Petitions

Overview

The City Clerk's Office provides guidance on petition processes including initiatives, referendums and recalls. Community members can propose ordinances, refer City Council decisions to voters or recall elected officials through established petition procedures.

The documents on this page are provided for printing purposes. For assistance viewing or reading these documents, please contact the City's ADA Coordinator via email adacoordinator@fortcollins.gov or phone: 970-416-4254. 

Types of Petitions

Initiatives

The City Clerk's Office created Initiative Guidelines to help community members with the initiative process. These guidelines explain the process step by step. The Fort Collins City Charter gives registered Fort Collins voters the power to propose ordinances or resolutions to City Council. If City Council doesn't adopt the proposed measure, voters can adopt or reject it at the polls.

Note: The Initiative Guidelines don't apply to Charter Amendments, which State Statute governs. Contact the City Clerk's Office about the Charter Amendment process.

Referendums

The City Clerk's Office created Referendum Guidelines to help community members with the referendum process. These guidelines explain the process step by step. The Fort Collins City Charter gives registered Fort Collins voters the power to refer a City Council-adopted Ordinance to voters for approval or rejection.

The referendum process starts when you file a notice of protest with the City Clerk within 10 days after the ordinance's final passage. Within 10 days of filing that protest notice, referendum supporters must submit their final petition form to the City Clerk. The City Clerk reviews the petition form. If it meets Charter requirements, the City Clerk approves it for circulation. Once approved, supporters have 20 calendar days to circulate the petition and file it with the City Clerk.

If supporters collect enough valid signatures, the petition is sufficient. After a protest period and any protest process ends, the City Clerk certifies a sufficient petition to City Council. City Council must then either (1) repeal the ordinance or (2) refer the ordinance to voters at the next regular or special City election. City Council may also call a special election for this purpose.

For information on past referendums, contact the City Clerk's Office.

Recall

Community members can recall an elected official. The Recall Guidelines explain the process step by step. The Recall Guidelines are being updated, but the basic information stays the same.

Note: Recall is a ballot issue and follows certain campaign rules.

Recall Signature Requirements and Eligibility

The table below shows current Councilmembers and Mayor with relevant dates and signature requirements.

• *We calculate required signatures by taking 25% of total votes cast for all candidates of that seat. For example, if 34,950 total votes were cast for all Mayor candidates, it takes 8,738 signatures to meet the requirement (34,950 * 0.25 = 8,737.5 rounded up).
• **The earliest recall date is one year after the term began (when the Oath of Office was taken).
• ***The latest recall date is six months before the term ends (when new or reelected members take their Oath of Office). Oaths happen at a special meeting on the second Tuesday in January after the November election.

Protesting a Ballot Title

When the City puts an item on the ballot, the public can protest the proposed ballot title and/or submission clause. Under City Code Section 7-156, you must file a protest with the City Clerk by noon on the Monday before City Council considers the ordinance on First reading or resolution that sets the ballot title and submission clause.

Gathering Signatures

Background

Both State of Colorado law and the Fort Collins Municipal Code can be changed through an initiative process. To place an initiative on the ballot, supporters must collect a certain number of signatures and submit them to the State or City. Petition Circulators often want to collect signatures on City-owned property. Here's guidance on how Petition Circulators can collect signatures on sidewalks, outside City facilities, inside City facilities and in City Parks and Natural Areas.

Sidewalks/Walkways/Paved Areas

• Petition Circulators can approach people on public sidewalks, walkways or plaza areas near public facilities to discuss initiative petitions and ask for signatures, if the location is open for public use.
• Petition Circulators can stand in and walk around these areas, as long as they follow any City rules for activities at that facility or location.
• Sidewalks/Walkways: Petition Circulators can carry clipboards for people to sign petitions. However, they can't place tables, chairs or other objects on sidewalks or walkways without a permit. Section 23-81 of City Code prohibits placing objects on public sidewalks without a permit.
• Plaza Areas: Where facilities have paved areas open for public use outside the sidewalk/walkway area, Petition Circulators can place tables, chairs or other objects if the table isn't attached, is attended at all times, is removed when not in use, and doesn't block public passage or interfere with the area's intended use.
• Section 24-152 of City Code prohibits posting signs in public rights-of-way without a permit.
• When a City facility closes, City staff may ask Petition Circulators to leave the area outside the facility if the public normally can't stay there.

