Article ll of the constitution of the State of Colorado is amended by the addition of the following section:

SECTION 31: NONDISCRIMINATION BY THE STATE

(1) The State shall not discriminate against, or grant preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting.

(2) This section shall apply only to action taken after the section's effective date.

(3) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted as prohibiting bona fide qualifications based on sex that are reasonably necessary to the normal operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting.

(4) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted as invalidating any court order or consent decree that is in force as of the effective date of this section.

(5) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted as prohibiting action that must be taken to establish or maintain eligibility for any federal program, if ineligibility would result in a loss of federal funds to the state.

(6) For the purposes of this section, "state" shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, the State of Colorado, any agency or department of the state, any public institution of higher education, any political subdivision, or any governmental instrumentality of or within the state.

(7) The remedies available for violations of this section shall be the same, regardless of the injured party's race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin, as are otherwise available for violations of then-existing Colorado anti-discrimination law.

(8) This section shall be self-executing. If any part or parts of this section are found to be in conflict with federal law or the United States Constitution, the section shall be implemented to the maximum extent that federal law and the United States Constitution permit. Any provision held invalid shall be severable from the remaining portions of this section.

Note: The actual language is not the language that voters will see on the November ballot, however, it is the language that will be inserted into the Colorado Constitution when the Colorado Civil Rights Initiative passes in November. The language that will appear on the November ballot is below.

Ballot Language

Ballot Title Setting Board

Proposed Initiative 2007-2008 #311

The title as designated and fixed by the Board is as follows*:

An amendment to the Colorado constitution concerning a prohibition against
discrimination by the state, and, in connection therewith, prohibiting the state from
discriminating against or granting preferential treatment to any individual or group on the
basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment,
public education, or public contracting; allowing exceptions to the prohibition when bona fide
qualifications based on sex are reasonably necessary or when action is necessary to establish
or maintain eligibility for federal funds; preserving the validity of court orders or consent
decrees in effect at the time the measure becomes effective; defining "state" to include the
state of Colorado, agencies or departments of the state, public institutions of higher education,
political subdivisions, or governmental instrumentalities of or within the state; and making
portions of the measure found invalid severable from the remainder of the measure.

The ballot title and submission clause as designated and fixed by the Board is as follows:

Shall there be an amendment to the Colorado constitution concerning a prohibition
against discrimination by the state, and, in connection therewith, prohibiting the state from
discriminating against or granting preferential treatment to any individual or group on the
basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment,
public education, or public contracting; allowing exceptions to the prohibition when bona fide
qualifications based on sex are reasonably necessary or when action is necessary to establish
or maintain eligibility for federal funds; preserving the validity of court orders or consent
decrees in effect at the time the measure becomes effective; defining "state" to include the
state of Colorado, agencies or departments of the state, public institutions of higher education,
political subdivisions, or governmental instrumentalities of or within the state; and making
portions of the measure found invalid severable from the remainder of the measure?

* The ballot title was written by the title board and approved by the Colorado Supreme Court in 2007.