Voters will decide the future of Colorado’s universal free school meals program this November through a pair of ballot measures sent to them by the legislature.

Propositions LL and MM are aimed at fulfilling the promises made for the new program when nearly 57% of voters approved Proposition FF in 2022 — by allowing the state to keep over-collected revenue and raising nearly $100 million more each year by increasing taxes on the wealthiest Coloradans.

The program, called Healthy School Meals for All, has faced repeated annual funding shortfalls of about $50 million, not including the costs of some of its auxiliary aims. Backers say the cash crunch comes from the program’s popularity, coupled with unforeseen spikes in inflation in recent years, while critics say the program is too broad t

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