The Civic Information Project
- Some election experts have called Colorado's mail-in-ballot system the “gold standard” in the nation. (Photo by Rachel Lorenz for The Colorado Independent)
Public information is complicated. Ballots are long. Campaign messaging is loud. And too often, people are left sorting through information that feels overwhelming, incomplete or disconnected from their real concerns.
The Colorado News Collaborative (COLab) helps local newsrooms across Colorado work together to provide clear, nonpartisan information on elections and everyday life that is easier to find, easier to understand and rooted in what communities actually care about.
By collaborating rather than competing, Colorado news outlets are able to share tools, reporting and community input — so people get facts, not frenzy. Context, not chaos. Substance, not spin.
How this helps communities
COLab supports shared civic information projects that Colorado newsrooms can adapt for their own communities. Each project serves a different purpose — but together, they help people feel more confident, informed and heard.
Colorado Tradeoffs
An interactive budget simulation built around the state’s toughest fiscal decisions — real numbers, real constraints, real tradeoffs. Think Sim City, except the choices you’re wrestling with are the ones headed for your ballot.
Build Your Own Ballot
A personalized tool that helps voters see what will actually appear on their ballot, based on where they live. It brings local races, measures and explanations into one place — so there are fewer surprises at the polls.
Your Share
An interactive tool to show people where their tax dollars go. Coloradans see how their state tax dollars are divided among education, transportation, health care and more. Embed it with any story about taxes or public spending. 
QuizTheVote
A short, interactive quiz that lets voters compare their views with candidates’ positions on key issues — without endorsements or spin. It’s designed to help people explore their choices, not tell them how to vote.
Voter Voices / Citizens Agenda
A statewide effort to listen first. Thousands of Coloradans share what issues matter most to them, and newsrooms use that input to shape election coverage — so reporting reflects public priorities, not just campaign agendas.
Free Press, Free Country
A community conversation series built around local news, democracy and trust. Through film screenings and public discussions, local newsrooms invite residents behind the scenes of how news is made — and why a free press matters, during election season and beyond.
Why this matters
Together, these projects help ensure that voters across Colorado — regardless of community size or newsroom resources — have access to reliable, locally relevant civic information.
At its core, this work is about helping people feel informed, confident and connected when it matters most.
The Stories Behind the Tools
Newsrooms across Colorado aren’t just sharing these tools. They’re using them to help voters understand complicated issues, explore the consequences of their choices and participate in important public decisions.
Here are some examples of reporting – and more – from and about the project.
We’ll continue adding stories as our news partners and others explore the issues and share what they’re learning.
News outlets using Colorado Tradeoffs ballot question tool is 'The Next Journalism'
Inside the News in Colorado | Corey Hutchins | Oct. 16, 2026
An introduction to Colorado Tradeoffs that invites voters to see how their decisions on statewide ballot measures could affect Colorado’s budget — and how they would balance it.
Your ballot question vote will affect Colorado's $1.6 billion budget deficit. Want to see how?
Sentinel Colorado | Oct. 9, 2026
How Colorado Tradeoffs fits into a larger movement to make journalism more useful by putting the public at the center of the work.
Think balancing Colorado's budget is easy? Give it a try using this digital tool
Durango Herald / Colorado News Collaborative | Sandra Fish | Oct. 15, 2026
A closer look at Colorado’s budget challenges, how voters are using the simulation and what they’re learning about the tradeoffs involved.
TABOR Tuesday: Colorado Tradeoffs simulation
Paul Teske, University of Colorado Distinguished Professor and former Dean of the School of Public Affairs | Sept. 22, 2026
Since this is Colorado, due to TABOR, we ARE all state decision makers, as we consider this fall’s ballot initiatives.
Public Engagement for Building Trust
Chris Adams, Founder of Weigh In and Senior Fellow at the University of Colorado Denver School of Public Affairs
Since 2008 I’ve been involved with building more than 200 budget simulations for more than 150 governments. Colorado Tradeoffs let me put what I’ve learned to work.
Local Colorado news outlets are offering tools to help you get ready to vote!
The Colorado Health Foundation | Oct. 13, 2026
The Colorado Health Foundation is helping to spread the word about these tools to the broader Colorado community.
Volunteering with Colorado Tradeoffs project
Stacie Ledden, Creative Strategist | Sept. 29, 2026
Since this is Colorado, due to TABOR, we ARE all state decision makers, as we consider this fall’s ballot initiatives.
Beyond the Election
We’re starting with elections, but we don’t intend to stop there.
From public budgets to decisions about schools, housing and transportation, communities face complicated choices every day. COLab and its partners are exploring how local journalism can help people understand those choices, weigh the tradeoffs and participate more meaningfully in the decisions that affect them.
That’s part of a larger effort to make local news organizations indispensable places for civic information and community engagement.
Project Partners
The Civic Information Project is led by the Colorado News Collaborative (COLab) in partnership with news organizations across the state, and other partners, including the University of Colorado Denver School of Public Affairs, Weigh In and Branch.
This work is supported in part by the Colorado Media Project, The Denver Foundation and Rose Community Foundation.
Thank you
We’re a nonprofit and a tiny one at that. We could not do this work without your support. Thank you to our donors.
Together, we are seeking to put the communities we serve first.