Join the Coalition: Securing Colorado’s Workforce & Economic Future
A statewide ballot initiative to support 5,000 Coloradans every year in getting the skills training they need for Colorado’s in-demand jobs – saving families money, filling critical workforce gaps, and strengthening Colorado’s economy.
Today, nearly three-quarters of jobs in Colorado require education or training beyond high school, yet only about half of working-age Coloradans have a postsecondary credential. This leaves thousands of good jobs unfilled while too many Coloradans are locked out of opportunity simply because they cannot afford short-term, job-aligned training. This initiative helps people get job training for the jobs we rely on every day, without taking on debt.
What This Initiative Would Do
If approved by voters, this initiative would establish the Skilled Workers and Trades Fund, a permanent, dedicated funding source for short-term, debt-free skills training to fill significant shortages of essential jobs in Colorado such as:
- Healthcare and nursing
- Welders, plumbers, carpenters, and electricians
- Teaching and early childhood education
- Firefighting and public safety
- Emerging technology
- Other essential, in-demand careers that pay living wages and are resilient to automation and AI
Once fully implemented, the fund would support approximately 5,000 Coloradans per year in receiving debt-free workforce credentials while strengthening Colorado’s economy.
The Coalition
This effort is grounded in broad, bipartisan support from business leaders, educators, workforce and training partners, and community organizations across Colorado.
A Dedicated, Responsible Revenue Source — Without Raising Taxes
This initiative is funded without raising taxes by responsibly leveraging a long-standing Colorado asset: Pinnacol Assurance.
The measure allows Pinnacol Assurance, Colorado’s largest workers’ compensation insurer, to operate separately from the state, which would end government subsidies and use that revenue to provide scholarships for training for the jobs Colorado needs most, all without raising taxes.
As part of that transition, new revenue generated from Pinnacol’s full separation would be dedicated to workforce education and training through the Skilled Workers and Trades Fund, including:
- A one-time contribution to launch the fund, and
- Ongoing, recurring revenue that can be reinvested year after year
Colorado has a strong track record of using state-created assets to fund shared priorities without raising taxes. This initiative follows that same practical, Colorado-tested approach while ensuring the revenue cannot be diverted to unrelated budget needs.
Built to Invest Only in What Works
This initiative is intentionally designed to fund results, not promises.
- Evidence-based programs only: Education and training providers must demonstrate strong completion and employment outcomes that are aligned with real labor-market demand.
- Expands access to pathways to good, living-wage jobs: Helps more Coloradans afford short-term, job-aligned training that leads directly to in-demand careers, strengthening economic mobility for learners.
- Pay-for-success structure: Education and training providers are reimbursed only after a learner completes their training.
- Clear accountability standards: Programs must meet benchmarks for completion, job placement, and return on investment to remain eligible.
The principle is simple: When training works, it gets funded. When it doesn’t, no money is spent.
Why This Matters
- For learners, this means faster job training, giving them a head start on their careers without accumulating debt.
- For employers, it means a stronger, higher-skilled, more reliable talent pipeline.
- For Colorado, it means long-term economic competitiveness and shared prosperity.
Business-Led and Student-Centered Governance
The Skilled Workers and Trades Fund would be governed by a board representing Colorado employers and workers from the state’s most in-demand industries. This business-led, student-centered structure ensures:
- Learners can enroll with confidence that credentials lead to real opportunity
- Training remains aligned with the skills employers are actually hiring for
- Investments stay grounded in on-the-ground labor-market realities
Because workforce needs change over time, this governance model is designed to be agile, allowing the fund to adjust priority occupations, credentials, and investments as Colorado’s economy evolves. Focused investment in skilled training lowers costs for employers across our state.
Building on What Works in Colorado
This initiative does not start from scratch. It builds directly on proven, bipartisan efforts already delivering results in Colorado, including:
- Care Forward Colorado
- Career Advance Colorado
- Opportunity Now Colorado
- Apprenticeship Colorado
These efforts have shown that when financial barriers to short-term, job-aligned training are removed, people complete programs, employers hire, and communities benefit. This ballot measure takes those lessons statewide and makes them permanent.
Join Us
If your organization supports:
Evidence-based workforce training
Accountability and return on investment
Business-led solutions to talent shortages
Expanding opportunity without raising taxes
We invite you to add your name to the coalition.
Additional Resources
