Amendment 46 — Rescinds Affirmative Action
NO: Arvada Press, Aspen Times, Aurora Sentinel, Boulder Weekly, Colorado Springs Business Journal, Colorado Springs Independent, Cortez Journal, Daily Camera, Denver Post, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Golden Transcript, Lakewood Sentinel, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Wheat Ridge Transcript,Yellow Scene

YES: Grand Junction Sentinel, Rocky Mountain News

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Amendment 47 — “Right to Work”
NO: Aurora Sentinel, Boulder Weekly, Colorado Springs Independent, Cortez Journal, Denver Post, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Grand Junction Sentinel, Greeley Tribune, Steamboat Pilot & Today, Yellow Scene

YES: Arvada Press, Colorado Springs Business Journal, Daily Camera, Golden Transcript, Lakewood Sentinel, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Salida Mountain Mail, Wheat Ridge Transcript

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Amendment 48 — Personhood for fertilized eggs
NO: Arvada Press, Apsen Times, Aurora Sentinel, Boulder Weekly, Colorado Springs Business Journal, Colorado Springs Independent, Cortez Journal, Daily Camera, Denver Post, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Golden Transcript, Grand Junction Sentinel, Lafayette News, Lakewood Sentinel, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Rocky Mountain News, Steamboat Pilot, Superior Observer, Wheat Ridge Transcript, Yellow Scene

YES: Colorado Springs Gazette

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Amendment 49 — Political donations by union members
NO: Aspen Times, Aurora Sentinel, Boulder Weekly, Cortez Journal, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Durango Herald, Steamboat Pilot & Today, Yellow Scene

YES: Arvada Press, Colorado Springs Business Journal, Colorado Springs Gazette, Daily Camera, Denver Post, Golden Transcript, Grand Junction Sentinel, Lakewood Sentinel, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Rocky Mountain News, Salida Mountain Mail, Superior Observer, Wheat Ridge Transcript

————

Amendment 50 — Increases gambling wagers
NO: Cortez Journal, Denver Post, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Steamboat Pilot

YES: Arvada Press, Aurora Sentinel, Boulder Weekly, Centennial Citizen, Colorado Springs Business Journal, Daily Camera, Durango Herald, Golden Transcript, Grand Junction Sentinel, Lakewood Sentinel, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Rocky Mountain News, Tri-Lakes Tribune, Wheat Ridge Transcript, Yellow Scene

————

Amendment 51 — Funds services for the developmentally disabled
NO: Arvada Press, Cortez Journal, Denver Post, Golden Transcript, Grand Junction Sentinel, Lakewood Sentinel, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Wheat Ridge Transcript

YES: Aurora Sentinel, Boulder Weekly, Colorado Springs Business Journal, Colorado Springs Independent, Daily Camera, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Rocky Mountain News, Yellow Scene

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Amendment 52 — Diverts severance taxes to transportation projects
NO: Arvada Press, Boulder Weekly, Colorado Springs Independent, Cortez Journal, Daily Camera, Denver Post, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Golden Transcript, Lakewood Sentinel, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Rocky Mountain News, Steamboat Pilot, Wheat Ridge Transcript, Yellow Scene

YES: Colorado Springs Business Journal, Grand Junction Sentinel

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Amendment 53 — withdrawn by sponsors

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Amendment 54 — Prevents campaign contributions from government vendors
NO: Arvada Press, Aurora Sentinel, Boulder Weekly, Colorado Springs Independent, Cortez Journal, Daily Camera, Denver Post, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Golden Transcript, Grand Junction Sentinel, Lakewood Sentinel, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Pueblo Chieftain, Rocky Mountain News, Salida Mountain Mail, Steamboat Pilot & Today, Wheat Ridge Transcript, Yellow Scene

YES: No endorsements to date.

