such measure. The abstract for every
measure shall appear after the arguments for and against such measure in the
analysis section of the ballot information booklet, and shall include, but shall not be
limited to:
(I) An estimate of the effect the measure will have on state and local
government revenues, expenditures, taxes, and fiscal liabilities if such measure is
enacted;
(II) An estimate of the amount of any state and local government recurring
expenditures or fiscal liabilities if such measure is enacted;
(III) For any initiated or referred measure that modifies the state tax laws, if
the measure would either increase or decrease individual income tax revenue or
state sales tax revenue, a table that shows the number of tax filers in each income
category, the total change in the amount of tax owed for each income category, and
the average change in the amount of tax owed for each filer within each income
category. If the change in the amount of tax owed shown in the table is an increase,
the change must be expressed as a dollar amount preceded by a plus sign. If the
change in the amount of tax owed shown in the table is a decrease, the change
must be expressed as a dollar amount preceded by a negative sign. The table must
use the following income categories:
(A) Federal adjusted gross income of fourteen thousand nine hundred
ninety-nine dollars or less;
(B) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to fifteen thousand
dollars and less than thirty thousand dollars;
(C) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to thirty thousand
dollars and less than forty thousand dollars;
(D) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to forty thousand
dollars and less than fifty thousand dollars;
(E) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to fifty thousand
dollars and less than seventy thousand dollars;
(F) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to seventy thousand
dollars and less than one hundred thousand dollars;
(G) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to one hundred
thousand dollars and less than one hundred fifty thousand dollars;
(H) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to one hundred fifty
thousand dollars and less than two hundred thousand dollars;
(I) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to two hundred
thousand dollars and less than two hundred fifty thousand dollars;
(J) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to two hundred fifty
thousand dollars and less than five hundred thousand dollars;
(K) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to five hundred
thousand dollars and less than one million dollars; and
(L) Federal adjusted gross income greater than or equal to one million
dollars; and
(IV) If the measure contains a proposed tax change, as defined in section 1-40-106 (3)(i)(II), that reduces state tax revenue, a description of the three largest
areas of program expenditure, as defined in section 1-40-106 (3)(i)(I).
(c) Repealed.
(d) The director of research of the legislative council of the general
assembly may update the initial fiscal impact statement prepared in accordance
with section 1-40-105.5 when preparing the fiscal impact statement required by this
subsection (1).
(e) When preparing the fiscal impact statement required by this subsection
(1) for a measure that includes a proposed tax increase, the director of research of
the legislative council of the general assembly shall, pursuant to section 20
(3)(b)(III) of article X of the state constitution, include an estimate of the maximum
dollar amount of both:
(I) The change in state and local government revenue and fiscal year
spending, as defined in section 20 (2)(e) of article X of the state constitution, for the
first full fiscal year of the proposed tax increase; and
(II) State and local government fiscal year spending, as defined in section 20
(2)(e) of article X of the state constitution, without the proposed tax increase.
(1.5) The executive committee of the legislative council of the general
assembly is responsible for providing the fiscal information on any ballot issue that
must be included in the ballot information booklet pursuant to section 1 (7.5)(c) of
article V of the state constitution and shall consider the fiscal impact statement
required by subsection (1) of this section in doing so.
(1.7) (a) After receiving written comments from the public in accordance with
section 1 (7.5)(a)(II) of article V of the state constitution, but before the draft of the
ballot information booklet is finalized, the director of research of the legislative
council of the general assembly shall conduct a public meeting at which the
director and other members of the legislative staff have the opportunity to ask
questions that arise in response to the written comments. The director may modify
the draft of the booklet in response to comments made at the hearing. The
legislative council may modify the draft of the booklet upon the two-thirds
affirmative vote of the members of the legislative council.
(b) (I) Each person submitting written comments in accordance with section 1
(7.5)(a)(II) of article V of the state constitution shall provide his or her name and the
name of any organization the person represents or is affiliated with for purposes of
making the comments.
(II) The arguments for and against each measure in the analysis section of
the ballot information booklet shall be preceded by the phrase: For information on
those issue committees that support or oppose the measures on the ballot at the
(date and year) election, go to the Colorado secretary of state's elections center
website hyperlink for ballot and initiative information (appropriate secretary of
state website address)..
(2) Following completion of the ballot information booklet, the director of
research shall arrange for its distribution to every residence of one or more active
registered electors in the state. Distribution may be accomplished by such means
as the director of research deems appropriate to comply with section 1 (7.5) of
article V of the state constitution, including, but not limited to, mailing the ballot
information booklet to electors and insertion of the ballot information booklet in
newspapers of general circulation in the state. The distribution shall be performed
pursuant to a contract or contracts bid and entered into after employing standard
competitive bidding practices including, but not limited to, the use of requests for
information, requests for proposals, or any other standard vendor selection
practices determined to be best suited to selecting an appropriate means of
distribution and an appropriate contractor or contractors. The executive director of
the department of personnel shall provide such technical advice and assistance
regarding bidding procedures as deemed necessary by the director of research.
(3) (a) There is hereby established in the state treasury the ballot information
publication and distribution revolving fund. Except as otherwise provided in
paragraph (b) of this subsection (3), moneys shall be appropriated to the fund each
year by the general assembly in the annual general appropriation act. All interest
earned on the investment of moneys in the fund shall be credited to the fund.
Moneys in the revolving fund are continuously appropriated to the legislative
council of the general assembly to pay the costs of publishing the text and title of
each constitutional amendment, each initiated or referred measure, or part of a
measure, and the text of a referred or initiated question arising under section 20 of
article X of the state constitution, as defined in section 1-41-102 (3), in at least one
legal publication of general circulation in each county of the state, as required by
section 1-40-124, and the costs of distributing the ballot information booklet, as
required by subsection (2) of this section. Any moneys credited to the revolving
fund and unexpended at the end of any given fiscal year shall remain in the fund
and shall not revert to the general fund.
(b) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, any moneys appropriated from
the general fund to the legislative department of the state government for the
fiscal year commencing on July 1, 2007, that are unexpended or not encumbered as
of the close of the fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund and shall be
transferred by the state treasurer and the controller to the ballot information
publication and distribution revolving fund created in paragraph (a) of this
subsection (3); except that the amount so transferred shall not exceed five hundred
thousand dollars.
(c) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, any moneys appropriated from
the general fund to the legislative department of the state government for the
fiscal year commencing on July 1, 2008, that are unexpended or not encumbered as
of the close of the fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund and shall be
transferred by the state treasurer and the controller to the ballot information
publication and distribution revolving fund created in paragraph (a) of this
subsection (3).
(d) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, any moneys appropriated from
the general fund to the legislative department of the state government for the
fiscal year commencing on July 1, 2009, that are unexpended or not encumbered as
of the close of the fiscal year and that are in excess of the amount of one million
forty-two thousand dollars shall not revert to the general fund and shall be
transferred by the state treasurer and the controller to the ballot information
publication and distribution revolving fund created in paragraph (a) of this
subsection (3); except that the amount so transferred shall not exceed one million
one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred seven dollars.
(e) Notwithstanding any provision of this subsection (3) to the contrary, on
August 11, 2010, the state treasurer shall deduct one million one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred seven dollars from the ballot information publication and
distribution revolving fund and transfer such sum to the redistricting account within
the legislative department cash fund.