Plain Language Ballot Titles
Requires ballot titles to be written at an eighth-grade reading level.
Cheat sheet The whole measure in 30 seconds tap to open
Ballot titles must be written in plain language at no more than an eighth-grade reading level, and no law may interfere with that requirement.
Current law stays: titles must be plain language, but with no specific grade-level standard.
Strongest case for
It gives real content to 'plain language' by naming an eighth-grade standard, which should help voters understand complicated and technical measures.
Strongest case against
State law already gives ample guidance on plain-language titles, and adding a constitutional standard with no guidance on how it differs could just generate more title challenges and clog the initiative process.
Watch out: The restriction on required title wording applies only to citizen initiatives, not to measures the legislature refers. Today's law forces tax-related initiative titles to spell out the impact on taxpayers and state spending - exactly the kind of language this could strip out.
What this actually does
Ballot titles - the question you actually read on your ballot - already have to be in plain language under state law. This puts a specific standard in the constitution: no harder than an eighth-grade reading level. It also blocks laws that force extra required wording into citizen-initiative titles when that wording gets in the way of plain language. The measure does not define plain language or say who decides whether a title passes.
What your vote means
Ballot titles must be written in plain language at no more than an eighth-grade reading level, and no law may interfere with that requirement.
Current law stays: titles must be plain language, but with no specific grade-level standard.
On every measure, yes means change something and no means leave it alone.
Easiest thing to get wrong
Read this twice
The restriction on required title wording applies only to citizen initiatives, not to measures the legislature refers. Today's law forces tax-related initiative titles to spell out the impact on taxpayers and state spending - exactly the kind of language this could strip out.
The case each side makes
Straight from the state's official booklet, shortened. These are arguments as each side makes them — not findings of fact, and not our view.
Why people say yes
- It gives real content to 'plain language' by naming an eighth-grade standard, which should help voters understand complicated and technical measures.
- It creates constitutional protection against a future legislature passing laws that make citizen-initiative titles confusing.
Why people say no
- State law already gives ample guidance on plain-language titles, and adding a constitutional standard with no guidance on how it differs could just generate more title challenges and clog the initiative process.
- Vague, undefined constitutional language could block laws that add genuinely useful information to titles - like the disclosures now required about a tax measure's effect on state spending.
Where this sits politically
low confidence Conservative proponents, and the measure protects the citizen-initiative process that same group uses more than anyone else. But the content itself — requiring plain-language ballot titles — is procedural good-government with no inherent partisan direction. Scored right of center on sponsorship, not on substance.
How we place the needle and why it is an estimate, not a measurement
We read four things, all of them public and documented:
- Who filed it and what they are affiliated with.
- The recorded party vote, where one exists. On this ballot only Proposition NN has one, because it is the only measure the legislature referred.
- Which side of the political infrastructure is paying for each campaign.
- Which direction the policy moves compared with current law.
Confidence is high when all four point the same way and low when they contradict each other. A low-confidence needle is telling you the measure genuinely does not sort neatly — Amendment 86 is the clearest case, with conservative sponsors and anti-gerrymandering content.
This is our editorial read, not a measurement. A citizen initiative has no party sponsor, so for 13 of these 14 measures there is no official partisan label to report — only inference. Use the needle to get oriented, then read the measure and decide for yourself.
What it costs
Minimal. Some added workload for the state Title Board to set standards for what an eighth-grade reading level means and apply them when writing titles.
Who it touches: Every Colorado voter reading a ballot, the Title Board, and anyone running a citizen initiative.
Who put it on your ballot
Conservative
People who filed it
Campaigning for it
Campaigning against it
Advance Colorado proponents. The measure protects the citizen-initiative process, which this group uses heavily.
Who is paying for the ads
Money for it
Money against it
What the money tells you
Essentially no dedicated money on either side. Both committees are slate committees working many measures at once.
Figures are a late-September 2026 snapshot from TRACER campaign-finance filings and will have moved since. A committee marked slate spreads one total across several measures — do not read its number as spending on this measure alone.
