Colorado’s 2025 Ballot Initiatives

Whether you are on one side or the other, passionate or apathetic, Colorado’s November ballot this year has several initiatives that are worth paying attention to both from a tax-paying citizen’s as well as a municipal bond investor’s perspective.

It is a mix of statewide measures and local ballot questions that could significantly impact Colorado’s bond market. From billion-dollar bond packages in Denver to small town tax hikes and infrastructure projects around the state, voters from Steamboat to Pagosa, and Grand Junction to Denver will decide on tax increases, new bonds, and infrastructure projects that will have significant impact on our communities.

Statewide & Front Range:

1. Statewide Propositions LL & MM (healthy school meals funding): Colorado’s only statewide measures in 2025 aim to address funding gaps in our school meals program that was created in 2022. Prop MM would raise income taxes on those making over $300k by capping deductions and is estimated to raise an additional $95 to $100 million in revenues. Prop LL would let the state retain and spend excess revenue collected under Prop FF (2022) rather than refund it under TABOR, estimated at $13.8 million.

2. Vibrant Denver Bond Package (Measures 2A-2E): Denver voters face up to five different bond initiatives totaling up to $950 million, each categorized by purpose: Transportation ($441M), Parks & Rec ($175M), Health & Human Services ($30M), City Facilities and Infrastructure ($244M), and Affordable Housing ($59M).

   1. Major projects include replacing old viaducts near a proposed new Broncos stadium, a new police/fire/sheriff training facility, converting the old Park Hill Golf Course into a new City park.

   2. Denver regularly utilizes general obligation bonds to finance programs such as these with the last major bond issuance in 2017 (Elevate Denver $900+ million).

3. Other Front Range communities including Boulder, Fort Collins and several smaller communities and school districts are also posing questions to voters.

   1. Boulder is trying to extend a sales tax that is up to expire and simultaneously issue $262 million in new debt for capital improvements.

   2. Fort Collins also asking voters to extend a 0.25% sales tax for its Community Capital Improvement Program. Interestingly, this tax has been a staple since the 1970s to fund parks, recreation centers, and other amenities around the City.

   3. Multiple school districts in El Paso County are looking for mill levy overrides or bonds for facilities improvements (Manitou Springs 4C, Widefield 4A/4B and Peyton 5C). These smaller measures outside larger population centers highlight the importance of municipal finance and tax measures that can have major impacts on smaller towns and rural areas in Colorado.

Mountain Communities:

1. Aspen & Pitkin County Housing & Airport:

   1. $70 million in debt to help finance the city’s Lumberyard affordable housing project with a total cost of approximately $250 million, 277 units.

   2. Pitkin County Issue 1A seeks authority for the county to issue up to $340 million for the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport Modernization. Voters approved the airport expansion project last year; this is a follow-up measure letting the county help finance the project by issuing revenue bonds backed by airport fees (enterprise fund). A large portion of increased revenue is expected to come from the new Fixed Based Operation lease revenue from Atlantic Aviation. Repayment is not to exceed $940 million, a combination of Federal grants, private funding, enterprise revenues and debt. Being one of the largest infrastructure projects for this small county, we are watching this measure closely and expect all or a significant portion of the bond financing to be subject to the AMT tax. Future passenger traffic and fee revenues will be a key driver of the success going forward.

2. Lodging Taxes and Short-Term Rental Tax initiatives:

   1. Basalt (Eagle/Pitkin County), Vail, Eagle County and Routt County are all asking voters to approve or extend lodging tax revenues and/or short-term rental taxes raising funds for libraries, workforce housing, childcare and public safety. These additional revenues would help to diversify revenue streams and would be largely reliant on tourism activity in mountain communities. In fact, seven counties including Eagle, Routt, Chaffee, Ouray etc. have lodging tax hikes on the ballot, many aiming to triple the tax from 2% to 6%.

3. Fire Districts:

   1. Both Aspen and Carbondale plan to ask voters to approve additional taxes to help expand and construct new facilities to bolster fire mitigation, housing and training facilities to combat increased fire activity along the western slope. Carbondale, for example, is asking for an additional 1.50% sales tax as well as $30 million in general obligation debt to meet increasing emergency service demands.

4. Pagosa Springs Issue 2A: This small town, suffering from historic flooding in recent weeks, is proposing a 1% sales tax to fund sewer system repairs. The aging sewer lines and treatments system need an estimated $80 to $100 million in upgrades. This measure would create a dedicated long-term revenue stream to borrow against to help make progress towards the capital expenditure plans in the coming years.

