by Blaine Howerton | NorthFortyNews.com
Colorado officials find insufficient evidence of campaign finance violations tied to a community survey.
The Colorado Secretary of State has dismissed a campaign finance complaint filed against the Wellington Fire Protection District, concluding there was not enough evidence to support allegations that the district improperly used public funds to influence a ballot measure.
The ruling closes a case filed in July 2025 that questioned whether the district violated Colorado’s Fair Campaign Practices Act by commissioning a survey related to a possible sales tax proposal.
According to documents from the Secretary of State’s Elections Division, the complaint alleged that the district paid $14,500 to a research firm to conduct a voter opinion survey regarding a potential sales tax increase to support fire district staffing, equipment, and operations. The survey, conducted in June 2025, was distributed by text message to 520 eligible voters and included questions about the district’s performance and possible funding options.
At the time the survey was conducted, the district had not yet formally referred a ballot measure to voters. State officials noted in their analysis that campaign finance restrictions apply once a ballot measure has been officially referred. Because no such measure existed at the time the survey was conducted, the expenditure was not deemed impermissible under Colorado campaign finance law.
Later that summer, the district’s board moved forward with placing a half-cent sales tax proposal on the November 2025 ballot as Ballot Issue 6D. The measure ultimately did not pass.
The Secretary of State’s investigation determined that the allegations related only to activities that occurred before the ballot measure was officially referred. As a result, the Elections Division recommended dismissal, and Deputy Secretary of State Andrew J. Kline granted the motion on March 3, 2026, formally ending the case.
The ruling states that there was “insufficient evidence to support a finding that the respondent violated campaign finance law,” making the dismissal the final agency action in the matter.
For residents in Wellington and the surrounding rural communities served by the district, the decision clarifies that the district’s actions during the survey process were lawful under state election rules.
More information about Colorado’s campaign finance complaint process is available through the Colorado Secretary of State’s office at https://www.coloradosos.gov.
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Source: Colorado Secretary of State, Elections Division order of dismissal (Case No. 2025-31)