Colorado Politics’ Marianne Goodland reports that voters approved Propositions LL and MM, pitched as fixes to the state’s free school meals program. Early unofficial returns showed LL passing with about 63 percent and MM with about 56 percent. Both measures let the state keep more revenue and hike tax bills for higher earners to prop up a program that has been underwater since launch.
The piece traces the lineage back to 2022’s Proposition FF, which limited deductions for households earning $300,000 or more to fund universal school meals. Actual costs quickly outran forecasts, producing a $24 million shortfall in the first full year and larger gaps ahead. Lawmakers backfilled with the general fund, and LL–MM now expand the tap and even route excess dollars to SNAP in future years while further cutting deductions for upper-income filers.
The Bullet Point Brief
• Unofficial results: LL at roughly 63 percent yes; MM around 56 percent. Voters bit on the “keep kids fed” pitch.
• Program math missed the exit. Year one ran about $24 million short, with more red ink forecast and backfills from the general fund.
• LL lets the state retain all revenue from the FF deduction cap and pegs cost growth at $33 million in 2025–26 and $67 million in 2026–27. Affects about 6 percent of filers.
• MM tightens deductions again to $1,000 single and $2,000 joint, and can steer leftover cash to SNAP. Blue Book pegs added taxes at about $297 single, $404 joint.
• 2022’s FF promised about $100.7 million. Reality check: costs rose, promises like local food purchases and pay boosts got squeezed.
My Bottom Line
In Colorado, “it’s for the children” plus “tax the rich” is the cheat code. LL and MM are not for kids. They are for a legislature that cannot estimate program costs to save its life and now needs your wallet to cover the overrun. The sales pitch is crayons and cafeteria trays. The bill is real money and shrinking deductions.
Here is the rub. When you target a small slice of taxpayers, it polls well. It also pushes investment and families to the exits. The rich can afford to move. Rural districts and working families cannot. And for all the moral preening, no one in power ever asks the obvious question: why does every “temporary fix” end with a permanent tax? Maybe because the program builders missed the math, and the politics demand a bailout every time.
I want kids fed. I also want honest budgets, clear limits, and a state that does not chase away its job creators to keep a promise that was mispriced from day one. If you voted yes because you were told it was for the children, I get it. But do not be shocked when the next shortfall arrives and the next “for the children” hike lands on your doorstep.
Source: Colorado Politics
