City Initiated Question asking voters to extend, without raising taxes, the 0.25% Sales and Use Tax (25 cents on a $100 purchase) for the Street Maintenance Program.  Pro/Con Statements are due to the City Clerk's Office no later than noon on September 20, 2024.

Full Resolution language:          Link to July 16, 2024 Council Packet

RESOLUTION 2024-093
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
SUBMITTING TO THE REGISTERED ELECTORS OF THE CITY
AT THE NOVEMBER 5, 2024, REGULAR CITY ELECTION
THE QUESTION OF THE EXTENSION OF THE EXPIRING QUARTER-CENT
SALES AND USE TAX USED TO FUND
THE CITY’S STREET MAINTENANCE PROGRAM

A. The City of Fort Collins has enacted a comprehensive sales and use tax, which enactment is codified in Chapter 25, Article Ill of the Code of the City of Fort Collins.

B. The amount of such tax presently imposed by the Code, as contained in Section 25-75(a) thereof, includes a twenty-five hundredths percent (0.25%) tax (the “Existing Tax”) most recently approved by the voters of the City on April 7, 2015, to fund the City’s street maintenance program.

C. The City’s street maintenance program pays the costs of planning, design, right-of-way acquisition, incidental upgrades and other costs associated with the repair and renovation of City streets, including, without limitation, curbs, gutters, bridges, sidewalks, parkway shoulders and medians and traffic control infrastructure (the “Street Maintenance Program”).

D. The Existing Tax will expire at midnight at the end of December31, 2025.

E. By continuing this dedicated funding source, the City is not only able to provide a higher level of maintenance for City streets, but is also able to obtain assistance in funding the Street Maintenance Program from non-City residents that use the City’s street system. This dedicated funding source is separate from the General Fund.

F. The Council believes it to be in the best interests of the residents of the City to extend the Existing Tax for the Street Maintenance Program for a period of twenty (20) years.

In light of the foregoing recitals, which the Council hereby makes and adopts as determinations and findings, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS that there is hereby submitted to the registered electors of the City at the special City election to be held on November 5, 2024, the question of whether to extend the Existing Tax for the City’s Street Maintenance Program for a period of twenty (20)
years, which question shall be submitted in substantially the following form:

BALLOT ISSUE NO. 1
A City-initiated Question

WITHOUT RAISING ADDITIONAL TAXES, SHALL THE CITY’S EXISTING 0.25% SALES AND USE TAX (25 CENTS ON A $100 PURCHASE) FIRST APPROVED BYTHE VOTERS IN 2005 FOR THE STREET MAINTENANCE PROGRAM BE EXTENDED FROM ITS CURRENT EXPIRATION AT THE END OF DECEMBER 31, 2025, THROUGH THE END OF DECEMBER 31, 2045; PROVIDED THAT THE REVENUES
DERIVED FROM SUCH TAX EXTENSION SHALL BE USED TO PAY THE COSTS OF PLANNING, DESIGN, RIGHT-OF-WAY ACQUISITION, INCIDENTAL UPGRADES AND OTHER COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH:

• THE REPAIR AND RENOVATION OF CITY STREETS, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, CURBS, 
  GUTTERS, BRIDGES, SIDEWALKS, PARKWAYS, SHOULDERS AND MEDIANS, AND TRAFFIC CONTROL INFRASTRUCTURE;

AND FURTHER PROVIDED THAT THE FULL AMOUNT OF REVENUES DERIVED FROM THE TAX EXTENSION MAY BE RETAINED AND EXPENDED BY THE CITY NOTWITHSTANDING ANY STATE REVENUE OR EXPENDITURE LIMITATION, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE LIMITATION CONTAINED IN ARTICLE X, SECTION 20 OF THE COLORADO CONSTITUTION?

______YES
______NO

Passed and adopted on July 16, 2024.  Effective Date:  July 16, 2024.

City-Initiated Charter Amendment related to Elections.  The proposed amendments to Article VIII of the City’s Charter include the following:

• Clarify the usage of the term “shall” by replacing with “will,” “must” or other appropriate language;
• Modernize the language to be more inclusive by removing he/she language;
• Remove requirement that Chief Deputy City Clerk serve on the Board of Election and allow the City Clerk to designate the lead election expert;
• Eliminate vague language for challenging nominations and qualifications of candidates (substituting the Municipal Election Code process); and
• Add rules for computation of time and add consistent deadline timeframes.

Full Ordinance language:      Link to July 2, 2024 Council Packet

ORDINANCE NO. 094, 2024
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
SUBMITTING TO A VOTE OF THE REGISTERED ELECTORS OF
THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS PROPOSED CHARTER
AMENDMENT NO. 1, AMENDING ARTICLE VIII OF THE CITY
CHARTER RELATING TO ELECTIONS

A. The City of Fort Collins Charter is the governing document that defines the City organization and the powers and functions of the City. The Charter was first created by a vote of the people of Fort Collins in 1954 and can only be amended by a vote of the people.

B. Over time, Charter provisions may become obsolete, contradictory, or warrant change to address current needs or trends.

C. Article IV, Section 8 of the Charter provides the Charter may be amended as provided by the laws of the State of Colorado. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 31-2-210 provides that charter amendments may be initiated by the adoption of an ordinance by the City Council submitting a proposed amendment to a vote of the registered electors of the City.

D. The Council’s Election Code Committee met several times during 2024 to receive information and consider potential City Charter amendment proposals related to the election and petition processes that are governed by the Charter. Article VIII of the Charter governs the City’s processes for elections generally.

E. The proposed amendments to Article VIII include the following:

1. Clarify the usage of the term “shall” by replacing with “will,” “must” or other appropriate language;

2. modernize the language to be more inclusive by removing he/she language;

3. remove requirement that Chief Deputy City Clerk serve on the Board of Election and allow the City Clerk to designate the lead election expert;

4. eliminate vague language for challenging nominations and qualifications of candidates (substituting the Municipal Election Code process); and

5. add rules for computation of time and add consistent deadline timeframes.

F. The Election Code Committee considered and supported similar revisions to Article IX, regarding recall, and Article X, regarding initiative and referendum, which are also under consideration by the Council.

G. The Council finds that these proposed revisions to Article VIII of the City Charter, regarding City elections generally, update, simplify and improve these provisions and are for the benefit of the people of Fort Collins, and the Council desires to present the amendments to Article VIII set forth below to the voters for approval at the November 5, 2024, special municipal election.

In light of the foregoing recitals, which the Council hereby makes and adopts as determinations and findings, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows:

Section 1. That the following proposed changes to Article VIII of the Charter of the City of Fort Collins shall be submitted to the registered electors of the City as “Proposed Charter Amendment No. 1” at the special municipal election to be held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024:

ARTICLE VIII. ELECTIONS

Section 1. Applicability of state constitution.

The Council will provide by ordinance for the manner of holding city elections. All ordinances regarding elections must be consistent with the provisions of this Charter and the state Constitution. For any matter regarding elections not covered by the state Constitution, this Charter or ordinance of the Council will be governed by the laws of the State of Colorado relating to municipal elections, or coordinated municipal elections, as applicable.

Section 2. City elections.

A regular city election will be held on the first Tuesday in November of every odd-numbered year. All other municipal elections will be known as special city elections and will be called by ordinance and must be held in accordance with the provisions of this Charter and any ordinances adopted pursuant thereto. All municipal elections must be nonpartisan.

In order to implement a change of regular city elections from April of each odd-numbered year to November of each odd-numbered year, the term of the Mayor and each Councilmember will be extended to such time as a successor elected in November of the appropriate odd-numbered year (consistent with Article II, Section 1(b)) takes office, unless otherwise ended due to an event of vacancy or recall. Such change in term length will have no effect on the number of terms any such officer may be elected under the applicable term limits.

Section 3. Nomination; withdrawal from nomination.

