Colorado voters are facing a pivotal decision on the state’s energy trajectory with Amendment 82, a ballot initiative seeking to enshrine the right to purchase and sell natural gas for cooking and heating in homes and businesses into the state constitution. If passed, the measure would add two sentences to the constitution explicitly guaranteeing the right of consumers to purchase natural gas, and the reciprocal right of distributors and utilities to sell it. For official ballot language, voter registration status, or to view a sample ballot, voters should consult the Colorado Secretary of State’s Voter Portal.

Brought forward by the conservative political nonprofit Advance Colorado, the measure arrives at a time of intense legislative pressure to transition away from fossil fuels. Advance Colorado paid millions of dollars to collect voter signatures and secure the measure’s place on the ballot. The initiative acts as a direct counterweight to recent environmental regulations, specifically the 2024 Clean Heat Plans, which mandate that natural gas utilities reduce their emissions by 22 percent by the year 2030. In addition to state-level regulations, local municipalities have enacted their own restrictions to phase out natural gas in new commercial and residential construction.

The path to Amendment 82 has been characterized by years of intense political maneuvering. Similar efforts, including a right-to-natural-gas proposal in 2020 and an energy choice initiative earlier in 2024 sponsored by the oil and gas industry, were previously withdrawn. Those withdrawals were the result of delicate compromises in which environmental advocacy groups agreed to remove their own competing, highly restrictive initiatives from the ballot. This time, Advance Colorado has pushed the measure all the way to election day, setting up a major clash between fossil fuel advocates and climate activists.

Because this current measure seeks to alter the state constitution, it requires approval by 55 percent of the vote to pass. Environmental organizations, public health groups, and several Democratic legislators have voiced strong opposition to the measure, warning it could severely cripple Colorado’s ability to combat climate change. The fierce debate surrounding Amendment 82 highlights the growing tension between preserving local consumer energy choices and enforcing statewide climate goals aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions.