About 800,000 Colorado voters outside rail district got Front Range train tax question by mistake

County clerks in Adams, Arapahoe, Douglas and Weld counties sent Ballot Issue 7A to about 800,000 voters who live outside the Front Range Passenger Rail District, the rail district said in a letter that a lawyer sent to county clerks Wednesday.

The question asks voters inside the district to approve a 0.333% sales tax increase to pay for more frequent passenger rail service along the Front Range. The mistake sent the measure to voters who are not eligible to decide it, days before ballot processing is set to begin.

The Colorado Department of State and the Colorado County Clerks Association said the rail district did not sufficiently alert county clerks to changes made to the district’s boundaries by state lawmakers earlier this year.

Lawyers for the district warned clerks of the problem in the Wednesday letter, the Front Range Passenger Rail District said. The state and county clerks association said the district should have explained the boundary changes to clerks after lawmakers trimmed parts of the district this spring.

The boundary changes left residents in only certain portions of some counties eligible to vote on the tax increase. The Colorado Department of State and county clerks said only eligible voters will have their votes in the contest counted.

The Colorado Department of State said it is working with the Colorado County Clerks Association on guidance for counties on the proper administration of the ballot issue. Ballot processing may begin Oct. 19, the department and clerks association said.

Arapahoe County Clerk and Recorder Joan Lopez said about 262,000 voters in her county received the ballot question who should not have. Lopez said voters do not need to take any steps other than voting their ballots as they normally would.

Clerk offices in Adams, Douglas and Weld counties did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Sal Pace, general manager of the Front Range Passenger Rail District, said the organization has requested guidance from the Secretary of State’s office about how to correct the issue.

Pace said the district should have explained the change to every county clerk when the legislature updated the district’s boundaries this spring. He said that was not legally required but would have helped avoid the confusion.

The Colorado Department of State and county clerks did not say whether the mistake will affect the timing of final election results on Nov. 3 or how votes that should not count will be separated from the results.

Ballot Issue 7A asks 2.4 million voters in about 30 communities from 13 counties served by the proposed rail line to approve the new sales tax increase. The measure would raise about 33 cents on every $100 in taxable purchases.

The tax would pay for expanded service aboard the Colorado Connector, also known as CoCo. The proposed route includes a stop as far south as Pueblo.

Limited passenger train service between Denver and Fort Collins is already scheduled to begin in 2029 with three daily round trips. The ballot question will determine whether the Front Range district can add more frequent service beyond that plan.

A campaign supporting Proposition 7A launched at Union Station in Denver on Sept. 10, backing the tax increase for the Colorado Connector.