The agency plans to provide updates as election results are finalized and implementation details become available.

Press Release: Denver Public Schools

Reproduced in full from the Denver Public Schools.

2026 Election Results and Impacts on Our Community

Dear Denver Community,

Thank you to everyone who participated in Tuesday's election and demonstrated their engagement in issues affecting public education. Several measures on this year's ballot have important implications for Denver students, families and staff. Below is a summary of the reported results and brief explanations of how these measures may affect our community. We will continue to provide updates as election results are finalized and implementation details become available.

Denver Ballot Issue 4A (City and County of Denver)

Scope and Mandate: A $44 million property tax mill levy override providing supplemental operating revenue to Denver Public Schools.

  • Impact on Students
  • Career and Technical Education (CTE): Expands access to high-demand CTE courses, vocational certifications and career preparation classes for Denver high school students.
  • Mental Health and Special Education: Allocates $4.9 million annually to expand mental health counseling resources and individualized education support services.
  • Charter School Program Funding: Distributes a proportional share of funds (approximately $9.3 million) to district-authorized charter schools to support any of the named items on the ballot.
  • Impact on Employees
  • Across-the-Board Salary Raise: Every full-time Denver Public Schools employee will receive a $1,750 annual salary increase. Regular employees with less than 1.0 FTE will receive a prorated raise. The flat-dollar distribution delivers the highest percentage salary gains to lower-wage positions and will be effective Dec. 1, 2026. The increase will first be seen on the Dec. 22, 2026 paycheck.

Statewide Proposition NN (Colorado Statewide)

Scope and Mandate: Permanently raises the state Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) revenue cap, allowing Colorado to retain surplus tax revenue (approximately $4.6 billion total) to fund K-12 public education and early childhood initiatives.

  • Impact on Students
  • Smaller Class Sizes: Directs funding toward lowering overall classroom size limits across public K-12 schools statewide.
  • Early Childhood and Preschool Access: Allocates surplus funds to a dedicated children's account to expand access to full-day preschool and early childcare programs.
  • Vocational and Workforce Preparation: Expands state-funded career preparation, technical education and workforce readiness programs for public school students.
  • Impact on Employees
  • Teacher Compensation and Retention: Redirects retained state surplus revenue directly toward boosting teacher compensation and reducing educator turnover across Colorado school districts.
  • Workload Reduction: Funding is designated to hire additional classroom educators, helping to lower student-to-teacher ratios.

Statewide Proposition 134 (Colorado Statewide)

Scope and Mandate: Requires public K-12 schools and higher education institutions in Colorado to designate athletic teams strictly by biological sex assigned at birth.

  • Impact on Students
  • Athletic Roster Eligibility: Restricts female sports teams to biological females and male sports teams to biological males (unless no female team is offered), altering sports participation guidelines for student-athletes across public K-12 schools and colleges.
  • Impact on Employees
  • Administrative Compliance: School district administrators, athletic directors and coaches are tasked with enforcing roster eligibility rules according to biological sex designations under state education oversight.

I wanted to take a moment and specifically discuss the outcome of Propositions 134 and 135. Denver Public Schools remains deeply committed to creating safe, inclusive and welcoming learning environments for every student in our district. While the voters of Colorado have passed Proposition 134, our commitment to our shared core value of Equity has not changed.

DPS did not support Proposition 134 because we believe that participating in school sports plays an essential role in young people's health, confidence and sense of community. Our priority will always be to support the physical, emotional and social development of every child we serve.

As a public school district, DPS is obligated to follow state law. Our leadership team and legal counsel will review the provisions of the statute and work with state education officials to understand how these changes will be implemented. As we navigate this, please know that we remain dedicated to protecting student privacy, preventing discrimination and ensuring that all DPS students, including transgender and gender-nonconforming youth, feel safe, valued and supported in our schools.

In collaboration,

Dr. Alex Marrero
Superintendent