Any person who is qualified at the time of nomination for the office to be filled may be nominated for the elective office by petition. A nominating petition for the office of Mayor must be signed by not less than twenty-five (25) registered electors. A nominating petition for District Council office must be signed by not less than twenty-five (25) registered electors residing in that District. A registered elector may sign one (1) petition for each office for which the elector is entitled to vote at the election. If an elector should sign more petitions than entitled, said elector’s signature will be void as to all petitions which the elector signed.

Nominating petitions must be filed with the City Clerk. The Council will enact an ordinance specifying the time frame for circulation and submittal of nominating petitions and the deadline for withdrawal from candidacy for municipal office. Such time frame must not be changed within one hundred eighty (180) days immediately prior to the election. No nominating petition may be accepted unless the candidate completes a verified acceptance of the nomination certifying that they are not a candidate, directly or indirectly, of any political party, and that they meet the qualifications for office and will serve if elected.

A person who has been nominated may withdraw from candidacy by filing a written request to do so with the City Clerk before the deadline established by Council ordinance for such withdrawal, and no name so withdrawn may be placed upon the ballot.

Section 4. Petitions.

(a) Form; circulation. The Council will prescribe by ordinance, upon recommendation of the City Clerk, the form for a nominating petition which must include such warnings and notices to signers as may be deemed appropriate by the Council, as well as the candidate’s verified acceptance of nomination. The signatures on a nominating petition need not all be subscribed on one (1) page, but to each separate section of the petition there will be attached a signed statement of the circulator thereof, stating the number of signers on that section of the petition, and that each signature thereon was made in the circulator’s presence and is the genuine signature of the person whose name it purports to be. When executed, such statement must be accepted as true until it may be proved false. If any portion is proved false, that portion of any petition must be disregarded.
Following each signature on the petition of nomination must be written the printed name and the residence address of the signer, and the date of signing. All nominating papers comprising a petition must be filed as one (1) instrument.

(b) Sufficiency of petition. Upon receipt of a nominating petition, the City Clerk will forthwith examine the petition, and within five (5) business days after the filing of the petition, notify the candidate in writing of the results of the examination, specifying the particulars of insufficiency, if any. Within the regular time for filing petitions, an insufficient petition may be amended and filed again as a new petition, in which case the time of the first filing will be disregarded in determining the validity of signatures thereon, or a different petition may be filed for the same candidate. The petition for each candidate elected to office must be preserved by the City Clerk until the expiration of the terms of office for such person.

(c) No person may receive any compensation whatever for signing a nominating petition.

(d) The City adopts the applicable requirements and procedures outlined in the Colorado Municipal Election Code of 1965, as amended, for objections to officer nominations.

Section 5. Board of Elections for City-administered elections.

There is hereby created a Board of Elections consisting of the City Clerk, the lead election expert in the City Clerk’s Office, as determined by the City Clerk, and Chief Judge. The Board will be responsible for any election duties specified in this Charter and for such additional duties related to the conduct of elections by the City as may be established by the Council by ordinance.

Section 6. Appearance of names on ballot.

Every ballot must contain the names of all duly nominated candidates for offices to be voted for at that election, except those who have died or withdrawn. The names will be arranged in alphabetical order of surname for each office, and may not contain any title or degree designating the business or profession of the candidate. The candidate’s name may be a nickname, but may not include any punctuation marks selling out the nickname.

Section 7. Certification of election results.

(a) No later than the date specified by Council by ordinance and, after verifying the total number of legal votes cast for each candidate and measure voted upon, the Board of Elections must complete a certificate declaring the results of the election. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes for a particular office, as determined pursuant to this Section 7, will be declared elected to that office. In event of a tie, the selection will be made by the Board of Elections by lot after notice to the candidates affected. The City adopts the applicable requirements and procedures outlined in the Colorado Municipal Election Code of 1965, as amended, for contests to officers declared duly elected. In case the candidate elected is disqualified by court order after the date of issuance of the certificate of election, tabulation of results in that contest shall be rerun with the disqualified candidate being eliminated prior to any tabulation and the candidate with the resulting highest vote shall be elected. If there is no other elected successor who qualifies or if the vote tabulation can no longer be rerun, the office will be deemed vacant, and will be filled by appointment by the remaining members of the council, as provided in Article II, Section 18. In the event of a mandatory recount or recount by request in a City administered election, the Board of Elections must complete an amended certificate declaring the results of the election by no later than five (5) business days after the completion of the recount.

(b) For coordinated city elections (which are not administered by the City), the election will be determined and certified, and any tie vote or recount will be administered, as provided in the applicable state law. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes for a particular office, as determined pursuant to Section 7(c), will be declared elected to that office.

(c) Ranked voting methods. Beginning in 2025, the candidate receiving the highest number of votes for a particular office will be determined using a ranked voting method.

(1) For a City-administered election, the ranked voting method will be in accordance with specifications adopted by the City Council by ordinance.

(2) For a coordinated election, the ranked voting method will be in accordance with, and as provided by, applicable state law.

Section 8. Campaign contributions.

The Council will act by ordinance to establish a limit on the amount that any person or entity may contribute in support of a candidate for Council on the ballot at any city election. No political party or city employee, directly or indirectly, and no public service corporation, nor any other person, firm or corporation, owning, interested in, or intending to apply for any franchise or contract with the city may contribute or expend any money or other
valuable thing, directly or indirectly, to assist in the election or defeat of any candidate.

Section 9. Corrupt practices.

Any person who violates at a city election any state law, provision of this Charter or ordinance of the city will, upon conviction thereof, be disqualified from holding any city position or employment for two (2) years, or any elective city office for four (4) years.

Section 10. Validity of City-administered elections.

No City-administered election may be invalidated if it has been conducted fairly and in substantial conformity with the requirements of this Charter.

Section 11. Computation of time.

(a) Except when business days are specified, all computations of time made under the provisions of this article will be based on calendar days.

(b) Except when computing business days, Saturdays, Sundays, City holidays and days City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances will be included, but, if the time for any act to be done or the last day of any period is a Saturday, Sunday, City holiday or day City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances, the period is extended to include the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or City holiday.

(c) In computing time for any act to be done before any regular or special election, the first day will be included, and the last or election day will be excluded.

(d) If the time for an act to be done under this article is referred to in business days, the time will be computed by excluding Saturdays, Sundays, City holidays, and any day City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances.

(e) If a provision requires doing an act in “not less than” or “no later than” or “at least” a certain number of days or “prior to” a certain number of days or a certain number of  months “before” the date of an election, or any phrase that suggests a similar meaning, if that period would end on a Saturday, Sunday or City holiday, it will instead shift to end on the prior business day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or City holiday. If the period ends on a day City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances, the period will end on the next business day on which City Hall is open for business.

(f) Except when otherwise specified, an act must be completed by 5:00 p.m. Mountain time on the last day for that action.

Section 12. Further regulations.

The Council may, by ordinance, make such further rules and regulations as are consistent with this Charter and the Colorado Constitution in order to carry out the provisions of this Article.

Section 2. That the following ballot title and submission clause are hereby adopted for submitting Proposed Charter Amendment No. 1 to the voters at said election:

CITY-INITIATED
PROPOSED CHARTER AMENDMENT NO. I

Shall Article VII of the Charter of the City of Fort Collins, regarding City
elections, be amended to:

• Clarify the usage of the term “shall” by replacing with “will,” “must” or other appropriate language;
• modernize the language to be more inclusive by removing he/she language;
• remove requirement that Chief Deputy City Clerk serve on the Board of Election and allow the City Clerk to designate the lead election expert;
• eliminate vague language for challenging nominations and qualifications of candidates (substituting the Municipal Election Code process); and

add rules for computation of time and consistent deadline timeframes?

_______ Yes/For

_______No/Against

Introduced, considered favorably on first reading on July 2, 2024, and approved on second reading for final passage on July 16, 2024.  Effective Date:  July 26, 2024.

