Here’s what Great Ed knows after two decades of advocating for public education:
- Coloradans believe in public education and want our schools to provide for well-resourced teachers, individual support, and effective programs that prepare students to succeed in careers, civic life, and life-long learning.
- Colorado’s outdated constitutional tax structure has stymied the state’s ability to get it done.
Over the years, public education advocates have fought battles big and small. Hundreds of local mill and bond measures have passed. (Some have not.) The Budget Stabilization Factor took $10 billion out of our schools, but together we stopped that debt from growing.
And we finally got the state to scientifically study what resources are actually required to ensure that every student can meet Colorado standards and requirements.
Now we have the answer: we need to dedicate an additional $3.5 to $4.1 billion per year to pay enough teachers and pay teachers enough to do the job we’re asking of them; to provide students with the support and individual attention they require; and to make sure all students have access to technology and to educational and career opportunities that will prepare them for success.
We can’t make up that gap all at once.
But this November, voters could have the chance to build a Colorado where today’s elementary students will graduate from fully funded high schools.
Thanks to two proposed initiatives currently making their way to the November 2026 ballot, we can achieve that vision in a way that makes our tax system more fair: giving 97% of taxpayers a tax cut and making sure that the wealthiest Coloradans pay their fair share.
Great Education Colorado has endorsed:
- SB26-135 – A bill to refer a measure to the November 2026 ballot to raise Colorado’s outdated revenue cap and allow the state to invest the revenue it already collects in K–12 public education without raising taxes.
- Initiative 195 – A citizens’ initiative, led by the Protect Colorado’s Future coalition, to reinstate a graduated income tax, which will raise about $2 Billion annually for K-12 public education, early childhood education and care, and health care by increasing the tax rate for income above $500,000.
FAQs:
Why support both measures?
Although great education is happening in classrooms across Colorado every day, our chronic short-changing of school funding has been taking a toll for the past three decades. As a result, our current per-pupil funding is effectively lower than it was in 1989, i.e., before the internet, state standards, and increased behavioral health needs of our students. Teacher salaries in Colorado are literally the least competitive in the nation. Our per pupil funding has remained well below the national average for decades. Class sizes are too large and critical educational opportunities are not available to all students.
Federal tax and spending cuts (sometimes aimed specifically at Colorado) have only increased the urgency for bold action on school funding.
Initiative 195 will provide an immediate and critical boost in funding for K-12, child care, and health care. SB26-135 will allow for long-term growth as our economy grows. Together, they will put Colorado on a path to full and fair funding of our schools.
Do these measures conflict?
Not at all. They address two different obstacles to fully funding our schools (and other important services like health care and higher education).
SB26-135 will allow the state to spend revenue that it already collects under our current tax rates. If we had done this 10 years ago, we could have reversed much of the damage done by the Budget Stabilization Factor in recent years.
The Protect Colorado’s Future Initiative will remove the part of the constitution that requires all income to be taxed at the same rate, which has frozen our upside-down tax system in place. Last year’s federal tax bill gave huge state and federal breaks to Colorado’s wealthiest. Under Initiative 195,Income above $500,000 will be taxed at a higher rate, while low and middle income earners will pay a lower rate. It’s only fair.
Can they both pass?
Polling indicates that both measures have strong public support – not only in concept, but the actual title language. Both maintain support of over 55% after a simulated campaign with three-to-one negative messaging. The measures have considerable tailwinds, given a constant news cycle about federal, state and school district budget cuts, the affordability crisis and increasing economic inequality. With a strong statewide grassroots ground game – which is already well under way for both measures – 2026 provides a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Colorado to make fully funded public education a reality.
Colorado voters deserve a chance to make both of these critical investments in K-12. So, for public education advocates, the more important question is: “What can we do to make sure they both pass?”
What if one passes and the other doesn’t?
Either one passing is better for Colorado students than keeping the status quo. If only one passes, we will need to continue to work for fiscal reform that will allow us to keep making progress toward fully funded public schools, as defined by the adequacy studies completed for the state in 2025.
Why do these both now?
2026 is the year for bold action for two reasons: urgency and opportunity. Under the Budget Stabilization Factor, an entire generation of students entered and graduated from public schools when per pupil funding wasn’t even equal to 1989 inflation-adjusted dollars. Half-measures and band-aids won’t reverse the impact or ensure that Colorado students benefit from the same opportunities that their peers in other states have. We must give voters the chance to invest fully in the next generation.
Moreover, Colorado is now in the third year of a deep budget crisis and, as the old saying goes, we should never let a crisis go to waste. Tough fiscal realities are forcing difficult choices, and in the months ahead, the news will only reinforce that communities across the state are being asked to cope with cuts to public education and other essential services. That makes 2026 the rare moment when voters will be more aware than ever of how public investments support our families and communities and more open to structural solutions. If there’s ever was a time to advance bold, durable measures that address funding challenges head-on, it’s now.
How Can I Help?
Whether you’re a seasoned education advocate or a newcomer, we hope you will join us on Thursday, April 9th for Great Education Colorado’s Advocacy Day at the State Capitol.
Advocacy Day is a perfect opportunity to learn more about the current school finance ecosystem, connect with other advocates in your community, and talk with state policymakers about a vision of fully funded schools that is grounded in the adequacy studies.
If you can’t make it to Advocacy Day but want to get involved, you can join our Advocates Network and/or join Public School Strong Colorado: an online distributed organizing platform where Great Education Colorado, Colorado Education Association, Colorado PTA, and Colorado Statewide Parent Coalition are coming together to create a durable movement for public education that lasts beyond any one legislative session or ballot measure.
Public School Strong Colorado is made up of parents, students, educators, advocates, and community members who are committed to honest, equitable, and fully funded public schools. Together, we are organizing by school district – as well as our statewide group – across a variety of issues that affect Colorado’s public education system, including both of these ballot measures.