COLORADO, USA — Colorado voters approved Amendment J, a ballot measure about removing a same-sex marriage ban from the state constitution, the AP projects.
Under Colorado law, only a simple majority of voters is needed to repeal a provision of the state constitution.
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What does Amendment J do?
According to the Amendment J section in the Colorado Blue Book:
"In 2006, Colorado voters approved an amendment to Colorado’s constitution stating that only the union of one man and one woman is a valid or recognized marriage in Colorado. Amendment J repeals this language, which has been declared unconstitutional by state and federal courts."
A YES vote on Amendment J means the language in the Colorado Constitution that defines a valid marriage as a union between one man and one woman will be gone.
A NO on Amendment J would have meant the current language in the state constitution that defines a valid marriage as a union between one man and one woman would still be present.
In 2014 and 2015, the Colorado Supreme Court and U.S. Supreme Court both ruled that same-sex couples have a right to marry and bans on same-sex marriage are unconstitutional. This makes same-sex marriage in Colorado currently legal.
However, if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns its previous rulings, the legality of same-sex marriage would be left to individual states to decide.
In 2022, the U.S. Congress repealed the previous ban on same-sex marriage from federal law. All 50 states are now required to recognize same-sex marriages lawfully entered in any state.
Amendment J fiscal impact
In the Colorado Blue Book, it states Amendment J would not have a fiscal impact on state or local governments. The amendment just conforms the state constitution to the current practice and rulings by the Colorado Supreme Court and U.S. Supreme Court.