City-Initiated Charter Amendment related to Recall.  The proposed amendments to Article IX of the City's Charter include the following:

• Clarified the usage of the term “shall” by replacing with “will,” “must” or other appropriate language.
• Modernized the language to be more inclusive by removing he/she language.
• Revised and reorganized to make the description of the process and requirements flow better so they are easier to follow.  The process for a recall petition is set out chronologically and is consistent with the other Charter petition processes.
• Retained the same percentage requirements for signatures (based on first-choice votes with ranked choice voting) and increased timeframes for circulation of a recall petition, including an additional increase in the time to circulate a petition to recall the mayor.
• Updated the timeframe allowed for the City Clerk to examine petitions because volumes (such as numbers of petition signatures to review) have increased since these current provisions were adopted. The new timeframes are more in line with the examination periods in state statutes.
• Simplified the Petition Review Process (“Cure” Provisions) to eliminate the time for correction of technical deficiencies after submission of a petition.
• Updated the Protest process for consistency with the process for filing and deciding protests of other types of petitions, allowing more time for setting of the protest hearing and tightening timeframes for completion of the hearing and decision.
• Updated time for conduct of an election on a successful petition so they work with new election process timing and requirements. For a successful recall petition, the measure would be set for the next Tuesday for which all election deadlines can be met. If the earliest meetable date is less than 77 days before an upcoming November election, the recall issue must go to that election. However, if the recall election will be on the upcoming November ballot or later, and the office held by the subject of the recall is on that November election, the recall process terminates.
• Added computation of time provisions to clarify how deadlines are interpreted and setting updated deadlines based on business days (in increments of five) for actions the City must complete and calendar days (in increments of seven) for actions to be completed by others.

Full Ordinance language:      Link to July 2, 2024 Council Packet

ORDINANCE NO. 095, 2024
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
SUBMITTING TO A VOTE OF THE REGISTERED ELECTORS OF
THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS PROPOSED CHARTER
AMENDMENT NO. 2, REPEALING AND REENACTING ARTICLE IX
OF THE CITY CHARTER RELATING TO RECALL

A. The City of Fort Collins Charter is the governing document that defines the City organization and the powers and functions of the City. The Charter was first created by a vote of the people of Fort Collins in 1954 and can only be amended by a vote of the people.

B. Over time, Charter provisions may become obsolete, contradictory, or warrant change to address current needs or trends.

C. Article IV, Section 8 of the Charter provides the Charter may be amended as provided by the laws of the State of Colorado. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 31-2-210 provides that charter amendments may be initiated by the adoption of an ordinance by the city council submitting a proposed amendment to a vote of the registered electors of the city.

D. The Council’s Election Code Committee met several times during 2024 to receive information and consider potential City Charter amendment proposals related to the election and petition processes that are governed by the Charter. Article IX of the Charter governs the City’s processes for recall of elected officials.

E. A thorough review of Article IX has highlighted confusing and unnecessarily complicated language, and the improvement of these provisions would assist members of the public in exercising their rights regarding recall of elected officials and would reduce confusion and ambiguity for those involved in this process.

F. Incorporated in the revised Article IX are the following:

1. Clarified the usage of the term “shall” by replacing with “will,” “must” or other appropriate language.

2. Modernized the language to be more inclusive by removing he/she language.

3. Revised and reorganized to make the description of the process and requirements flow better so they are easier to follow. The process for a recall petition is set out chronologically and is consistent with the other
Charter petition processes.

4. Retained the same percentage requirements for signatures (based on first-choice votes with ranked choice voting) and increased timeframes for circulation of a recall petition, including an additional increase in the
time to circulate a petition to recall the mayor.

5. Updated the timeframe allowed for the City Clerk to examine petitions because volumes (such as numbers of petition signatures to review) have increased since these current provisions were adopted. The new timeframes are more in line with the examination periods in state statutes.

6. Simplified the Petition Review Process (“Cure” Provisions) to eliminate the time for correction of technical deficiencies after submission of a petition.

7. Updated the Protest process for consistency with the process for filing and deciding protests of other types of petitions, allowing more time for selling of the protest hearing and tightening timeframes for completion of the hearing and decision.

8. Updated time for conduct of an election on a successful petition so they work with new election process timing and requirements. For a successful recall petition, the measure would be set for the next Tuesday for which all election deadlines can be met. If the earliest meetable date is less than 77 days before an upcoming November election, the recall issue must go to that election. However, if the recall election will be on the upcoming November ballot or later, and the office held by the subject of the recall is on that November election, the recall process terminates.

9. Added computation of time provisions to clarify how deadlines are interpreted and selling updated deadlines based on business days (in increments of five) for actions the City must complete and calendar days (in
increments of seven) for actions to be completed by others.

G. The Election Code Committee considered and supported similar revisions to Article VIII, regarding elections generally, and Article X, regarding initiative and referendum, which are also under consideration by the Council.

H. The Council finds that these proposed revisions to Article IX of the City Charter, regarding the Recall process, update, simplify and improve that process and are for the benefit of the people of Fort Collins, and the Council desires to present the repealed and reenacted Article IX set forth below to the voters for approval at the November 5, 2024, special municipal election.

In light of the foregoing recitals, which the Council hereby makes and adopts as determinations and findings, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows:

Section 1. That the repeal of Article IX of the City Charter and the reenactment of Article IX of the City Charter as set forth below, shall be submitted to the registered electors of the City as “Proposed Charter Amendment No. 2” at the special municipal election to be held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024:

ARTICLE IX. RECALL

Section 1. The recall.

(a) Power. Any elective officer of the city may be recalled from office, through the procedure and in the manner provided herein, by the registered electors entitled to vote for a successor of such incumbent officer. The procedure to affect a recall will be as provided in this Article.

(1) For purposes of this Article, in the case of recall of the Mayor, the words “registered elector” will be construed to mean persons residing within the city who are registered to vote as of the date they signed the petition for recall.

(2) For purposes of this Article, in the case of a proposed recall of District Council representatives, the words “registered elector” will be construed to mean persons who are registered to vote within the particular affected
Council District of the city as of the date they signed the petition for recall of the District Council representative.

(3) No recall petition may be circulated or filed against any officer until the officer has actually held office for at least one (1) year in the officer’s current term, nor within six (6) months of the end of such term.

(b) Commencement of proceedings; affidavit. One (1) or more registered electors may commence recall proceedings by filing with the City Clerk an affidavit of not more than two hundred (200) words stating the reasons for the recall of the officer sought to be removed. A separate affidavit must be filed for each officer sought to be recalled.

(1) Within two (2) business days after the filing of the affidavit, the City Clerk will mail a copy by certified mail to the affected officer. The City Clerk will also promptly provide the affidavit to the City Council by electronic mail.

(2) No later than seven (7) days after the date of the City Clerk’s mailing, the affected officer may file with the City Clerk a sworn statement of not more than three hundred (300) words in defense of the charges.

(3) The affidavit and the response are intended for the information of the registered electors, who will be the sole and exclusive judges of the sufficiency of the ground or grounds assigned for the recall, and said ground
or grounds will not be open to judicial review.

(4) Within seven (7) days after the date by which any statement in defense must be filed, the petitioner must submit to the City Clerk a petition for recall of the officer for City Clerk review in accordance with Section 2(b) of this Article. The petition must be circulated, signed, verified and filed in the manner provided in Section 2 of this Article.

(5) If no petition for recall has been submitted to the City Clerk for approval of its form within the time period specified above, the recall proceedings will be terminated.

Section 2. Petitions.

(a) Separate petitions required. A separate petition must be circulated and filed for each officer sought to be recalled.

(b) Form and content.

(1) Adoption of form. The Council must prescribe by ordinance, upon recommendation of the City Clerk, a general form of petition which will contain warnings and notices to signers as necessary and meet the requirements of this Article.

(2) Approval of form. No petition may be circulated until the City Clerk has approved the form for circulation. The City Clerk must determine whether to approve the form of petition no later than five (5) business days after submittal. The City Clerk must first determine that the petition form contains all mailers required under this Article and only the mailers required by this Article.

