City of Boulder Ballot Question 2L — Bargaining Rights Union Firefighters in City Charter (Boulder County)

What it does

Shall the City amend its charter by the addition of a new Sec. 73, "Collective Bargaining for Firefighters," as described in Ordinance 8761 which provides a charter guaranteed right for full-time fire department employees to bargain collectively over matters related to safety, wages, benefits, and all other terms and conditions employment, except those certain terms that are reserved to rights of management as defined in the proposed charter amendment, with impasse to be resolved through non-binding factfinding followed, if necessary, by a vote of the qualified electors of the City?

A YES vote means

Boulder's charter would give full-time fire department employees the right to bargain collectively over safety, wages, benefits and other job terms, except management rights, with impasses resolved by non-binding factfinding and, if needed, a vote of city voters.

A NO vote means

Boulder's charter would not add a collective bargaining right for firefighters.

Needed to pass

A simple majority: more than half of the YES and NO votes on this measure must be YES. Leaving it blank doesn't count either way.

Left–right lean

Unclear: our AI read of the official summary isn't confident enough (we require 70%) to place this on the left–right spectrum, so we don't. Read the summary and decide for yourself.

The YES and NO lines are SpectrumVote's plain-language reading of the official text above; the official text is what you vote on.

Official text: source

Background

Ballot Question 2L would add a new Section 73 to the Boulder Home Rule Charter, as described in Ordinance 8761, guaranteeing full-time fire department employees the right to bargain collectively, according to the City of Boulder.

The city says these rights currently exist in a contract, and the right to take disagreements to impasse is currently in a city ordinance; the measure would place them in the charter.

Put on the ballot by Boulder City Council (Ordinance 8761; date and vote not stated on the city's ballot measures page).

From official source.

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Quick answers

What does a YES vote on City of Boulder Ballot Question 2L mean?

Boulder's charter would give full-time fire department employees the right to bargain collectively over safety, wages, benefits and other job terms, except management rights, with impasses resolved by non-binding factfinding and, if needed, a vote of city voters.

What does a NO vote on City of Boulder Ballot Question 2L mean?

Boulder's charter would not add a collective bargaining right for firefighters.

How many votes does City of Boulder Ballot Question 2L need to pass?

A simple majority: more than half of the YES and NO votes on this measure must be YES. Leaving it blank doesn't count either way.

Should I vote yes or no on City of Boulder Ballot Question 2L?

SpectrumVote doesn't endorse anyone or tell you how to vote. Read what a YES and a NO vote each do, and the official text, then decide based on what you want to happen.

When is the vote?

The general election was Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Counts are unofficial until each state certifies its results over the following weeks; your state or county election office has the official results.