Colorado voters in November will be asked to raise the state’s sales tax to expand services for the developmentally disabled.
Secretary of State Mike Coffman’s office said Monday that it had certified the proposed tax-hike initiative, which it designated Amendment 51, for the Nov. 4 ballot.
Supporters needed the signatures of 76,047 registered voters to get the measure on the November ballot. Coffman’s office said that based on a sample of 6,681 signatures out of 133,606 submitted, organizers had more than enough valid signatures.
“It is an exciting day for all of us who have long worked to secure vital services for children and adults who, through no fault of their own, face tremendous burdens every day just getting by,” Marijo Rymer, executive director of The Arc of Colorado, said in a statement.
Rymer also heads the Coalition to End the Wait List, the group supporting the measure.
If approved by voters, the constitutional amendment would phase in a sales-tax increase of two-tenths of a cent over two years to supplement programs for the developmentally disabled, which includes those with autism, Down syndrome and cerebral palsy.
Current state sales tax is 2.9 percent. When the measure is fully phased in by 2010, the higher 3.1 percent tax would raise an estimated $186 million a year. That money would go to end the waiting list for those with developmental disabilities to receive state services, which could include around-the-clock supervision, living accommodations or job training. There are about 9,700 adults and children with developmental disabilities on the state’s waiting list for services now, a number that is expected to grow to 12,000 by 2012 .
Advocates for the developmentally disabled said the state now serves more than 11,000 at a cost of about $183 million a year.
Tim Hoover: 303-954-1626 or thoover@denverpost.com
