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Colorado State Seat Temporary Location, Amendment Q (2010)

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The Colorado State Seat Temporary Location, Amendment Q was on the November 2, 2010 statewide ballot in Colorado as a legislatively-referred constitutional amendment where it was approved.

The proposal called for establishing a process for moving the state seat to a temporary location during a declared disaster emergency.[1][2]

Election results

See also: 2010 ballot measure election results
Amendment Q (State Seat)
Result Votes Percentage
Approveda Yes 944,446 57.52%
No 697,373 42.48%
Total votes 1,641,819 100.00%
Voter turnout  %


Source: Colorado Secretary of State - official 2010 general election results

Text of measure

Title

The ballot title read as follows:[1]

Shall there be an amendment to Section 3 of Article VIII of the Constitution of the State of Colorado, concerning a process for temporarily moving the seat of Colorado, concerning a process for temporarily moving the seat of government in a disaster emergency that substantially affects the ability of the state government to operate in the city and county of Denver, and, in connection therewith, requiring the General Assembly to convene in a temporary meeting location designated by the governor and authorizing the General Assembly to determine by law a temporary location for the seat of government of the state?

Constitutional changes

See also: Colorado Amendment Q (2010), constitutional text changes

Amendment Q amended Article VIII, section 3 of the Colorado Constitution.[1] The proposed changes can be read here.

Media editorial positions

Main article: Endorsements of Colorado ballot measures, 2010

Support

  • TimesCall.com supported Amendment Q. In an editorial, the board said, "There’s no cost to this measure, and it would clarify how the governor, Legislature and Supreme Court should act if such a decision became necessary. Having the procedure in law for all to see is worthwhile. Vote for."[3]
  • The Coloradoan supported the proposed measure. "In addition to the citizen-initiated measures, Colorado voters will also decide three constitutional amendments referred by the Legislature. All are noncontroversial and needed cleanups to the state Constitution...Amendment Q establishes a process for moving the seat of state government out of Denver, if necessary, during an emergency...We recommend a "yes" vote on Amendments P, Q and R," said the editorial board.[4]
  • The Durango Herald supported Amendment Q. "It is hard to imagine anyone seriously objecting to the Legislature setting up shop in Grand Junction or Lamar if a tactical nuke went off on East Colfax, but there could be constitutional ramifications. In any case, allowing such a move is harmless," said the editorial board.[5]
  • The Denver Post said, "This measure would set up an orderly process for what is admittedly an unlikely event. We think voters should approve it."[6]
  • ColoradoBallot.net, a local blog, said, "This is placed on the ballot by a bipartisan majority of the state legislature. If terrorists set off a nuclear device in Denver, this will let the state respond quicker."[7]

Opposition

  • The Steamboat Today was opposed to all constitutional amendments on the Colorado 2010 ballot. "Some of this fall’s ballot measures are more innocent, such as Amendment P and its attempt to transfer oversight of licenses bingo and raffle games to the Department of Revenue, and Amendment Q, which would establish a process for temporarily moving the seat of state government from Denver in the event of a disaster. But we hardly see the need for them. Why spend $116,000 to transfer gaming oversight to a different department when the current system seems to have worked just fine?" said the editorial board.[8]

Path to the ballot

See also: How the Colorado Constitution is amended

Two-thirds of each chamber of the Colorado General Assembly were required to vote affirmatively in order to qualify the proposed amendment for the 2010 ballot.

The measure was signed by the Speaker of the House on May 27 and by the President of the Senate on June 1. Approval by both houses qualified the measure for the 2010 ballot.[9]

See also

 		Suggest a link

External links

Additional reading

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Colorado General Assembly,"House Concurrent Resolution 10-1004 full text," retrieved June 22, 2010
  2. ↑ State Bill Colorado,"Lawmakers Seek Public’s OK to Change Venues In Pinch," October 4, 2010
  3. ↑ TimesCall.com,"Seven of nine ballot issues too costly for state," October 6, 2010
  4. ↑ Coloradoan,"Voters, reject citizen-initiated amendments," October 27, 2010
  5. ↑ The Durango Herald,"Referendums," October 22, 2010
  6. ↑ The Denver Post,"Colorado voters should OK Amendments P, Q and R," October 22, 2010
  7. ↑ ColoradoBallot.net,"Q: Temporary Location for the State Seat of Government," retrieved October 27, 2010
  8. ↑ Steamboat Today,"Our View: Vote 'no' on state amendments," October 20, 2010
  9. ↑ Colorado General Assembly,"HCR 1004 history of the bill," retrieved June 22, 2010
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