(3) Scope of approval. The City Clerk’s approval under this Section does not constitute an approval of the content of the petition or its legality, but rather, starts the running of the time periods provided for circulation and filing of petitions for recall.

(4) Statement of purpose. The petition must contain or have attached to each section throughout its circulation a copy of the charges set forth in the affidavit on file with the City Clerk, and if requested by the person sought to be recalled, a copy of the statement in defense.

(5) Petition representatives. Each petition must designate by name and address three (3) registered electors who will represent the signers of the petition in all mailers affecting the petition.

(6) Signatures. Only registered electors may sign the petitions authorized under this Article. Each signer must sign their own signature and each signature must be followed by the printed name of the signer, the street and number address of their residence, and the date of signing.

(7) Petition sections. Each section of the petition must be individually numbered and must contain no less than thirty (30), and no more than one hundred (100) signature lines.

(c) Circulation of petition.

(1) To be valid, the petition must be circulated and signed in sections with each section consisting of one (1) or more sheets securely fastened at the top, and each section must contain a full and accurate copy of the text of the petition and the names and addresses of the designated representatives for the petition.

(2) All sections must be filed with the City Clerk as one (1) instrument.

(3) Only persons eighteen (18) years of age or older may circulate the petition for signatures.

(4) The circulation of any petition by any medium other than personally by a circulator is prohibited.

(5) No person may receive any compensation whatever for signing a recall petition.

(6) No person may knowingly sign an initiative petition more than once.

(7) In the event that the signature of any person appears more than once on a petition authorized under this Article, the first signature verified will be counted and all other signatures of that person will be rejected.

(d) Affidavit of circulator. For each petition section, the circulator of the petition section must sign under oath before a notary public the affidavit of circulator attached at the end of the petition section. The affidavit must state the following:

(1) the circulator’s address of residence;

(2) that the circulator is eighteen (18) years of age or older;

(3) that they personally circulated the section;

(4) that each signature was affixed in the circulator’s presence on the date stated with such signature;

(5) that to the best of the circulator’s knowledge and belief each signer was at the time of signing a registered elector of the city;

(6) that to the best of the circulator’s knowledge and belief each signature is the genuine signature of the person whose name it purports to be;

(7) that each signer had an opportunity before signing to read the full text of the petition; and

(8) that the circulator has not paid or offered to pay any money or other thing of value to any signer for the purpose of inducing or causing the signer to affix their signature to the petition.

A petition verified by the valid affidavits of its circulators in each of its sections will be prima facie evidence that the signatures thereon are genuine and true.

(e) Number of signatures required.

(1) First recall attempt. The petition must be signed by registered electors equal in number to at least twenty-five (25) percent of the total of votes cast at the last preceding regular city election for the office to which the incumbent sought to be recalled was elected.

(2) Subsequent recall attempts. After one (1) recall petition and election, a recall petition filed against the same officer during the same term for which elected must be signed by registered electors equal in number to at least fifty (50) percent of the total of first choice votes cast at the last preceding regular city election for the office to which the incumbent sought to be recalled was elected.

(f) Petition deadlines; submittal.

(1) For the recall process to proceed, petitions for recall must be filed with the City Clerk as follows:

a. For a District Council representative, no later than thirty-five (35) days after the City Clerk’s approval of the form for circulation;

b. For a Mayor, no later than forty-nine (49) days after the City Clerk’s approval of the form for circulation.

(2) All petition sections must be filed with the City Clerk together at the same time and will collectively constitute the petition.

(3) A recall petition must be filed with the City Clerk within the requisite time or it will be deemed null and void.

(g) Examination of petition.

(1) Within fifteen (15) business days of the filing of a petition the City Clerk will ascertain by examination of the petition and the registration books whether the petition is signed by the requisite number of registered electors and contains the required particulars and affidavits.

(2) Any petition section the City Clerk reasonably determines has been disassembled, whether or not it has been reassembled, will be deemed invalid.

(3) Upon submittal of a petition, the Clerk shall not remove the signature of an elector from the petition.

(4) The Clerk will issue publicly and provide to the petition representatives the Clerk’s initial determination of petition sufficiency. If the petition is insufficient, the City Clerk will so certify and forthwith notify all of the designated petition representatives in writing, specifying the particulars of insufficiency.

Protests.

(1) Registered electors desiring to protest a determination by the City Clerk that a petition is either sufficient or insufficient may file a written protest, under oath, in the office of the City Clerk within seven (7) days of the City Clerk’s initial determination as to sufficiency of the petition. The protest must set forth with particularity the grounds of protest and any signatures and related defects in form protested.

(2) Upon the filing of a protest, the City Clerk will send a copy of the protest to the designated petition representatives, the City Council and the City Manager. The City Manager will appoint a hearing officer, who, in conjunction with the City Clerk, will set a time for hearing such protest, which must be no more than ten (10)
business days after the filing of a protest.

(3) At least five (5) business days prior to the hearing, the City Clerk will send a notice of the date, time and location for the hearing and a copy of the protest to all of the designated petition representatives, the person(s) who filed the protest, and the City Council.

(4) All protest hearings will be before a hearing officer appointed by the City Manager. The hearing officer will have the power to issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of documents.

(5) All records and hearings will be public, and all testimony must be under oath.

(6) The hearing will be summary in nature and concluded no later than twenty (20) business days after the protest was filed.

(7) The hearing officer must decide and certify the results of the hearing no later than five (5) business days after the hearing is concluded, and no further protest regarding the petition may be filed.

(8) The City Clerk will make any final determination regarding the sufficiency or insufficiency of a petition and must base such determination on the protest hearing results issued by the hearing officer.

(9) A petition for recall that has been deemed insufficient after protest may not be amended or circulated further and no further protest regarding the petition may be filed.

(i) Certification and presentation to Council. When and if a petition is deemed sufficient, whether following the initial sufficiency determination by the City Clerk in the absence of a protest, or following protest proceedings, the City Clerk will so certify and present the certified petition to the Council at the next regularly scheduled meeting or special meeting called for this purpose. The City Clerk’s certificate constitutes the final determination as to the sufficiency of the petition.

Section 3. Action by Council.

(a) A recall election will be for the dual purposes of voting on the recall of the officer sought to be removed and the election of a successor.

(b) Upon the City Clerk’s presentation of a petition certified as sufficient for recall, the Council must set a date for the election to be held on a Tuesday at the earliest possible election date that allows the City Clerk sufficient time to meet all legal, logistical and technical requirements applicable to the conduct of an election. The City Clerk will advise the Council of said election date in connection with Council’s call of the recall election.

(c) If the earliest possible election date determined by the City Clerk is less than seventy-seven (77) days prior to an upcoming November regular municipal election or November General Election conducted by the Larimer County Clerk and Recorder, the recall election must be consolidated with such other election date.

(d) If a recall election must be consolidated with a November regular municipal election pursuant to subsection (c) or cannot be set until a date after a November regular election, and if the Council office held by the officer for whom a recall is sought will be on such November ballot, the recall process must be deemed terminated and the regular election for that Council office will proceed as part of the November regular municipal election.

(e) If the officer subject to a recall petition resigns before ballots for the recall election are mailed to the voters, the recall process must be deemed terminated and the vacancy must be filled by appointment. If a vacancy occurs after the ballots for the recall election have been mailed to the voters, the election to fill the vacancy under Section 4, below, must nevertheless proceed.

Section 4. Recall elections.

(a) Generally. Recall elections must be conducted in the same manner as provided generally for regular or special city elections in this Charter. All Charter provisions related to nomination and qualification of candidates apply to recall elections.

(b) Nominations on recall. Anyone desiring to become a candidate at the recall election must do so by nominating petition as required in Article VIII of this Charter. The deadline for filing a nominating petition for a recall election will be as established by ordinance of the Council. If more than one (1) officer is sought to be recalled, then the nominating petition must specify which incumbent the candidate seeks to succeed. The name of the person against whom the recall petition is filed is barred from appearing on the ballot as
a candidate for the office.

