NEWS BRIEF
CBS Colorado reports that this year’s 14 Colorado ballot questions average 85 words, while federal plain-language guidance recommends average sentences of 15 to 20 words. Using the Flesch-Kincaid readability formula, the outlet found that half of the measures require 13 years of education or more to understand easily, and the other half require at least 10 years.
Amendment 85 would require state and local ballot questions to be written at no higher than an eighth-grade reading level, though CBS Colorado found the measure itself scored at an 11th-grade level. Opponents cited concerns about omitting legally required information, while proponents said tax impacts and other necessary details could still be written clearly.
What to know
CBS Colorado’s readability analysis does not determine how voters will decide the measures. It indicates that the ballot titles, which are required to be written as yes-or-no questions, may demand reading skills above the eighth-grade benchmark used in plain-language guidance.
Reporting: Shaun Boyd · CBS News · 10-07-2026
