City and County of Denver

Referred Question 2HAuditor's Office enforcement of wage and workplace laws (Charter amendment)

Official ballot title

Shall the Charter of the City and County of Denver be amended to expressly clarify that the Auditor’s Office may continue to enforce wage laws, worker protection laws, and other workplace rights laws in accordance with ordinances passed by City Council?

Verbatim from: Denver 2026 Ballot Information Booklet (Denver Elections Division)

Summary

The Auditor’s Office, through Denver Labor, already enforces the city’s wage laws. That power now rests on a general Charter clause that lets City Council assign “other duties” to the Auditor by ordinance. 2H would add the power to the Charter itself: “The Auditor shall enforce wage, worker protection, and workplace rights, as the Council by ordinance may require.” The written comments in favor, printed in the Ballot Information Booklet, say the change “does not expand the Auditor’s Office’s authority.” The booklet’s fiscal information anticipates no fiscal impact.

Plain-language summary written for this guide from the sources below.

Why it’s on the ballot

The ballot question describes the change as a clarification (“expressly clarify”). The written comments in favor, printed in the Ballot Information Booklet, say a yes vote “helps prevent uncertainty about the city’s enforcement authority.” Businesses have challenged that authority in court:

In 2025, RCI Hospitality and four Denver clubs sued in federal court. Among other claims, they argued that Denver Labor’s investigations and penalties weren’t authorized under the City Charter. That case is pending with no ruling on the merits.
In 2025, a Denver District Court upheld Denver Labor’s authority in a related case. The clubs have appealed.
A similar 2024 suit by Instawork ended by agreement in 2025, without a ruling.

If 2H passes, the Auditor’s enforcement role would be spelled out in the Charter rather than resting on ordinance alone.

Background written for this guide from the sources below.

What a YES vote does

A yes vote adds wage and workplace enforcement to the Auditor’s duties in the Charter.

What a NO vote does

A no vote leaves the Charter as it is, and enforcement continues under the current ordinance-based authority.

Plain-language description, not official text. The Denver Ballot Information Booklet and TABOR notice do not include official yes/no vote descriptions for this measure.

How it got on the ballot

Council Bill 26-0687. Sponsors: Councilmembers Parady and Sawyer. [Legistar: Council Bill 26-0687]
Governance and Intergovernmental Relations Committee: approved for filing May 19, 2026, 6–0 (absent: Gilmore). [Legistar: Council Bill 26-0687]
Full City Council: passed July 13, 2026, 11–0. [Legistar: Council Bill 26-0687]
Voted yes: Alvidrez, Gilmore, Gonzales-Gutierrez, Hinds, Kashmann, Parady, Romero Campbell, Sawyer, Torres, Watson, Sandoval. [Legistar: Council Bill 26-0687]
Absent: Flynn, Lewis. [Legistar: Council Bill 26-0687]
Signed by the Mayor July 15, 2026. [Legistar: Council Bill 26-0687]

Placed on the ballot by: Denver City Council (Council Bill 26-0687, sponsored by Councilmembers Parady and Sawyer; passed 11–0 on July 13, 2026; signed by the Mayor July 15, 2026)
Vote needed to pass: Majority of votes castThe cited Denver sources do not state the threshold; this is a plain-language description, not official text.

Official fiscal information

“There is no anticipated fiscal impact from amending the Charter to clarify the Auditor’s Office’s authority to enforce wage laws as this function is currently being performed by the Auditor’s Office.” (Fiscal Information, Ballot Information Booklet)

From the official source’s fiscal section. Figures marked “(Estimated)” are estimates or projections in the source.