Bob Beauprez and Bill Ritter have crisscrossed the state and participated in more than two dozen debates over the past few months. Still, it can be difficult to cut through the campaign rhetoric and determine exactly where they stand on the issues. Here is how they differ on some of the key topics that are facing Colorado:
Transportation
Beauprez and Ritter agree that the state has problems funding highway construction and maintenance, but they differ on how to fix it.
Ritter plans a blue-ribbon commission to study funding options.
Beauprez would substitute an increase in the state sales tax for the 22-cents-a-gallon gasoline tax to raise an equivalent amount of money.
Abortion
If Roe vs. Wade was overturned, Beauprez says he would sign into law an abortion ban that made an exception only if the life of the mother was in danger. Ritter opposes abortion but says he would support a ban that exempts rape and incest victims, mothers whose lives are in danger, and fetal anomalies.
Gay partnerships
Beauprez supports Amendment 43, a proposed constitutional amendment on this year’s ballot, that declares marriage as the union of one man and one woman. He opposes Referendum I, a ballot measure that gives gay couples some of the same legal rights as a married couple.
Ritter opposes Amendment 43 and supports Referendum I.
State budget
Beauprez wants to cut off the flow of Referendum C money at $3.7 billion. He has proposed tax credits for corporate contributions to school programs, but he has not calculated the cost or benefit to the state.
Ritter has called for studies that would deal with the long-term financial needs of the state. He would let the state keep all of the extra money provided by Referendum C.
Education
Beauprez supports Amendment 39, which, if passed by voters, would require all school districts to spend 65 percent of their operating budget on classroom instruction rather than other costs, such as administrative salaries. Ritter opposes Amendment 39. He said that while he “absolutely believes we should invest as much money in school as possible,” Amendment 39 doesn’t take into account all the needs of a district.
Water
Neither Ritter nor Beauprez is opposed to building water-storage projects in Colorado. Both also say that cities should improve local water-conservation efforts. Unlike Beauprez, Ritter has said that global warming should be considered when setting future water policy.
On the key issue of water supplies, Beauprez supported 2003’s failed Referendum A, which would have provided for the construction of reservoirs and diversion of water from one river basin to another. Ritter said he voted against the measure.
Environment
If elected, Ritter says he will champion renewable energy sources in Colorado such as wind, bio-fuels and solar power. He will also recognize global warming when crafting natural resource policy. Beauprez is promoting an initiative that would set aside tax revenue and money from energy companies for a fund to be used for “habitat enhancement and off-site mitigation in energy-impacted areas.” He also favors eliminating the Denver area’s tailpipe-emission testing program.
Health care
Beauprez opposes health care mandates for employers, instead favoring health savings accounts, which are akin to 401(k) investment plans that allow workers to save for medical expenses. Ritter supports health-savings accounts, but he says they do not go far enough, adding that he is open to discussing health care mandates on employers and insurance companies. Beauprez said he would veto a likely proposal that would have Colorado join other states in bulk-purchasing drugs at a discount. Ritter is for the program.
Immigration
Beauprez says he would expand on recent state-immigration legislation by implementing tougher employer-verification laws and fostering an agreement with the federal government for apprehension and transportation of illegal immigrants. He supports forcing the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants out of the U.S. for reapplication for entry.
Ritter says immigration is a federal issue and supports securing borders and creating a guest-worker program for illegal immigrants already in the country. He said he doesn’t plan on pushing any state laws dealing with immigration beyond what the state has already passed.
Minimum wage
Beauprez voted for a federal hike in the minimum wage, which failed in Congress. He opposes a Colorado initiative that would raise the minimum from $5.15 per hour to $6.85 an hour because it would be embedded in the state constitution and would raise wages every year regardless of economic conditions. Ritter also expresses concern about including the minimum wage in the state constitution but supports the increase because the federal minimum of $5.15 has not increased since 1997.
