Raising the initiative bar

State lawmakers ended the 2008 legislative session Tuesday by passing a ballot measure, Senate Concurrent Resolution 3, that will ask voters in November to make it harder to amend the constitution but easier to change state law.

Most lawmakers agreed there have been too many initiatives changing the state constitution, sometimes at odds with each other, writes Denver Post reporter Tim Hoover.

Currently, to change either the constitution or state law, petition organizers must gather signatures of registered voters equal to 5 percent of the votes cast for secretary of state in the last election. Unlike a number of other states, Colorado does not require that the signatures be collected by geographical areas, such as congressional districts.

If approved by voters, the measure lawmakers passed would require that petition organizers gather signatures equal to 6 percent of the votes cast for governor in the last election. Changes to state law would require signatures equal to 4 percent of the votes cast for governor in the last election.

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