Colorado ballot measure · November 3, 2026
Colorado Amendment 85, explained
Plain language ballot titles. A ballot measure is a yes-or-no question put directly to voters — no candidate is involved, and the wording on the ballot is the wording that becomes law. This page shows that wording first, then what it actually changes.
The official wording
Shall there be an amendment to the Colorado Constitution concerning ballot question language, and, in connection therewith, requiring all state and local ballot questions to be written in plain language and at no more than an 8th grade reading level and prohibiting a state statute from requiring language that conflicts with these requirements in ballot questions for citizen-initiated measures?
This is what appears on the ballot. Everything below explains it.
What it actually means
Requires every state and local ballot title to be written in plain language at no more than an eighth-grade reading level. It also bars state laws that require specific wording in citizen initiative titles, such as tax impact language, if that wording conflicts with the plain language rule.
If you vote YES
- All state and local ballot titles would have to meet an eighth-grade reading level; the measure does not define plain language or say who decides whether a title meets the standard.
- Laws requiring specific wording in citizen initiative titles, such as required language on tax increases or estimates of spending cuts from tax reductions, could not be applied if they conflict with plain language; titles of measures referred by the Legislature would not get this protection.
- The Title Board would have some added workload to set and apply the standard.
If you vote NO
- State law would continue to require ballot titles that are brief, in plain language, understandable to the widest audience and free of technical terms where possible, without a set grade level.
- Laws requiring specific tax and spending language in initiative titles would continue to apply.
The numbers that matter
- Reading level required
- No higher than 8th grade
- State fiscal impact
- Minimal Title Board workload
- Vote needed
- 55%
Legislative Council Staff, 2026 Blue Book
Legislative Council Staff, 2026 Blue Book
Legislative Council Staff, 2026 Blue Book
Why supporters say YES
An eighth-grade standard gives concrete meaning to plain language, helping voters understand complicated measures.
— Colorado Blue Book argument for Amendment 85 (Legislative Council Staff)
The measure keeps future legislatures from adding requirements that make citizen initiative titles complicated or confusing.
— Colorado Blue Book argument for Amendment 85 (Legislative Council Staff)
Why opponents say NO
State law already requires plain language; a constitutional grade-level standard with no guidance on how it differs could lead to more challenges to initiative titles.
— Colorado Blue Book argument against Amendment 85 (Legislative Council Staff)
The vague standard could block laws that add important information to titles, such as how a tax measure affects state and local programs and funding.
— Colorado Blue Book argument against Amendment 85 (Legislative Council Staff)
What’s genuinely uncertain
- Who measures reading level, and by what method, is not specified.
- Whether existing tax-disclosure requirements in initiative titles would be struck down depends on future challenges.
- The measure is sponsored by Advance Colorado, according to Colorado Newsline; no registered opposition committee was identified in the sources reviewed.
The bottom line
Simpler ballot wording voters can read easily, against losing required disclosures and inviting disputes over an undefined standard.
One neutral sentence describing the tradeoff — not a recommendation.
Checking it against the official text
The Colorado Secretary of State publishes the certified measures and, in most states, an official voter guide with fiscal notes. That is the authoritative version. Everything here is an explanation of it, not a substitute for it.
Confirm this with the official source
Your ballot is determined by your election authority, not by us. Verify your registration, precinct, and sample ballot at Colorado Secretary of State.
Other measures on the Colorado ballot
- Amendment 81 — Notifying federal immigration authorities of certain criminal charges
- Amendment 82 — Constitutional right to buy and sell natural gas
- Amendment 83 — Constitutional right to hunt and fish
- Amendment 84 — ID number required on mail ballots
- Amendment 86 — Rules for mid-decade congressional redistricting
- Amendment 87 — Graduated state income tax
- Proposition NN — Keep revenue above TABOR limit for K-12 education and children's programs
- Proposition 132 — Higher penalties for fentanyl crimes
- Proposition 133 — Life without parole for child sex trafficking
- Proposition 134 — School sports teams designated by biological sex
- Proposition 135 — Ban on gender-related surgery for minors
- Proposition 136 — Cap on the state income tax rate
- Proposition 137 — Sporting goods sales tax for conservation and wildfire prevention
Candidates on the same ballot
- U.S. Senate election in Colorado
- Colorado governor's race
- Colorado's 1st congressional district
- Colorado's 2nd congressional district
- Colorado's 3rd congressional district
- Colorado's 4th congressional district
- Colorado's 5th congressional district
- Colorado's 6th congressional district