C.O. Votes to Buy Us Lunch

By Alex Ostrovskiy 

DENVER - Tuesday, November 4th, was Election Day, and even though it was an off-year, voters around the country elected positions ranging from Governor to School Board Commissioner, as well as voted on various propositions put forward by state legislatures. 

Two key proposals were put on the Colorado ballot this year to effectively increase tax on the wealthy (defined as households with incomes of over $300,000 a year). As per the state Constitution, voters are required to approve any measure which increases taxes in the state.  

Proposition LL allows the state to keep money which it taxed from the wealthy for this program, even though it raised more than expected. Proposition MM, on the other hand, raises a new tax on the wealthy. Both propositions, however, fund the same two programs: school lunches and SNAP. 

School lunches is the primary program affected, which includes not just the cost of the meals, handed out without charge to public school students, but also salaries for school lunch staff, and equipment funding. Staff will get a raise following the passage of these propositions, and an effort will be made to source much of the food locally. 

SNAP -- the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program -- will be propped up by the state with the remaining money raised. Due to the government shutdown, as well as cuts in the next budget, SNAP (which provides food to millions of Americans), is likely to receive a massive hit in the immediate future, which is why the state chose to prop it up with the money raised. 

Both propositions passed by wide margins on November 4th. 

Credit to the Colorado Sun

Image credit: Retro 102.5