(c) Ballots. The official ballot must include, as to every officer whose recall is to be voted on, the statement of grounds and, if requested by the affected officer, the officer’s statement in defense followed by the words, “Shall (name of person against whom the recall petition is filed) be recalled from the office of ( )?“ Following such question must appear the words, “Yes” indicating a vote in favor of the recall and “No” indicating a vote against such recall. On such ballots, under each question, there must also be printed the names of those persons who have been nominated as candidates to succeed the person sought to be recalled.

(d) Election results. If a majority of those voting on the question of the recall of any incumbent from office votes “No,” the incumbent continues in office. If a majority votes “Yes” for the incumbent’s removal, the incumbent
will thereupon be deemed removed from their office upon the taking of the oath of office by their successor. If the officer is recalled, the candidate for succession receiving the highest number of votes at the election determined in accordance with Article VIII, will be declared elected for the remainder of the incumbent’s term.

(e) Elected replacement. The candidate elected will take office upon taking the oath of office, which must occur as the first order of business at the next regular or special Council meeting after certification of the election results.

(f) Disqualification from office. No person who has been recalled or has resigned after the City Clerk’s presentation to Council of a certified, sufficient petition for recall of such person may serve the city in any elected or Council-appointed capacity within two (2) years after such removal or resignation.

Section 5. Computation of time.

(a) Except when business days are specified, all computations of time made under the provisions of this article will be based on calendar days.

(b) Except when computing business days, Saturdays, Sundays, City holidays and days City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances will be included, but, if the time for any act to be done or the last day of any period is a Saturday, Sunday, City holiday or day City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances, the period is extended to include the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or City holiday.

(c) In computing time for any act to be done before any regular or special election, the first day will be included, and the last or election day will be excluded.

(d) If the time for an act to be done under this article is referred to in business days, the time will be computed by excluding Saturdays, Sundays, City holidays, and any day City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances.

(e) If a provision requires doing an act in “not less than” or “no later than” or “at least” a certain number of days or “prior to” a certain number of days or a certain number of months “before” the date of an election, or any phrase that suggests a similar meaning, if that period would end on a Saturday, Sunday or City holiday, it will instead shift to end on the prior business day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or City holiday. If the period ends on a day City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances, the period will end on the next business day on which City Hall is open for business.

(f) Except when otherwise specified, an act must be completed by 5:00 p.m. Mountain time on the last day for that action.

Section 6. Further regulations.

The Council may, by ordinance, make such further rules and regulations as are consistent with this Charter and the Colorado Constitution in order to carry out the provisions of this Article.

Section 2. That the following ballot title and submission clause are hereby adopted for submitting Proposed Charter Amendment No. 2 to the voters at said election:

CITY-INITIATED
PROPOSED CHARTER AMENDMENT NO. 2

Shall Article IX of the Charter of the City of Fort Collins, regarding the recall process, be repealed and reenacted in the form set forth in Ordinance No. 095, 2024, which makes edits for clarity and consistency and:

• Clarifies the usage of the term “shall” by replacing with “will,” “must” or other appropriate language;
• modernizes the language to be more inclusive by removing he/she language;
• revises and reorganizes Article IX to be simpler, easier to follow and clearer;
• retains the same percentage requirements for signatures (based on first-choice votes with ranked choice voting) and increases timeframes for circulation of a recall petition, with an additional increase in the time to circulate a petition to recall the mayor;
• simplifies review process and removes the allowance for time for “cure” of technical errors and omissions;
• tightens timeframe for protest hearing and decision;
• requires Council to set recall measure for vote for the next Tuesday for which all election deadlines can be met and if that earliest meetable date is within 77days of a November election, it must go on that ballot.
• clarifies that if the office held by the subject of the recall is on the next November election ballot and the election on the recall would be at that election or later, the recall process terminates; and
• adds rules for computation of time and consistent deadline timeframes?

______Yes/For
______No/Against

Introduced, considered favorably on first reading on July 2, 2024, and approved on second reading for final passage on July 16, 2024.

City-Initiated Charter Amendment related to Initiative and Referendum.  The proposed amendments to Article X of the City's Charter include the following:

• Clarified the usage of the term “shall” by replacing with “will,” “must” or other appropriate language. 
• Modernized the language to be more inclusive by removing he/she language. 
• Revised and reorganized to make the description of the process and requirements flow better so they are easier to follow.  The full process for initiatives and the full process for referenda are set out chronologically, rather than having a third section that combined some of the process requirements. 
• Updated method for setting the form of initiative and referendum petitions so that the Clerk is responsible for preparing a general statement of purpose, in consultation with the City Attorney, to fairly and accurately summarize the initiated measure or ordinance to be referred. 
• Removed the requirement that the entire ordinance be presented with each section of the petition when the referred ordinance exceeds two pages in length, instead the Clerk will prepare a summary of it. 
• Updated the timeframe allowed for the City Clerk to examine petitions because volumes (such as numbers of petition signatures to review) have increased since these current provisions were adopted. The new timeframes are more in line with the examination periods in state statutes. 
• Simplified the Petition Review Process (“Cure” Provisions) to conform to the Municipal Election Code, which does not allow for correction of technical deficiencies after submission of a petition. 
• Updated the Protest process for consistency between the two types of petitions, allowing more time for setting of the protest hearing and tightening timeframes for completion of the hearing and decision.
• Updated the time for conduct of an election on a successful petition so they work with new election process timing and requirements. For a successful initiative petition, the measure would be set for the next November election the City is able to coordinate with the County. For a successful referendum petition, the measure would be set for the earliest regular or already called special election for which election deadlines can be met, unless Council opts to call an earlier special election.
• Added computation of time provisions to clarify how deadlines are interpreted and setting updated deadlines based on business days (in increments of five) for actions the City must complete and calendar days (in increments of seven) for actions to be completed by others.

Full Ordinance language:     Link to July 2, 2024 Council Packet

ORDINANCE NO. 096, 2024
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
SUBMITTING TO A VOTE OF THE REGISTERED ELECTORS OF THE
CITY OF FORT COLLINS PROPOSED CHARTER AMENDMENT NO. 3,
REPEALING AND REENACTING ARTICLE X OF THE CITY CHARTER
RELATING TO INITIATIVE AND REFERENDUM

A. The City of Fort Collins Charter is the governing document that defines the City organization and the powers and functions of the City. The Charter was first created by a vote of the people of Fort Collins in 1954 and can only be amended by a vote of the people.

B. Over time, Charter provisions may become obsolete, contradictory, or warrant change to address current needs or trends.

C. Article IV, Section 8 of the Charter provides the Charter may be amended as provided by the laws of the State of Colorado. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 31-2-210 provides that charter amendments may be initiated by the adoption of an ordinance by the city council submitting a proposed amendment to a vote of the registered electors of the city.

D. The Council’s Election Code Committee met several times during 2024 to receive information and consider potential City Charter amendment proposals related to the election and petition processes that are governed by the Charter. Article X of the Charter governs the City’s initiative and referendum processes.

E. Recent experience with initiative and referendum processes have highlighted confusing and unnecessarily complicated language in Article X, and the improvement of these provisions would assist members of the public in exercising their rights of initiative and referendum and would reduce confusion and ambiguity for those involved in these processes.

F. Incorporated in the revised Article X, which does not reduce the time for circulation of petitions nor change the signature percentages required, are the following:

1. Clarified the usage of the term “shall” by replacing with “will,” “must” or other appropriate language.

2. Modernized the language to be more inclusive by removing he/she language.

3. Revised and reorganized to make the description of the process and requirements flow better so they are easier to follow. The full process for initiatives and the full process for referenda are set out chronologically,
rather than having a third section that combined some of the process requirements.

4. Updated method for setting the form of initiative and referendum petitions so that the Clerk is responsible for preparing a general statement of purpose, in consultation with the City Attorney, to fairly and accurately summarize the initiated measure or ordinance to be referred.

5. Removed the requirement that the entire ordinance be presented with each section of the petition when the referred ordinance exceeds two pages in length, instead the Clerk will prepare a summary of it.

