COLORADO SPRINGS – The heat was on Wednesday night as News 5’s Alasyn Zimmerman teamed up with the Citizens Project and League of Women Voters to host the 2018 Issues Forum, an event to help voters make the most informed decisions come November.
Topics included transportation funding, oil and gas setbacks, and the question to change school funding.
Some people in the audience said they got a lot of questions answered, but for others concerns on certain ballot issues still weren’t addressed.
Deborah Stout-Meininger said, “I asked the question of how would the toll roads be addressed for transparency’s sake for those new taxes.”
Questions about ballot measure 110 concerning transportation and inquiries about Proposition 112 regarding setbacks for the oil and gas industry flooded the auditorium at Sierra High School.
Kristine Mcelhaney said, “From what I understand there’s enough funding already in the coffers that they don’t need to raise our taxes again…I want to find out how that’s going to affect us, my husband and I, as small business owners.”
Stout-Meinginger said, “To come up with all these numbers as if it was our only industry and that it would be totally wiped out, we needed more…more real numbers on that.”
Regarding Proposition 112 Vickie Tonkins said, “I’m really concerned about our state and how that would affect our state…I wanted to hear what people had to say. I wanted to hear what they had to say about the different issues, the ballot issues, the amendments, all of that.”
Stout-Meinginger reacted to the Proposition 112 discussion differently. She said, “Oil and gas industry is not the only industry in Colorado. It’s not even the major industry.”
Even among all the differing opinions, voters like Mcelhaney are keeping the bigger picture in sight by simply attending forums like this.
“We have to have a voice and we have to set the example for those younger people.”
For specific details on these ballot issues and more CLICK HERE.
