A4PEP supported these bills:

• HB21-1294, Educational Accountability Systems Audit (the bill passed).

A4PEP supported auditing the state’s educational accountability and accreditation system because it was adopted over 10 years ago and had not been evaluated.  Also, the test-based system has narrowed the curriculum, negatively impacted schools and classroom instruction, failed to close the “achievement gap,” and is based on tests with a cultural bias.

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• HB212-1295, Rebuttable Presumption in Charter School Appeals (the bill was defeated in the House Education Committee).

A4PEP supported the bill because it would have allowed school districts to include the following considerations when deciding whether to approve charter applications:  the likelihood of conflict with the school board’s existing long-term plans; its impact on student enrollment among existing schools in the district; and its effect on the finances of the district.

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A4PEP opposed these state ballot issues:

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Proposition 119, Learning Enrichment and Academic Progress (L.E.A.P.) Program (the measure was defeated by 54% of the voters).  

A4PEP opposed Prop. 119 because it was a corporate grab for education tax dollars; it proposed to do good things for children by funding after-school programming but would have created an independent, unregulated organization within the Colorado Department of Education with no oversight, public input, or recourse for mismanagement or fraud.  

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A4PEP made presentations, held conversations, and wrote op-eds about the measure with groups including the Longmont Chamber of Commerce, Arvada Chamber of Commerce, La Voz, KOA radio, KGNU radio, and SEIU (Service Employees International Union).

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​Proposition 120, Property Tax Assessment Rate Reduction and Voter-Approved Revenue Change (the measure was defeated by 57% of the voters).

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A4PEP opposed Prop. 120 because it would have reduced the residential property tax assessment rate, resulting in cuts to many state programs and services and necessitated an increase in state expenditures of at least $257 million per year to school districts to compensate for the lost property tax revenue.

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​Amendment 78, Requirements for Spending Custodial Money (the measure was defeated by 57% of the voters).

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A4PEP opposed this amendment to the state Constitution because it would have transferred the power to appropriate “custodial funds” (money received by the state that is designated for a particular purpose and comes from a source other than state taxes) from the executive branch (Governor, State Treasurer, and heads of departments and agencies) to the State Legislature. Because the Legislature is in session only 120 days of the year, this would have led to a disruption of services or federal payments, or the part-time Legislature being called back into special sessions for $25,000/day.