John TytusColorado 2026 ballot

Proposition 137: Sporting goods sales tax to conservation and wildfire work

Statute, citizen initiative. Needs a majority to pass.

What it does

The state already collects sales tax on sporting goods: bikes, golf and fishing gear, camping equipment, boats, RVs, rentals of sports equipment. This measure takes that money, about $175 million a year, out of the general budget and dedicates it to conservation, wildfire mitigation, forest and watershed restoration, and outdoor recreation programs. The tax rate and prices don't change. The split is 47.5% to Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO), 47.5% to wildfire and watershed work, and 5% to outdoor recreation and access programs. The money is exempted from the TABOR limit, so in years the state is over the limit it comes out of your TABOR refund; in years under the limit it comes out of the rest of the budget.

Blue Book arguments

For: It funds land protection, wildfire mitigation, and watersheds through trusted programs like GOCO without raising taxes, at a time when the state budget is squeezed and federal support is unreliable; people who buy outdoor gear help pay for the lands they use.

Against: It's a tax increase in disguise, because every dollar kept is a dollar less in TABOR refunds or in health care and education; it sends more money to organizations and agencies with specific interests, many of which already have dedicated funding, and limits the legislature's budget choices.

What it costs

$175 million moved out of the general fund in 2027-28, $180 million the year after, growing after that. Expected to eliminate the six-tier sales tax refund in 2027-28: $26 to $83 per single filer, $52 to $166 per joint filer, depending on income. If Proposition NN also passes, this reduces what the state keeps under NN.

Who is paying

Money as of the Oct 1, 2026 filing.

For: $3.35 million plus $205,000 in-kind

Committee Raised Spent
Protect Colorado’s Land and Water, Prevent Wildfires $3,552,142 $3,107,857

About 76% in-state. Supporters without a committee: Denver Water, Tri-State Generation and Transmission, Ken Salazar, Mark Udall, Bill Ritter, Attorney General Phil Weiser.

Against: $4,679

Committee Raised Spent
Protect Colorado's Land, Communities, and Tax Dollars $4,679 $2,983

Largest donor: Mike Rawluk of Golden, $3,462 in three gifts. The committee's registered agent, Josh Schlossberg of Nederland, gave $750. Ten other individuals gave the remaining $467, none more than $97. Opposing without a committee: Colorado Democratic Party, League of Women Voters of Colorado, Western Watersheds Project, Colorado Wild, Clean Energy Action.

Where the parties stand

Democrats: the Colorado Democratic Party opposes Proposition 137, listed among the measures it opposes in a party press release dated Sept 8, 2026.

Republicans: no position from the Colorado Republican Party found as of Sept 30, 2026. The Weld County Republican Party, a county party, recommends a no vote (its Resolution WCRCC-2026-09, adopted Sept 15, 2026).

No minor-party position found as of Sept 30, 2026.

What isn't known

Who funds Fund for a Better Future. Whether Holdfast Trust is the Patagonia-linked fund.

The money ratio is roughly 760 to 1 (cash only). Opponents raise three objections in Colorado Sun coverage: that smaller TABOR refunds make it a tax increase, that it removes legislative control over the money, and that the wildfire money would increase logging. Supporters say the work is targeted thinning of trees, not industrial logging.

Sources