At a Teller County sheriff’s open house earlier this month, the squad getting the most foot traffic was not behind a badge. Volunteers with clipboards worked the crowd, urging anyone who would stop for a minute to sign on to a bid to write a "right to hunt and fish" into the Colorado Constitution. Supporters say the proposal is about protecting outdoor traditions and keeping hunting and angling firmly in the toolkit for managing wildlife, and the petition has been making the rounds at county events, small businesses and community gatherings as organizers race a summer deadline.
Local signings and the petition push
According to the Colorado Springs Gazette, volunteers, including Shannon Andersen, staffed a table at the Woodland Park open house and said the campaign is leaning heavily on local gatherings and businesses across Teller County to build its numbers. The Gazette reported that petitioners are handing out forms, walking residents through Initiative 302, and arguing that the measure would formally recognize a long-standing piece of Colorado life. Volunteers told the paper they are counting on word of mouth and a steady calendar of community events to push the drive past the threshold it needs to land on the ballot.
What Initiative 302 would do
Initiative 302 proposes a new Section 12c in Article XVIII of the Colorado Constitution that would establish a right for the people of Colorado to hunt, fish, and harvest fish and wildlife. The language also states that hunting and fishing are the primary and preferred methods for managing fish and wildlife. At the same time, the text filed with Legislative Council Staff specifies that Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the General Assembly would retain their authority to regulate hunting and fishing, so long as any rules are reasonable and necessary for sound scientific conservation, public safety, or the preservation of future hunting and fishing opportunities.
Signatures, deadline and verification
To make the ballot this year, organizers must collect 124,238 valid signatures statewide and also satisfy a geographic test that requires signatures equal to at least 2% of registered voters in each of Colorado’s 35 state senate districts. The Colorado Secretary of State explains the threshold and outlines how petitions are checked, including an initial random-sample review that can trigger full verification of all signatures. Legislative filing guidance sets Aug. 3 as the deadline to submit petitions for this election cycle, leaving the campaign with only weeks to gather enough signatures to put Initiative 302 before voters in November.
Who’s backing the drive
The push is backed by organizers connected to national sporting-conservation networks. Colorado Politics reports that the effort is associated with groups under the Roosevelt/International Order of T. Roosevelt umbrella. Supporters have launched a coordinating website, Save Colorado Heritage, and filings and news coverage describe several hundred thousand dollars in contributions already earmarked for the petition phase of the campaign.
Critics raise management and policy concerns
Opponents counter that the amendment is unnecessary and could tie the hands of future wildlife managers by putting hunting and fishing at the top of the constitutional hierarchy over other tools, such as habitat restoration or species reintroduction. The Bell Policy Center has outlined arguments on both sides, noting that proponents frame the change as a way to safeguard cultural heritage, while critics warn that locking in a preferred management method in the constitution could make it tougher for Colorado to adjust wildlife policy as conditions and science evolve.
Legal questions and the ballot math
Because Initiative 302 would alter the state constitution, it faces a higher bar at the polls. A constitutional amendment in Colorado needs 55% of the statewide vote to pass, and critics say the proposal’s wording could spur lawsuits over vagueness or other constitutional issues. Observers quoted in coverage of the campaign point out that the measure has to clear both the signature hurdle and a broad statewide vote, with open questions about how the language would fare in court even if voters approve it.
Oregon’s petition fight and a national backdrop
Supporters in Colorado link their effort to a broader national battle over animal rights measures. They frequently point to Oregon’s Initiative Petition 28 as a warning sign. Coverage by GearJunkie describes IP28 as a proposal that would remove statutory exemptions for hunting and fishing from Oregon’s animal-cruelty laws. Colorado organizers have cited the campaign while recruiting volunteers. Local opinion pieces and reporting have also tied Initiative 302 to recent state-level fights over wildlife rules, framing the petition as part of a broader policy tug-of-war.
What comes next
Organizers must turn in their petitions to the Secretary of State by Aug. 3 and then clear the office’s verification process to qualify for the November ballot. If Initiative 302 survives that procedural gauntlet, Colorado voters will decide its fate in November, and it will need at least 55% approval to become part of the state constitution under current ballot rules. Voters and would-be signers can find the full initiative text, campaign details, and official signature guidance in the Legislative Council filing, the Colorado Secretary of State’s petition rules, and on the campaign’s coordinating site.