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Amendment 55 — withdrawn by sponsors

————

Amendment 56 — withdrawn by sponsors

————

Amendment 57 — withdrawn by sponsors

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Amendment 58 — Repeals property tax credit for oil and gas sector
NO: Arvada Press, Denver Post, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Golden Transcript, Grand Junction Sentinel, Lakewood Sentinel, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Rocky Mountain News, Steamboat Pilot, Wheat Ridge Transcript

YES: Boulder Weekly, Colorado Springs Business Journal, Colorado Springs Independent, Cortez Journal, Daily Camera, Durango Herald, Yellow Scene

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Amendment 59 — Creates rainy day fund for education
NO: Arvada Press, Golden Transcript, Lakewood Sentinel

YES: Aspen Times, Boulder Weekly, Colorado Springs Business Journal, Colorado Springs Independent, Cortez Journal, Daily Camera, Denver Post, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Grand Junction Sentinel, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Rocky Mountain News, Steamboat Pilot, Wheat Ridge Transcript, Yellow Scene

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Referendum L — Lowers age limit for state legislators
NO: Daily Camera

YES: Aspen Times, Cortez Journal, Denver Post, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Grand Junction Sentinel, Lafayette News, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Rocky Mountain News, Superior Observer, Yellow Scene

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Referendum M — Removes obsolete constitutional language on taxation
NO: No endorsement to date.

YES: Aspen Times, Boulder Weekly, Cortez Journal, Daily Camera, Denver Post, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Lafayette News, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Rocky Mountain News, Superior Observer, Yellow Scene

————

Referendum N — Removes obsolete constitutional language on liquor imports
NO: No endorsement to date.

YES: Aspen Times, Boulder Weekly, Cortez Journal, Daily Camera, Denver Post, Durango Herald, Lafayette News, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Rocky Mountain News, Superior Observer, Yellow Scene

————

Referendum O — Changes the petition signature limits for constitutional and statutory ballot measures
NO: Daily Camera

YES: Aspen Times, Boulder Weekly, Colorado Springs Business Journal, Cortez Journal, Denver Post, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Grand Junction Sentinel, Lafayette News, Longmont Times Call, Loveland Reporter Herald, Rocky Mountain News, Superior Observer, Yellow Scene

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School districts
Denver Public Schools
No endorsement to date

Aurora Public Schools 3A and 3B
YES: Aurora Sentinel

Cherry Creek Schools 3A and 3B
YES: Aurora Sentinel

Jefferson County Schools 3A and 3B
YES: Wheat Ridge Transcript

Mesa Public Schools 3A and 3B
YES: Grand Junction Sentinel

St. Vrain Valley Schools 3A and 3B
YES: Daily Camera, Longmont Times Call

Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper recently deployed the latter type to weigh in on four ballot measures. “I really hate robocalls, but…” said Hickenlooper in the message, and then went on to espouse his views.

In the call, Hick advocates a “yes” on measure 3A, a Denver bond package that will increase taxes by $5 a year for every $100,00 of residential property value. He says “no” to Amendment 47, the so-called right-to-Work initiative that will make it harder to unionize; “no” to Amendment 49, another anti-union measure that prohibits union payroll deductions for public employees; a “no” on Amendment 52, which will divert severance taxes to pay for highways, and a “no” on 54, yet another anti-union proposal that bars labor unions from making campaign contributions.

Hickenlooper has also publicly denounced Amendment 46, the anti-affirmative action initiative.

The Denver Post has a full list of Hickenlooper’s nays and yeas here.

Sheriff Deputy Rick Reigenborn and firefighter Joel Heinemann are working to defeat Amendment 47. (Photo/Bob Spencer)

Faced with three state ballot initiatives targeting labor unions, public servants in Colorado — most notably firefighters and law enforcement personnel — are using their free time to work as community organizers against the measures.

Deputy sheriff Rick Reigenborn has worked in the Denver area for more than 16 years. He is a former SWAT team member and was on the scene during the 1999 Columbine High School shootings in Littleton.

The 44-year-old deputy says Amendment 47, a “right-to-work” initiative that would restrict way labor unions organize in Colorado, would ruin the negotiating ability for cops where he works.

“It’s important people know what we’re advocating for. It’s stuff that’s going to protect not just the firefighters and police officers, but also the citizens that we serve,” Reigenborn says, noting that the possibility of a “right-to-work” amendment has motivated him to get involved with Protect Colorado’s Future, a labor-backed coalition opposing the measure.

Reigenborn doesn’t have a union where he works, but he is involved with the Fraternal Order of Police, an employee organization that advocates on behalf of law enforcement officers.