Inside City Facilities

When a City facility is open to the public, Petition Circulators can collect signatures in two ways:

• By collecting signatures in the lobby or other public areas of the City facility, as long as this follows any City rules for using that facility and doesn't block movement or interfere with the area's intended use (Note: see Addendum Related To Specific City Facilities below).
• By renting space at a City facility that allows rentals for an election-related event that includes signature gathering, but signature gathering must stay in the rented space.

Other than these two methods, collecting signatures inside City facilities may violate City or facility policies. For example, it may be wrong for a student to ask other students to sign a petition during a City Arts and Craft class. The instructor could properly ask the student to stop this activity during class.

Petition Circulators can't set up tables or similar items inside City facilities unless City rules for that facility allow it.

Addendum Related To Specific City Facilities

Some City facilities don't allow indoor/lobby activities except for people using the facility for its intended purpose. This is due to crowding or other reasons. These Recreation facilities include:

• City Park Pool: Seasonal facility with no inside lobby or access. You must pay the daily fee to enter.
• Club Tico: Not a drop-in facility. This space is rented out or holds pre-registered classes.
• EPIC: No lobby before the paywall. EPIC has lots of traffic from paid City programs, rental groups like Northern Colorado Youth Hockey, Fort Collins Area Swim Team, Poudre School District and drop-in lap swimmers and skaters for open swim and ice times.
• The Farm at Lee Martinez Park: The Farm building is inside the paywall. No inside access for petitioners.
• Foothills Activity Center: The facility entrance is inside the Foothills Mall. No lobby space inside to accommodate petitioners. Groups must speak with the mall about collecting signatures inside the mall before entering the FAC.
• Pottery Studio: Not a drop-in facility. Only pre-registered classes are held here.
• Rolland Moore Tennis Complex: Public drop-in facility with a small pro shop. A contracted tennis pro runs the pro shop. No space inside the lobby for petitioners.

Petition Circulators can't block movement or interfere with an area's intended use. The concern with the listed facilities is blocking movement and interfering with the area's intended use, or that the facilities aren't drop-in facilities.

These Recreation facilities do allow some indoor signature collection:

• Northside Aztlan Community Center (NACC): A front desk remodel now allows signature collection in the southeast corner of the lobby by circulators with clipboards. Setting up a table in this location is also allowed. Floor markings allow up to two tables in the area. The area is first come, first served.

• Due to Summer Camp, this facility has additional restrictions. No signatures can be collected inside from June 3-Aug. 12  from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. or 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Signatures can be collected inside on these dates between 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. and again after 6 p.m. until the facility closes. No camp is scheduled for June 30-July 4. Signatures can be collected outside the facility without time restrictions.

• Mulberry Pool: Allows petitioners to circulate petitions with clipboards and set up a table in the lobby. This facility can accommodate up to two tables. The area is first come, first served.
• Senior Center: This facility has high traffic periods and doesn't have space for petitioners to set up inside before the front desk paywall. Circulating petitions with clipboards in this area is allowed, as long as traffic can flow freely. Petitioners must stay on the tan carpeted area before the front desk. Specific areas outside the facility have been identified where a table can be set up for collecting signatures outside the sheltered area. Petitioners can circulate with a clipboard in the sheltered area outside the Senior Center as long as traffic can flow freely on the sidewalk. Petitioners must allow free passage of the public on the sidewalk when collecting signatures.

Designated spaces outside each Recreation facility are available for signature gatherers. Please refer to the written guidelines for more information about these areas.

Within City Parks and Natural Areas

• Petition Circulators can stand in or walk around City Parks and Natural Areas and talk with people about initiative petitions in areas open to the public during the hours Parks and Natural Areas are open. This includes Parks and Natural Areas trails, trailheads, playgrounds, parking lots and anywhere else in a Park or Natural Area that's open to the public.
• Petition Circulators can't block passage or interfere with intended uses in a Park or Natural Area. It's prohibited to set up tables, chairs or other objects within a Park or Natural Area, including parking lots that are part of the Park or Natural Area, if it would block other users' movement, interfere with the intended use of the area or violate City Code or Park or Natural Area rules. For example, in many Natural Area locations, travel off trail isn't allowed.
• Any table, chair or other object can't be attached in any way and must be attended at all times and removed when the user isn't present.
• City Code Section 23-203(d)(11) prohibits posting signs within City Parks without a permit. Section 23-193(d)(12) prohibits posting signs within Natural Areas without a permit.