2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 32 - SPECIAL DISTRICTS (§§ 32-1-101 — 32-22-117) › SPECIAL STATUTORY DISTRICTS (§§ 32-8-101 — 32-22-117) › Article 22 - FRONT RANGE PASSENGER RAIL DISTRICT (§§ 32-22-101 — 32-22-117) › Section 32-22-109 - [Effective 8/7/2024] Taxes, assessments, and multiple-fiscal year borrowing - voter approval required

(1)
No action by the district to establish or increase any tax and no action of the governing body of any station area improvement district to establish or increase any tax or any special assessment on real property authorized by this article 22 shall take effect unless it is first submitted, as applicable, to a vote of the registered electors of the district or of the station area improvement district in which the assessment or tax is proposed to be collected. Before submitting a question to establish any district tax to the registered electors of the district, the district shall:
(a)
Publish a proposed plan for developing the passenger rail service and a detailed financing plan. The plan for developing the passenger rail service must identify the route and phasing of the passenger rail system to be funded by the tax. The financing plan must identify committed and potential financial partners, including but not limited to the regional transportation district, the federal government, Amtrak, and private partners; and
(b)
Adopt a resolution certifying that the district has made every reasonable effort to secure federal funding to support the development, financing, construction, operation, or maintenance of the passenger rail system; and
(c)
Approve the submission of the question by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of all voting directors of the board.
(2)
No action by the district creating a multiple-fiscal year debt or other financial obligation that is subject to section 20 (4)(b) of article X of the state constitution shall take effect unless first submitted to a vote of the registered electors of the district.
(3)
(a)
Ballot issues proposed to the registered electors as required by subsections (1) and (2) of this section must be submitted in accordance with the requirements of section 20 of article X of the state constitution. The action shall not take effect unless a majority of the registered electors voting on the ballot issue vote to approve the ballot issue.
(b)
No later than sixty days before a coordinated or general election, the district must certify to the secretary of state the ballot titles, content, and order of all ballot measures referred to the registered electors of the district by resolution of the board. The content must be certified in English and in any language for which any county within the district must provide a minority language sample ballot, as defined in section 1-5-903 (2). If the district timely certifies ballot content to the secretary of state, the secretary of state must certify the district's ballot content to the county clerk and recorders of all counties wholly or partially included in the district no later than the fifty-seventh day before the election, in accordance with section 1-5-203 (1)(a).
(c)
Except for the certification of the ballot order and content by the secretary of state required by subsection (3)(b) of this section, the election must be conducted in substantially the same manner as county elections, and the county clerk and recorder of each county in which the election is conducted shall assist the district in conducting the election. The district shall pay the costs incurred by each county in conducting the election on behalf of the district as provided for in section 1-7-116 (2)(b). No public money of the district may be used to urge or oppose passage of a ballot issue submitted for voter approval as required under this section.
Amended by 2024 Ch. 126,§ 5, eff. 8/7/2024.
Added by 2021 Ch. 401, § 1, eff. 6/30/2021.
L. 2021: Entire article added, (SB 21-238), ch. 2670, p. 2670, § 1, effective June 30.
2024 Ch. 126, was passed without a safety clause. See Colo. Const. art. V, § 1(3).
This section is set out more than once due to postponed, multiple, or conflicting amendments.