The Denver Post: Would you elect a politician who could only read at a middle school level? If voters expect their representatives to demonstrate at least high school level literacy, shouldn’t they expect the same of themselves? Yet, this November, Colorado voters will consider amending the Colorado constitution to require ballot questions be written “at no more than an eighth-grade reading level.”

Initiative 234 may seem simple but the intent of this measure isn’t so plain. Colorado law already requires ballot measures be written in understandable language accessible to the “widest possible audience.” Could this ballot initiative be about power rather than accessibility?

This isn’t the first time since the state adopted its initiative process in 1910 that voters have been asked to revise how initiatives and referenda appear on the ballot or in the state voter guide known as the Blue Book. For example, in 1992, Coloradans voted to require the state to mail voters information about each ballot measure including arguments for and against the proposal. This provision was part of Amendment 1, the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR), which is better known for its impact on taxes and revenue.

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