6. Updated the timeframe allowed for the City Clerk to examine petitions because volumes (such as numbers of petition signatures to review) have increased since these current provisions were adopted. The new timeframes are more in line with the examination periods in state statutes.

7. Simplified the Petition Review Process (“Cure’ Provisions) to conform to the Municipal Election Code, which does not allow for correction of technical deficiencies after submission of a petition.

8. Updated the Protest process for consistency between the two types of petitions, allowing more time for setting of the protest hearing and tightening timeframes for completion of the hearing and decision.

9. Updated the time for conduct of an election on a successful petition so they work with new election process timing and requirements. For a successful initiative petition, the measure would be set for the next November election the City is able to coordinate with the County. For a successful referendum petition, the measure would be set for the earliest regular or already called special election for which election deadlines can be met, unless Council opts to call an earlier special election.

10. Added computation of time provisions to clarify how deadlines are interpreted and selling updated deadlines based on business days (in increments of five) for actions the City must complete and calendar days
(in increments of seven) for actions to be completed by others.

G. The Election Code Committee considered and supported similar revisions to Article VIII, regarding elections generally, and Article IX, regarding recall, which are also under consideration by the Council.

(H). The Council finds that these proposed revisions to Article X of the City Charter, regarding the Initiative and Referendum processes, update, simplify and improve these processes and are for the benefit of the people of Fort Collins, and the Council desires to present the repealed and reenacted Article X set forth below to the voters for approval at the November 5, 2024, special municipal election.

In light of the foregoing recitals which the Council hereby makes and adopts as determinations and findings, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows:

Section 1. That the repeal of Article X of the City Charter and the reenactment of Article X of the City Charter as set forth below, shall be submitted to the registered electors of the City as “Proposed Charter Amendment No. 3” at the special municipal election to be held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024:

ARTICLE X. INITIATIVE AND REFERENDUM

Part 1

Initiative

Section 1. The initiative.

(a) Power. The registered electors of the city have the power at their option to propose ordinances or resolutions to the Council, and, if the Council fails to adopt a measure so proposed, to adopt or reject such ordinance or resolution at the polls. The procedure for initiative must be as provided in this Article.

(b) Commencement of proceedings; notice. One (1) or more registered electors may commence initiative proceedings by filing with the City Clerk a written notice of intent to circulate an initiative petition. The notice commencing proceedings must contain the full text of the proposed ordinance or resolution and state whether a special election is requested.

Section 2. Petitions.

(a) Separate petitions required. A separate petition must be circulated and filed for each measure sought to be initiated.

(b) Form and content.

(1) Adoption of form. The Council will prescribe by ordinance, upon recommendation of the City Clerk, a general form of petition which will contain warnings and notices to signers as necessary.

(2) Petition content.

a. The petition must be addressed to Council.

b. An initiative petition must contain a general statement of purpose prepared by the City Clerk in consultation with the City Attorney to fairly and accurately summarize the proposed ordinance or resolution, without argument or prejudice, and indicating that the petition is to be circulated in support of the initiated ordinance or resolution and specifying whether a special election is requested.

c. The petition must designate by name and address three (3) registered electors who will represent the signers of the petition in all mailers affecting the petition.

d. The petition must contain a full and accurate copy of the text of the initiative.

e. Each section of the petition must be individually numbered and contain no less than thirty (30), and no more than one hundred (100) signature lines.

f. For each petition section, the circulator of the petition section must sign under oath before a notary public the affidavit of circulator attached at the end of the petition section. The affidavit must state the following:

(i) the circulator’s address of residence;

(ii) that the circulator is eighteen (18) years of age or older;

(iii) that they personally circulated the section;

(iv) that each signature was affixed in the circulator’s presence on the date stated with such signature;

(v) that to the best of the circulator’s knowledge and belief each signer was at the time of signing a registered elector of the city;

(vi) that to the best of the circulator’s knowledge and belief each signature is the genuine signature of the person whose name it purports to be;

(vii) that each signer had an opportunity before signing to read the full text of the petition; and

(viii) that the circulator has not paid or offered to pay any money or other thing of value to any signer for the purpose of inducing or causing the signer to affix his or her signature to the petition.

(3) Approval of form for circulation.

a. No petition may be circulated until the City Clerk has approved the form for circulation.

b. In considering whether to approve the form of a petition, the City Clerk will evaluate whether the petition form contains all matters required under this Article and only the mailers required by this Article.

c. The City Clerks approval under this Section does not constitute an approval of the content of the petition or its legality, but rather, starts the running of the time periods provided for circulation and filing of petitions.

(c) Circulation of petition.

(1) To be valid, the petition must be circulated and signed in sections with each section consisting of one (1) or more sheets securely fastened at the top, and containing all required elements as described in Section 2(b)(2) of this Article.

(2) Only persons eighteen (18) years of age or older may circulate the petition for signatures.

(3) The circulation of any petition by any medium other than personally by a circulator is prohibited. No person may receive any compensation whatever for signing an initiative petition.

(4) Only registered electors may sign the petitions authorized under this Article.

(5) Each signer must sign his or her own signature and each signature must be followed by the printed name of the signer, the street and number address of his or her residence, and the date of signing.

(6) No person may knowingly sign an initiative petition more than once.

(7) In the event that the signature of any person appears more than once on a petition authorized under this Article, the first signature verified will be counted and all other signatures of that person will be rejected.

(d) Number of signatures required.

(1) The petition must be signed by registered electors of the city equal in number to at least ten (10) percent of the total ballots cast in the last regular city election.

(2) If a special election is requested by the petitioners, the petition must be signed by registered electors equal in number to at least fifteen (15) percent of the total ballots cast in the last regular city election.

(e) Petition deadlines and submittal.

(1) To be valid, the initiative petition must be filed no more than sixty-three (63) days after the City Clerk’s approval of the form for circulation.

(2) To be valid, all petition sections must be filed with the City Clerk together at the same time and those sections submitted together will collectively constitute the petition.

(3) Any petition section the City Clerk reasonably determines has been disassembled, whether or not it has been reassembled, will be deemed invalid.

(4) Upon submittal of a petition, the Clerk must not remove the signature of an elector from the petition.

(5) An initiative petition must be filed with the City Clerk within the requisite time or it will be deemed null and void.

(f) Examination of petition; protest; presentation.

(1) Within fifteen (15) business days of the filing of a petition the City Clerk will ascertain by examination of the petition and the registration books whether the petition is signed by the requisite number of registered electors and contains the required particulars and affidavits.

(2) Any petition section the City Clerk reasonably determines has been disassembled, whether or not it has been reassembled, will be deemed invalid.

(3) Upon submittal of a petition, the Clerk must not remove the signature of an elector from the petition.

(4) The Clerk will issue publicly and provide to the petition representatives the Clerk’s initial determination of petition sufficiency. If the petition is insufficient, the City Clerk will so certify and forthwith notify all of the designated petition representatives in writing, specifying the particulars of insufficiency.

(5) Protests.

a. Registered electors desiring to protest a determination by the City Clerk that a petition is either sufficient or insufficient may file a written protest, under oath, in the office of the City Clerk within seven (7) days of the City Clerk’s initial determination as to petition sufficiency. The protest must set forth with particularity the grounds of protest and any signatures and related defects in form protested.

b. Upon the filing of a protest, the City Clerk will send a copy of the protest to the designated petition representatives, the City Council and the City Manager. The City Manager will appoint a hearing officer, who, in conjunction with the City Clerk, will set a time for hearing such protest, which must be no more than ten (10) business days after the filing of a protest.

c. At least five (5) business days prior to the hearing, the City Clerk will send a notice of the date, time and location for the hearing and a copy of the protest to all of the designated petition representatives, the person(s) who filed the protest, and the City Council.

d. All protest hearings will be before a hearing officer appointed by the City Manager. The hearing officer will have the power to issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of documents.

e. All records and hearings will be public, and all testimony must be under oath.

f. The hearing will be summary in nature and concluded no later than twenty (20) business days after the protest was filed.

g. The hearing officer must decide and certify the results of the hearing no later than ten (10) business days after the hearing is concluded, and no further protest regarding the petition may be filed.

h. The City Clerk will make any final determination regarding the sufficiency or insufficiency of a petition and must base such determination on the protest hearing results issued by the hearing officer.