At one point, when news broke a few years ago that individuals had been firing AK-47 rounds against police officers in Los Angeles, Reigenborn says the employee group lobbied the sheriff to allow deputies to carry high-powered rifles in their patrol vehicles.

Within a week officers were permitted to buy their own rifles to carry while on duty, and that’s just one example of how the fraternal order has affected law enforcement safety, according to Reigenborn.

Union negotiating power can also be to key to making sure firefighters get adequate safety equipment, especially in hard economic times when city or county budgets may be stretched thin.

Joel Heinemann, a Littleton firefighter who has appeared in television ads against Amendment 47, has been holding canvassing trainings and talking to various media outlets against the “right-to-work” measure.

“It would impact the voice we have as an organization in advocating for what we need to do our jobs,” Heinemann, president of the Littleton Firefighters Association, says. “Often times we’re the ones advocating for the equipment we need. When you put a hundred voices together it really makes a difference. I think it’s an attempt to fragment those voices.”

Two additional measures are also targeting unions this year.

Amendments 49 would restrict the way organized labor retains dues from state employees, while Amendment 54 would prohibit certain unions from giving to political campaigns.

“From a law enforcement prospective, why would you want to silence my voice?” Reigenborn says. “I stood down at the Democratic National Convention for a week. I pulled 57 hours of overtime in one week so you can have your First Amendment right to come down here and say whatever you want to say, but now I don’t have a right to make a political choice because of the nature of the work that I do?”

Heinemann, who was also on the scene as the Columbine tragedy was unfolding, claims that political contributions are considered a part of free speech for firefighters.

“One of the biggest issues that occurred during Columbine was radios. Really the system broke down,” Heinemann says. “It’s an issue that still exists, and it’s gonna have to be answered at a political level. If you take us out of that process then you remove us from being able to address that issue. I don’t know one firefighter who is supportive of this.”

Both are quick to point out that they are working against the three anti-union measures on their own time, and are in no way representing their government employers.

“We’re not terrorists,” says Reigenborn, responding to a quip by the opposition that literally linked union supporters to terrorists. “When there’s danger, when things are going bad, who do people call? When the bullets are flying and the flames are going up in the air we don’t run away from that stuff.”

A coalition consisting of the AFL-CIO union federation, the Teamsters and the United Food and Commercial Workers announced today that they would remove four initiatives from the ballot, following an 11th-hour deal between the labor groups and large businesses like Oakwood Homes, a real estate firm, and hospital operator HealthOne.

The deadline to pull the initiatives was today, Oct. 2.

In return, businesses will do whatever it takes to defeat three anti-union measures that are still on the ballot, and they have pledged at least $3 million toward the effort.

One initiative that will be targeted by the joint-campaign effort is Amendment 47, a “right-to-work” effort that would restrict the way unions organize and negotiate in the state. The other two ballot measures, Amendments 49 and 54, would prohibit certain unions from giving to political campaigns and restrict the way organized labor retains dues from state employees.

Gov. Bill Ritter also confirmed today on a media conference call that he would play an active and public role in the campaign, claiming that he had already started to make phone calls soliciting donations from opponents of the anti-union measures.

Labor agreed to pull four measures: Amendment 53, which would have made corporate executives criminally liable for certain offenses committed by their companies; Amendment 55, which would have required businesses to provide a “just cause” for firing an employee; Amendment 56, which would have made certain businesses provide health care to employees; and Amendment 57, which would have given workers stronger legal recourse in cases of workplace injuries.

Because ballots are already starting to be printed, the retracted labor-backed initiatives will appear on the ballot as questions, but they will not be counted in the statewide election.

Jon Caldara, president of the conservative Independence Institute think tank, has made controversial remarks before, and when it came to the subject of unions he didn’t disappoint this week. According to an article in The Washington Times, he likened union supporters to terrorists.

Colorado Media Matters has now weighed in:

In a September 30 online article, The Washington Times quoted Jon Caldara, president of the “free market” Independence Institute, as saying, “You shouldn’t negotiate with terrorists” in reference to Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter’s efforts to persuade organized labor to remove four initiatives from the state’s November ballot. The article stated that Ritter’s efforts to get backers of the so-called “right to work” measure Amendment 47 to pull their ballot proposal in exchange for removal of the labor-backed ballot issues have “opened up debate over whether Mr. Ritter is doing the right thing by moving to protect the state’s economy — or buying more trouble by giving in to union blackmail.”