Questions people ask
Common questions (6)
The things people want to know before they vote, answered from primary sources where they exist. Every answer was drafted with AI assistance from retrieved documents, then read and approved by a person. Figures carry the year they refer to.
Who writes Colorado ballot titles today, and what rules already govern their wording?
Today, Colorado ballot titles are written by the state Title Board for citizen initiatives, and by the state legislature for measures they refer to the ballot.
The Title Board consists of three members: the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, and the director of the Office of Legislative Legal Services, or their designees.
Under current state law, ballot titles must follow several rules: * They must cover only a single subject. * They must be brief and phrased as a question that can be answered yes or no. * They must unambiguously state the principle of the measure. * They must be written in plain, accessible language that avoids technical jargon when possible. * They must include specific financial details if the measure changes taxes.
Supporters of the measure argue that despite existing rules, ballot language often remains confusing, and a strict eighth-grade reading standard will ensure voters understand what they are deciding. Opponents argue that current law already requires plain language, and that enforcing a strict reading level could force the state to remove important context, such as the specific financial impacts currently required for tax measures.
What is the average reading level of ballot titles currently presented to voters in recent elections?
In 2024, the average Colorado ballot title was written at a 24th-grade reading level, according to the African Leadership Group.
Nationally, the average reading level for ballot measures in 2024 was a 16th-grade level, according to Ballotpedia. Over a broader period from 2017 to 2025, Ballotpedia found that titles written by the Colorado Title Board required an average of 31 years of education to understand. This was the highest reading level of any drafting authority in the country.
Under current state law, ballot titles are already required to use plain language that avoids technical jargon. However, there is no specific grade-level cap. Amendment 85 would put a strict eighth-grade reading limit into the state constitution. It would also block any state laws that force conflicting language into citizen-initiated ballot titles.
Supporters argue that voters should not need advanced education to understand what a "yes" or "no" vote means. Opponents argue that ballot measures often deal with complicated policies, such as tax changes and state budgets. They say an eighth-grade limit could make it difficult to accurately explain a measure's fiscal impacts or serious legal implications.
Have any other states implemented a specific grade-level reading requirement for ballot measures, and how is it measured?
Yes, several other states have implemented an eighth-grade reading level requirement for ballot measures, though they use different methods to measure it. As of 2026, Ballotpedia reports that 24 states have some form of readability law for ballot language.
States measure the eighth-grade standard in a few ways: * Arkansas passed a 2025 law explicitly requiring the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level formula, a test that calculates reading difficulty based on the number of syllables, words, and sentences. A federal court temporarily blocked this law in late 2025. * New York passed a 2026 law requiring the legislature to use best efforts to hit the eighth-grade mark using the Automated Readability Index, another mathematical text formula, or a similar tool. * Oklahoma and Rhode Island state laws mandate an eighth-grade reading level but do not specify a mathematical formula.
Supporters say these requirements help voters understand complex policies without needing a law degree. However, researchers and critics note that mathematical readability formulas only count word and sentence length. They cannot measure whether the actual ideas are logically organized or legally accurate.
According to Ballotpedia, the average state ballot measure between 2017 and 2023 was written at an 18th-grade reading level, which is equivalent to graduate school.
How do standard readability formulas evaluate the complex legal or financial terms often required in ballot measures?
Standard readability formulas evaluate text strictly by counting the number of words per sentence and the number of syllables per word, meaning they grade legal and financial terms as difficult simply because they are long. Tools like the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, developed for the U.S. military in 1975 according to government records, use a mathematical equation to translate these counts into a U.S. school grade.
Because legal and financial terms often contain multiple syllables, their presence automatically raises a text's reading level. Researchers note that these formulas exist in a vacuum; they cannot measure whether an idea is actually complex or if a long word is commonly understood.
For Colorado voters deciding on Amendment 85 in 2026, this creates a practical debate: * Supporters say an eighth-grade standard will force ballot writers to drop confusing jargon, use shorter sentences, and make measures accessible to the average voter. * Opponents and policy analysts argue that strictly applying a syllable-counting formula could force writers to remove precise financial disclosures or legal terms just to lower the score, potentially leaving voters with less accurate information.
