Vote 2002
Holiday; health care; entrentreched DAs
Voters face five state referenda
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by Staff (Editorial@boulderweekly.com)

Developmental disability tax
YES NO

Referendum 1A asks voters for a permanent property tax increase of 1.5 mills to help provide funding for developmental disabilities programs and to offset state budget cuts. Proceeds from 1 mill of the tax would go to Image developmental disabilities center, while the rest would offset state cuts in funding for Boulder County Health Department programs. The tax would raise about $6.9 million annually.

The services this tax would provide are important, and would help about 380 county residents waiting for support. However, the county already consists of hundreds of elderly citizens who are house-poor or in the process of leaving their homes due to high property taxes. Raising property taxes, at a time when the economy is sluggish and unemployment is rising, threatens to leave more people in need of public assistance.

Furthermore, the services this tax would pay for could be provided better and more efficiently by private charity. Vote NO on 1A. Then make a generous conurbation of money or time to the county's developmentally disabled.

Remove DA term limits
YES NO

Referendum A would eliminate district attorney term limits. The term limits ensure Coloradans that they won't fall prey to entrenched district attorneys who serve their entire legal careers in public office. District attorneys have too much power and influence, and too much opportunity to succumb to corruption, to stay in office for prolonged careers. In Colorado, a death penalty state, the local DA holds the lives and liberties of the public in his or her hands. Term limits guarantee us that no district attorney will do long-term damage. Vote NO on referendum "A," because turnover is a good thing for fair and honest law enforcement.

Public/private health care
YES NO

Referendum B, referred to the voters by the Colorado General Assembly, would allow city and county governments to co-own health-care facilities with private enterprises.

The advantage to this would be to allow small, rural communities to establish hospitals in areas where demand volume would not economically justify their presence.

Boulder Weekly is distrustful of public/private partnerships because they eliminate competition in the affected sector, such as hospitals and health clinics.

Cities and counties are already involved in owning and managing health-care facilities throughout the state, so the need for this constitutional change is not apparent.

Boulder Weekly recommends a "No" vote on Referendum B.

Coroner qualifications
YES NO

Referendum C would allow the state legislature to establish qualifications and training requirements for county coroners.

The advantage of this would be to standardize coroner qualifications in all 65 Colorado counties.

Boulder Weekly continues to trust counties to establish their own qualifications and training standards for their coroners. In many counties, standards that were too stringent would eliminate every county resident, requiring out-of-county recruitment.

The coroner works very closely with the county sheriff in investigating rural murders in Colorado. Just as the sheriff is elected according to local preference, the county coroner should also be elected according to local preference.

Cesar Chavez Day
YES NO

Referendum E would designate March 31 Cesar Chavez Day, increasing the number state holidays from 10 to 11. Cesar Estrada Chavez was an American civil rights and labor leader. He was born near Yuma, Ariz., on March 31, 1927, and died in 1993. After 8th grade, he left school and worked full time as a migrant farm worker to help support his family. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. During the 1950s, he was an organizer in the Community Service Organization, a civil rights group. Later, he founded the organization now known as the United Farm Workers of America. Through peaceful strikes and boycotts, his efforts resulted in agricultural labor reforms, such as safe and sanitary working conditions, higher wages and medical coverage. After his death, Chavez was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which is the highest civilian honor bestowed by the federal government. Chavez should be honored in Colorado with a state holiday and not just an optional holiday because of his impact on the lives of people who work and live in Colorado. He was a nationally respected voice for social and economic justice for farm workers. While he is a role model for the state's Hispanics, his nonviolent approach to social change makes him a role model for all Coloradans.

Respond: letters@boulderweekly.com