Caldara is also supporting Amendments 49 and 54, two ballot measures that would prohibit certain unions from giving to political campaigns and restrict the way organized labor retains dues from state employees.

Then again, maybe Caldara should be concerned. If organized labor really is a haven for terrorists, its statewide base, which included 8.7 percent of the working population in 2007, is growing!

First, Hillary Clinton capitalized on our fear of things that go bump in the night with her primary commercial. “It’s 3 a.m and your children are safe and asleep,” a narrator says while images of sleeping babies flash across the screen. “But there’s a phone in the White House and it’s ringing. Something is happening in the world. Your vote will decide who will answer that call.”

Now Protect Colorado’s Future is using similar language in an effort to quash three ballot initiatives. The pro-union organization, sent out a mailer warning against the “real danger” that could follow if voters pass Amendments 47, 49 and 54, three measures that would weaken collective bargaining in the state.

The mailer features photos of a disgruntled Deputy Sheriff Jeff Shaw from Commerce City with the words, “For officers like Jeff Shaw — our safety is his top priority. But at 2:00 am when he responds to a call — Officer Shaw shouldn’t worry whether or not his vest can take that bullet. But that’s EXACTLY what Amendments 47,49, and 54 will do.” The ad goes on to say that police unions will be diminished by the three measures.

Protect Colorado’s Future is the organization behind two other ballot initiatives. Amendment 53 seeks to quash corporate fraud while Amendment 55 protects workers from being fired for no reason.

Meanwhile, here are another few to get you through the weekend:

For more on the 2008 Colorado ballot, read We’re not kidding. Colorado’s ballot is huge, Colorado ballot chock-full this year and Colorado’s monster ballot longest in the nation.

For the entire list of measures, with links to the Colorado Legislative Council’s “Blue Book” analysis, see: Colorado voters face longest ballot in 96 years.

It’s also the longest ballot in the country, according to a tally by the Denver-based National Conference of State Legislatures. Perennial leaders California and Oregon take second place this year with 12 ballot questions each.

Colorado voters considered a record 32 questions in 1912, but are unlikely to reach that number as it’s become more difficult to get measures on the ballot over the years. Referendum O, referred by the legislature this year, would add further requirements for constitutional amendments and ease access for statutory initiatives. All 14 of the initiated measures this year are constitutional amendments, which cannot be altered by the legislature once enacted.

Many of the Colorado questions this year concern labor, workplace and corporate issues, with business and labor interests offering dueling amendments.

Here’s a list of the questions qualified for the state ballot, with links to the most recent draft [PDF] of the Legislative Council’s “Blue Book” analysis on each:

Amendment 46 — Discrimination and Preferential Treatment by Governments

Amendment 47 — Prohibition on Mandatory Labor Union Membership and Dues

Amendment 48 — Definition of Person

Amendment 49 — Allowable Government Paycheck Deductions

Amendment 50 — Limited Gaming in Central City, Black Hawk, and Cripple Creek

Amendment 51 — State Sales Tax Increase for Services for People with Developmental Disabilities

Amendment 52 — Use of Severance Tax Revenue for Highways

Amendment 53 — Criminal Accountability of Business Executives — WITHDRAWN BY PROPONENTS

Amendment 54 — Campaign Contributions from Certain Government Contractors

Amendment 55 — Allowable Reasons for Employee Discharge or Suspension — WITHDRAWN BY PROPONENTS

Amendment 56 — Employer Responsibility for Health Insurance — WITHDRAWN BY PROPONENTS

Amendment 57 — Additional Remedies for Injured Employees — WITHDRAWN BY PROPONENTS

Amendment 58 — Severance Taxes on the Oil and Natural Gas Industry

Amendment 59 — Education Funding and TABOR Rebates

Referendum L — Qualifications for Serving in the State Legislature

Referendum M — Obsolete Constitutional Provision Relating to Land Value Increases

Referendum N — Obsolete Constitutional Provisions Relating to Alcohol Beverages

Referendum O — Citizen-Initiated State Laws