Amendment 85 requires an eighth-grade reading level but does not specify which mathematical formula the state Title Board must use to measure it.
What specific required wording currently mandated by state law would be blocked from citizen-initiative titles under this measure?
Amendment 85 could block current state laws that require ballot titles to explain the financial impact of tax measures on voters and local budgets. Under Colorado law, citizen initiatives that change taxes must include specific explanatory wording, which this measure could render unenforceable if the state Title Board decides it interferes with plain language.
According to state legislative records and the Blue Book, the measure could block: * A 2022 law, passed by voters as Proposition GG, requiring ballot titles for income tax changes to include a summary showing how the measure affects different income brackets. * A 2021 law requiring measures that reduce property taxes to explicitly ask if funding for counties, school districts, fire districts, and water districts should be reduced by a specific dollar amount.
Supporters of Amendment 85 argue that mandatory statutory language often forces ballot titles to be overly long and complex. They say lawmakers sometimes use these requirements to sabotage citizen initiatives with biased wording.
Opponents, including the Bell Policy Center, argue that these specific disclosures provide essential context. They say that blocking these requirements will hide the true fiscal consequences of tax measures, leaving voters less informed about how a proposal might impact their own wallets or funding for public services.
Since the measure does not specify, what existing state agency or legal process would determine if the eighth-grade standard is met?
The Colorado Title Board would initially determine if a ballot title meets the eighth-grade reading standard, with final authority resting with the Colorado Supreme Court.
The Title Board is a three-member state panel made up of the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, and the director of the Office of Legislative Legal Services, or their designees. Under current law, this board is already responsible for drafting ballot titles for citizen initiatives and ensuring they are accurate and understandable. The measure's fiscal note estimates the board would take on the workload of defining exactly what an eighth-grade reading level means and applying that standard to new titles.
If an initiative backer or a citizen disagrees with the board's wording, the existing legal process allows them to request a rehearing. If they are still dissatisfied, they can appeal the decision directly to the Colorado Supreme Court, which handles all ballot title disputes.
Ballot measures referred directly by the state legislature bypass the Title Board. Lawmakers write those titles themselves. For those measures, the courts would be the only check on whether the legislature met the new plain language standard.
Go deeper, if you want
We had two AIs summarize this independently Agree
Both models got the same official text, the same instructions, and could not see each other's answer. Here is each one in its own words.
Claude
Ballot titles - the question you actually read on your ballot - already have to be in plain language under state law. This puts a specific standard in the constitution: no harder than an eighth-grade reading level. It also blocks laws that force extra required wording into citizen-initiative titles when that wording gets in the way of plain language. The measure does not define plain language or say who decides whether a title passes.
Flagged: The restriction on required title wording applies only to citizen initiatives, not to measures the legislature refers. Today's law forces tax-related initiative titles to spell out the impact on taxpayers and state spending - exactly the kind of language this could strip out.
Gemini
Right now, the titles of ballot measures must be written in plain language, but there is no specific reading level required. This amendment would force all ballot titles to be written at an eighth-grade reading level or lower. It also stops the state government from passing laws that force extra, confusing words into the titles of citizen-led measures.
Flagged: The rule stopping the government from requiring specific language only applies to citizen initiatives, not to measures put on the ballot by the state legislature.
Where they came apart
- The strongest convergence of the 14. Both models independently found the asymmetry that matters most: the ban on required title language applies only to citizen initiatives, not to measures the legislature refers.
- Both also independently flagged the same risk — that today's mandatory tax-impact disclosures in ballot titles are exactly the kind of language this could strip out.
- No material disagreement.
The comparison notes were written by Claude — one of the two models grading the contest — which is exactly why both summaries are printed above them in full.
The other model's take on cost and reach second opinion
Cost: The measure will cause a minimal workload increase for the state Title Board to update and apply the new reading-level standards.
Who it touches: It affects Colorado voters, citizens proposing new laws, and the state board that writes ballot titles.
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Source: 2026 Colorado State Ballot Information Booklet (the "Blue Book"), Legislative Council of the Colorado General Assembly, Research Publication No. 842. Read the original.