On Monday, May 18th, a lawsuit was filed regarding new changes in signature-collection requirements in Colorado. While most arguments have been made in favor of lessening requirements or allowing electronic signatures due to COVID-19, this argues the opposite.
On Friday May 15, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis released an executive order allowing signature-gathering for ballot initiatives to be gathered by email and mail. The rules aren’t expected to be finalized until early June, so signatures can still only be collected in-person until then.
The Colorado Concern’s lawsuit claims the Governor doesn’t have the authority to make such changes to constitutional requirements. Chris Murray, shareholder at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck with an extensive background in commercial, political and public law, heads the attorney team for Colorado Concern. The Chamber of Commerce is also against the order.
“Only we, the voters of Colorado, can amend our state’s constitution and no individual elected official or office can change what we as citizens decide, even during challenging times,” said Kelly Brough of Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce.
What ballot issues would these businesses be concerned about? There are a number of initiatives hoping to qualify for the November 3rd ballot that would affect business owners. These include an initiative for paid medical and family leave, establishing general elections as a state holiday, graduated income taxes and limiting use and installation of natural gas.
Petitioners still have a difficult road ahead of them, as they have to collect 124,632 valid signatures with due dates ranging from mid-July to August 3rd.
