Click the link to read the article on the Steamboat Pilot & Today website (Ryan Spencer). Here’s an excerpt:
November 9, 2026
Proposition 137 has passed, dedicating sales tax from outdoor goods to conservation and outdoors programs. The ballot measure passed by a slight margin, with about 52% of Coloradans voting in favor of the measure, according to unofficial results from the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office as of Saturday evening. With about 98% of the vote counted, there were 1,347,245 “yes” votes to 1,249,749 “no” votes. The Associated Press called the race on Friday…
“It was close,” [Scott] Fitzwilliams added, “but that is the most critical thing that has passed in decades in the state. It’s going to provide a funding stream that is consistent — it won’t always be the same based on where the (state) budget is — that can be invested in fuels reduction, wildfire management, water protection, which is just so critical.”
Proposition 137 instructs the state government to direct a portion of taxpayer refunds collected from this sales tax to create a pool of about $175 million for conservation, wildfire risk mitigation projects — such as slash pile burning and selective thinning — and outdoor recreation programs. The ballot measure is expected to reduce Colorado Taxpayer Bill of Rights, or TABOR, refunds by between $26 and $83 for single filers, or double that for joint filers, in some years…The ballot measure would dedicate 47.5% of its funding to the Great Outdoors Colorado program, known as GOCO, which currently funds parks, trails and wildlife projects through lottery revenues; another 47.5% toward wildfire risk mitigation, forest management and watershed restoration projects; and the remaining 5% to outdoor recreation, economic development and equity programs. Prop 137 was supported by a coalition known as “Protect Colorado’s Land and Water, Prevent Wildfires,” and has received support from The Nature Conservancy, Denver Water’s board of water commissioners, local groups such as the Routt County Wildfire Mitigation Council, Eagle Valley Land Trust and SOS Outreach, as well as major political players in Colorado, including former Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, former U.S. Sen. Mark Udall and former Gov. Bill Ritter.