5. Grand River Hospital District Issue 7B: Voters in western Garfield and Mesa Counties will decide on a $65 million bond authorization for the Grand River Health system funding a new 3-story medical clinic, expanded physical therapy and mental health facilities. The key is that no new tax will be imposed, the district plans to extend an existing mill levy (from 2017 election) to repay newly issued debt.

Trends on the Ballot

This year’s ballots across Colorado are packed with measures directly affecting municipal revenues and debt. Taking a closer look, certain trends appear:

1. Record-size borrowing: Denver’s nearly $1 billion bond package and significant asks from Boulder, Pitkin and several special districts (fire, hospital, school & airport) mean Colorado issuers could take on well over $1.5-$2 billion in new debt in the coming years if all these measures pass. For municipal bond investors, these issues can present opportunities as well as concern for ratings changes, increased debt service and additional tax burdens.

2. Taxes on Tourism & High Earners: From the high-end income tax (Prop MM) to a plethora of lodging and sales tax in ski country, many proposals are attempting to shift the tax burden from local property tax towards tourism activity and higher income households. While this can help improve local government finances, potentially improving credit profiles, it is also worth considering the economic sensitivity to cyclical vacation and travel revenue.

3. Infrastructure & Housing: Many measures are responses to population growth, higher housing costs and inflation. Fixing roads, updating wastewater treatment facilities, healthcare, affordable housing and fire emergency services have all been impacted by these factors. Each project entails upfront capital costs and ongoing tax revenues to support the additional debt, but these upgrades can also help communities to better serve their residents and act as a platform for continued growth. On the other hand, there is a risk that issuers don’t manage their finances prudently and taxpayers begin to feel stress from higher taxes/debt burdens as multiple measures stack up.

In summary, 2025’s local ballot initiatives across Colorado provide insight into trends and uses of municipal finance. From GO bonds, mill levy overrides, sales and use taxes and special district financing, local taxpayers and municipal bond investors can monitor these trends to identify changes credit profiles and potential opportunities.

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Sources:

Aspen Times. (2025, October). Colorado statewide and Pitkin County election coverage. Aspen Times. https://aspentimes.com

Rocky Mountain PBS & Colorado Newsline. (2025, October). Denver “Vibrant Denver” bond details. Rocky Mountain PBS. https://rmpbs.org

Boulder Reporting Lab. (2025, August). Boulder sales tax extension and debt plan. Boulder Reporting Lab. https://boulderreportinglab.org

Aspen Times. (2025, October). Aspen/Pitkin ballot measures: Housing bond 2B, airport 1A, fire district taxes. Aspen Times. https://aspentimes.com

Aspen Times. (2025, October). Basalt lodging and library issues. Aspen Times. https://aspentimes.com

Vail Daily Staff. (2025, September). Vail short-term rental tax proposal. Vail Daily. https://vaildaily.com

Chamber of Progress. (2025). Analysis of Vail short-term rental tax proposal. Chamber of Progress. https://progresschamber.org

Eagle County Government. (2025). Lodging tax information. Eagle County Government. https://eaglecounty.us

Colorado Sun. (2025, September). Seven counties raising lodging taxes: Overview. The Colorado Sun. https://coloradosun.com

Town of Pagosa Springs. (2025, July). Wastewater funding plan. Town of Pagosa Springs. https://pagosasprings.co.gov

Garfield County Government. (2025). Carbondale & Rural Fire District ballot notice (TABOR Notice). Garfield County Government. https://garfieldcountyco.gov

Garfield County Government. (2025). Grand River Hospital District ballot notice (TABOR Notice). Garfield County Government. https://garfieldcountyco.gov

Aspen Times. (2025, October 14). Colorado Mountain College measure 7C. Aspen Times. https://aspentimes.com

Garfield County Government. (2025). Colorado Mountain College measure 7C ballot notice. Garfield County Government. https://garfieldcountyco.gov

Complete Colorado. (2025, October 15). Report on special district measures. Complete Colorado. https://completecolorado.com

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Disclosures:

This content has been prepared for informational purposes only and should not be considered as investment, tax, or legal advice. Opinions and forward-looking statements expressed are subject to change without notice. We recommend all investors consult with a financial and/or tax advisor regarding their individual circumstances before making investment decisions.

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