Last-minute voter? Your refund might be on the menu

By Rocky Mountain Voice Editorial Board

Still sitting on your ballot? You’re not alone—Colorado’s full of last-minute voters trying to make sense of Propositions LL and MM before the drop box closes. Both deal with “Healthy School Meals for All,” a free lunch program with a not-so-free price tag. And depending how you vote, your refund might just end up on the menu.

How we got here

Back in 2022, voters approved Proposition FF, the “Healthy School Meals for All” program that promised every K–12 student a free lunch. It sounded simple until someone had to pay for it. The money came from a new tax on Coloradans earning $300,000 or more—along with wage hikes for cafeteria workers and a nudge to use more local ingredients.

Fast-forward to 2025, and the legislature realized there’s extra revenue sitting around from those same high-income taxes. Instead of refunding it to the people who paid it, the state now wants permission to keep it. That’s Proposition LL.

Proposition LL: the “keep the change” amendment

If LL passes, roughly $12.4 million that would have been refunded to taxpayers in FY26 stays in state hands to feed the lunch program. That refund equals about $50 for single filers and $74 for joint filers earning over $300,000.

Future surpluses from the same tax would also stick around—$4.7 million projected in FY26 and $9.6 million in FY27—to fund Healthy School Meals for All. If MM (the other measure) fails, $1 million of those retained funds will still go to related school-meal grants each year.

Put another way, LL asks whether the state can pocket an already-collected surplus instead of cutting refund checks.

Proposition MM: the “just a little more” plan

MM goes a step further, hiking income taxes again on the same $300,000-and-up households to raise an estimated $95 million a year. CSI puts the hit at around $385 for single filers and $570 for joint filers. And because lawmakers tweaked the measure during the 2025 special session, some of that new money could also end up in SNAP and school-meal grants. 

CSI’s analysis notes that without better cost management, the program “remains at risk of eventual insolvency.” Translation: even $95 million a year might not plug the hole forever.

The fine print nobody reads

Neither LL nor MM actually fixes the program’s underlying price tag. Colorado’s free-lunch budget continues to climb faster than its funding, and future projections show spending outpacing revenue. The institute’s own chart tells the story—by 2030, the deficit line dives while costs and revenues climb.

Why it matters (even if you’re not making $300k)

TABOR refunds depend on excess revenue, so every dollar redirected to lunch trays is a dollar less for general taxpayer refunds. For most voters, that’s not the issue. For the small share of Coloradans footing the bill, it’s a reminder that “temporary” taxes tied to state programs have a way of sticking around.

Advocates insist universal meals remove stigma and guarantee no child goes hungry—worthy goals that come with a very Colorado question: at what point does “healthy” for kids become unhealthy for the state budget?

And in the end, it’s a three-way fork in the road. Vote for LL and let the state keep $12.4 million in lunch money. Vote for MM and send another $95 million its way each year. Or reject both and keep your refund while the program’s budget pressures keep simmering on the back burner.

Before you drop that ballot, skim the numbers yourself. CSI’s full, readable breakdown—with charts, projections—and no campaign slogans—is here: Common Sense Institute 2025 Colorado Ballot Guide.

Because if you’re voting on lunch, you might as well know who’s picking up the tab.