(6) Certification and presentation to Council. When and if a petition is deemed sufficient, whether following the sufficiency determination by the City Clerk in the absence of a protest, or following protest proceedings, the City Clerk must so certify and then present the certified petition to the Council at the next regularly scheduled meeting or special meeting called for this purpose. The City Clerk’s certificate will be the final determination as to the sufficiency of the petition.

Section 3. Action by Council.

(a) Upon presentation of an initiative petition certified as sufficient by the City Clerk, the Council must within twenty-five (25) business days either (1) adopt the proposed ordinance or resolution without alteration, or (2) submit such proposed measure, in the form petitioned for, to the registered electors of the city as provided in this subsection.

(1) For a proposed measure that requires voter approval in advance under Article X, Section 20 of the Colorado Constitution, the Council must submit the measure to a vote of the registered electors. If the initiative petition proposing such a measure requests a special election, the proposed measure must be submitted
to a vote of the registered electors on the first possible date permitted by Article X, Section 20 of the Colorado Constitution. If a special election is not requested, the proposed measure must be submitted to a vote of the registered electors at the next regular city election or at the Council’s option, may be submitted to a vote
at an earlier special election that meets the constitutional requirements.

(2) For a proposed measure that does not require voter approval in advance under Article X, Section 20 of the Colorado Constitution, if not adopted by the Council under alternative (1) above, the Council must submit the measure to a vote of the registered electors at no later than the next regular or special city election scheduled for any other purpose for which election process requirements can be met. Alternatively, the Council may opt to call an earlier special election for the specific purpose of submitting the initiated measure to the voters.

(3) If the initiative petition proposing such measure requests a special election, the Council must submit the proposed measure to a vote of the registered electors at the next November election for which the City is able to coordinate an election with the Larimer County Clerk and Recorder, whether a special election or regular
City election.

(b) All ordinances submitted to the Council by initiative petition and adopted by Council without the vote of the electors are subject to the referendum in the same manner as other ordinances.

Section 4. Council use of initiative.

The Council may submit any question or proposed ordinance or resolution to the vote of the people at a regular or special election to be conducted in accordance with the provisions of Article VIII, Section 2 of the Charter.

Section 5. Repeal or amendment of initiated measure.

An initiated measure submitted to the registered electors of the city by the Council, with or without a petition therefore, and adopted by electoral vote cannot be repealed or amended except by a subsequent electoral vote. This provision does not apply to ordinances or resolutions adopted by the City Council and referred to the voters.

Part II

Referendum

Section 6. The referendum.

(a) Power. The registered electors of the city have the power at their option to approve or reject at the polls, any ordinance, or portion of ordinance, adopted by the Council, except ordinances making the annual property tax levy, making the annual appropriation, calling a special election, or ordering improvements initiated by petition and to be paid for by special assessments.

(b) Commencement of proceedings.

(1) One (1) or more registered electors may commence referendum proceedings by filing with the City Clerk no later than ten (10) days after final passage of the ordinance in question, a notice of protest against the going into effect of the ordinance. The notice must be brief and need not state any reasons, but must identify the ordinance or part thereof, or code section it proposes to have repealed.

(2) Within ten (10) days after the filing of the notice, the proponents must present to the City Clerk the final form for the referendum petition conforming to the requirements of the Article.

Section 7. Petitions.

(a) Separate petitions required. A separate petition will be circulated and filed for each measure sought to be initiated.

(b) Form and content.

(1) Adoption of form. The Council will prescribe by ordinance, upon recommendation of the City Clerk, a general form of petition which must contain warnings and notices to signers as necessary.

(2) Petition content.

a. The petition must be addressed to Council.

b. A referendum petition must contain a general statement of purpose prepared by the City Clerk in consultation with the City Attorney to fairly and accurately summarize the ordinance or part thereof sought to be referred, without argument or prejudice, and indicating that the petition is to be circulated in support of the referendum.

c. The petition must designate by name and address three (3) registered electors who will represent the signers of the petition in all matters affecting the petition.

d. The petition must contain a full and accurate copy of the of the ordinance sought to referred, without any exhibits that may be a part of said ordinance, clearly identifying the protested portions if only a partial repeal is sought. In the case of an ordinance exceeding two (2) pages in length, a fair and accurate summary of the ordinance, prepared by the City Clerk in consultation with the City Attorney will replace said ordinance.

e. Each section of the petition must be individually numbered and must contain no less than thirty (30), and no more than one hundred (100), signature lines.

f. For each petition section, the circulator of the petition section must sign under oath before a notary public the affidavit of circulator attached at the end of the petition section. The affidavit must state the following:

(i) the circulator’s address of residence;

(ii) that the circulator is eighteen (18) years of age or older;

(iii) that they personally circulated the section;

(iv) that each signature was affixed in the circulator’s presence on the date stated with such signature;

(v) that to the best of the circulator’s knowledge and belief each signer was at the time of signing a registered elector of the city;

(vi) that to the best of the circulator’s knowledge and belief each signature is the genuine signature of the person whose name it purports to be;

(vii) that each signer had an opportunity before signing to read the full text of the petition; and

(viii) that the circulator has not paid or offered to pay any money or other thing of value to any signer for the purpose of inducing or causing the signer to affix his or her signature to the petition.

(3) Approval of form for circulation.

a. A petition must not be circulated until the City Clerk has approved the form for circulation.

b. The City Clerk will first determine that the petition form contains all mailers required by this Article and only the matters required by this Article.

c. The City Clerk’s approval under this Section does not constitute an approval of the content of the petition or its legality, but rather, will start the running of the time periods provided for circulation and filing of a referendum petition.

Circulation of petition.

(1) The petition may be circulated and signed in sections with each section consisting of one (1) or more sheets securely fastened at the top, and containing all required elements as described in Section 2(b)(2) of this Article.

(2) Only persons eighteen (18) years of age or older may circulate the petition for signatures.

(3) The circulation of any petition by any medium other than personally by a circulator is prohibited. No person may receive any compensation whatever for signing a referendum petition.

(4) Only registered electors may sign the petitions authorized under this Article.

(5) Each signer must sign his or her own signature and each signature must be followed by the printed name of the signer, the street and number address of his or her residence, and the date of signing.

(6) No person may knowingly sign a referendum petition more than once.

(7) In the event that the signature of any person appears more than once on a petition authorized under this Article, the first signature verified will be counted and all other signatures of that person will be rejected.

(d) Number of signatures required. The petition must be signed by registered electors of the city equal in number to at least ten (10) percent of the total ballots cast in the last regular city election.

(e) Petition deadlines and submittal.

(1) The petition must be filed no more than twenty-one (21) days after the City Clerk’s approval of the form for circulation.

(2) All petition sections must be filed with the City Clerk together at the same time and will collectively constitute the petition.

(3) Any petition section the City Clerk reasonably determines has been disassembled, whether or not it has been reassembled, will be deemed invalid.

(4) Upon submittal of a petition, the Clerk must not remove the signature of an elector from the petition.

(5) A referendum petition must be filed with the City Clerk within the requisite time or it will be deemed null and void.

(f) Examination of petition; protest; presentation.

(1) Within fifteen (15) business days of the filing of a petition the City Clerk will ascertain by examination of the petition and the registration books whether the petition is signed by the requisite number of registered electors and contains the required particulars and affidavits.

(2) Any petition section the City Clerk reasonably determines has been disassembled, whether or not it has been reassembled, will be deemed invalid.

(3) Upon submittal of a petition, the Clerk must not remove the signature of an elector from the petition.

