The Colorado State Legislature passed a constitutional amendment that would remove the right of bail in cases of first-degree murder when the proof is evident or the presumption is great.
The measure will be on the Nov. general election ballot. A 55% vote is needed for it to be approved.
To put the constitutional amendment before voters, a two-thirds vote was required in the Colorado State Senate and the Colorado House of Representatives.
The amendment, House Concurrent Resolution 1002, was passed by the House on March 2, in a vote of 59-5. The five no votes came from four Democratic representatives and one Republican representative. The Senate passed the amendment unanimously on March 28.
Also on the ballot are two other constitutional amendments referred to the ballot by the state legislature. The amendments would:
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expand the property tax exemption for veterans with a disability to veterans with individual unemployability status; and
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create an independent judicial discipline adjudicative board and create rules for the judicial discipline process.
From 2000 through 2022, 34 legislatively referred constitutional amendments were on the ballot, of which 19 were approved (55.88%) and 15 were defeated (44.12%). An average of about two constitutional amendments are referred to the ballot during even-numbered years. Since 2017, constitutional amendments require voter approval of 55% to be adopted.