(4) The Clerk will issue publicly and provide to the petition representatives the Clerk’s initial determination of petition sufficiency. If the petition is insufficient, the City Clerk will so certify and forthwith notify all of the designated petition representatives in writing, specifying the particulars of insufficiency.

(5) Protests.

a. Registered electors desiring to protest a determination by the City Clerk that a petition is either sufficient or insufficient may file a written protest, under oath, in the office of the City Clerk within seven (7) days of the City Clerk’s initial determination as to sufficiency of the petition. The protest must set forth with particularity the grounds of protest and any signatures and related defects in form protested.

b. Upon the filing of a protest, the City Clerk will send a copy of the protest to the designated petition representatives, the City Council and the City Manager. The City Manager will appoint a hearing officer, who, in conjunction with the City Clerk, will set a time for hearing such protest, which must be no more than ten (10) business days after the filing of a protest.

c. At least five (5) business days prior to the hearing, the City Clerk will send a notice of the date, time and location for the hearing and a copy of the protest to all of the designated petition representatives, the person(s) who filed the protest, and the City Council.

d. All protest hearings will be before a hearing officer appointed by the City Manager. The hearing officer will have the power to issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of documents.

e. All records and hearings will be public, and all testimony must be under oath.

f. The hearing will be summary in nature and concluded no later than twenty(20) business days after the protest was filed.

g. The hearing officer must decide and certify the results of the hearing no later than ten (10) business days after the hearing is concluded, and no further protest regarding the petition may be filed.

h. The City Clerk will make any final determination regarding the sufficiency or insufficiency of a petition and must base such determination on the protest hearing results issued by the hearing officer.

(6) Certification and presentation to Council. When and if a petition is deemed sufficient, whether following the sufficiency determination by the City Clerk in the absence of a protest, or following protest proceedings, the City Clerk must so certify and then present the certified petition to the Council at the next regularly
scheduled meeting or special meeting called for this purpose. The City Clerk’s certificate will be the final determination as to the sufficiency of the petition.

Section 8. Action by Council.

(a) The City Clerk’s certification of a petition as sufficient for referendum automatically suspends the operation of the ordinance in question, or portion sought to be repealed, pending repeal by Council or final determination by the electors.

(b) Following receipt of the City Clerk’s certification of a petition as sufficient for referendum, the Council must either refer the ordinance or portion thereof that is the subject of the petition to the voters, as set forth below, or reconsider the ordinance at the next regular meeting of the Council, or at an earlier special meeting of the Council called for this purpose, and adopt an ordinance to repeal the ordinance in question, or part sought to be repealed, on first reading, with second reading at the next regular meeting.

(c) If the ordinance, or that part sought to be repealed, is not repealed, the Council must refer the same to a vote of the registered electors at no later than the next regular or special city election scheduled for any other purpose for which election process requirements can be met. Alternatively, the Council may opt to call an earlier special election for the specific purpose of submitting the referred measure to the voters.

Section 9. Council use of referendum.

The Council may refer any adopted ordinance or resolution, to the vote of the people at a regular or special election to be conducted in accordance with the provisions of Article VIII of the Charter.

Part Ill

In General

Section 10. Elections.

(a) Generally. Elections on initiative and referendum measures must be conducted in the same manner as provided generally for regular or special city elections in this Charter.

(b) Ballot text. Upon ordering an election on any initiative or referendum measure, the Council must, after public hearing, adopt by resolution a ballot title and submission clause for each measure. The ballot title must contain information identifying the measure as a city initiated or referred measure or a citizen initiated or referred measure. The submission clause must be brief, must not conflict with those selected for any petition previously filed for the same election, and must unambiguously state the principle of the provision sought
to be considered. The official ballot used when voting upon each proposed or referred measure must have printed on it the ballot title and submission clause and contain the words, “Yes/For” and “No/Against” in response to each measure.

(c) Publication; notice of election.

(1) Initiative. An initiated measure being considered for adoption by Council must be published as part of the appropriate Council meeting agenda in like manner as other proposed ordinances and resolutions. If the initiated measure is submitted to a vote of the people, the City Clerk must publish a notice of election in conformity with the laws of the State of Colorado relating to municipal elections, together with the ballot title, submission clause and full text of the proposed ordinance or resolution. The text of a successful initiative measure need not be published in full after the election.

(2) Referendum. If the referred measure is to be submitted to a vote of the people, the City Clerk must publish a notice of election in conformity with the laws of the State of Colorado relating to municipal elections, together with the ballot title, submission clause and full text of the referred ordinance, specifying the portion to be referred if only a portion of the ordinance has been referred. If the ordinance in question exceeds two (2) pages in length, the summary from the petition may be published in place of the full text. The City Clerk will make the full text of a referred ordinance, together with all exhibits, generally available to the public. The full text of an ordinance passed on referendum need not be published after the election.

(d) Election results. If a majority of the registered electors voting on the initiated measure vote in favor, the measure is adopted as an ordinance or resolution of the city upon certification of the election results. If a majority of the registered electors voting on a referred ordinance, vote in favor of the referred ordinance, or referred portion of the ordinance, such referred ordinance or portion thereof will go into effect without further
publication upon certification of the election results, or at such later date as may be set forth in the ordinance itself. If the provisions of two (2) or more proposed or referred measures adopted or approved at the same election conflict, the measure receiving the highest affirmative vote will become effective.

(e) Frequency of elections. Any number of proposed ordinances or resolutions or referred ordinances may be submitted at the same election.

Section 11. Computation of time.

(a) Except when business days are specified, all computations of time made under the provisions of this article will be based on calendar days.

(b) Except when computing business days, Saturdays, Sundays, City holidays and days City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances will be included, but, if the time for any act to be done or the last day of any period is a Saturday, Sunday, City holiday or day City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances, the period is extended to include the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or City holiday.

(c) In computing time for any act to be done before any regular or special election, the first day will be included, and the last or election day will be excluded.

(d) If the time for an act to be done under this article is referred to in business days, the time will be computed by excluding Saturdays, Sundays, City holidays, and any day City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances.

(e) If a provision requires doing an act in “not less than” or “no later than” or “at least” a certain number of days or “prior to” a certain number of days or a certain number of months “before” the date of an election, or any phrase that suggests a similar meaning, if that period would end on a Saturday, Sunday or City holiday, it will instead shift to end on the prior business day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or City holiday. If the period
ends on a day City Hall is closed for business for a full or partial day due to inclement weather or other emergency circumstances, the period will end on the next business day on which City Hall is open for business.

(f) Except when otherwise specified, an act must be completed by 5:00 p.m. Mountain time on the last day for that action.

Section 12. Further regulations.

The Council may, by ordinance, make such further rules and regulations as are consistent with this Charter and the Colorado Constitution in order to carry out the provisions of this Article.

Section 2. That the following ballot title and submission clause are hereby adopted for submitting Proposed Charter Amendment No. 3 to the voters at said election:

CITY-INITIATED
PROPOSED CHARTER AMENDMENT NO. 3

Shall Article X of the Charter of the City of Fort Collins, regarding the initiative process and referendum process, be repealed and reenacted in the form set forth in Ordinance No. 096, 2024, which makes edits for clarity and consistency and:

• Clarifies the usage of the term “shall” by replacing with “will,” “must” or other appropriate language;
• modernizes the language to be more inclusive by removing he/she language;
• revises and reorganizes Article X to be simpler and easier to follow;
• makes the City Clerk responsible for preparing a general statement for inclusion in a petition and limits requirement to include entire ordinance in each petition section;
• increases time for City Clerk petition review and scheduling protests;
• simplifies review process and removes technical “cure” provision to conform to Municipal Election Code;
• tightens timeframe for protest hearing and decision;
• requires Council to set initiative measures for vote at next timely November election;
• requires Council to set referendum measure for vote no later than next regular or special municipal election; and
• adds rules for computation of time and consistent deadline timeframes?

______Yes/For
______No/Against

Introduced, considered favorably on first reading on July 2, 2024, and approved on second reading for final passage on July 16, 2024.