Proposition MM:

Ballot Question

Should state taxes be increased by $95 million annually, to help support Colorado kids and families access to healthy food, including the “Healthy School Meals for All” program, which would mean an increase to the state taxable income, only for individuals who have a taxable income of $300,000 or more, by limiting the state income tax deductions, to $1,000 for single tax return filers, and $2,000 for joint tax return filers. This is for the purpose of fully funding the “Healthy School Meals for All” program, to continue to pay for public schools to offer free breakfast and lunch, while also increasing wages for the employees who prepare and serve those meals and also helping schools use basic, and nutritious ingredients, instead of processed products, ensuring that Colorado grown and raised products are used in these meals; which supports The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which helps low-income families afford groceries; and it allows that state to keep and spend all extra tax revenue generated by these tax deduction changes.

The General Assembly referred this question to the voters in House Bill 25-1274 and Senate Bill 25B-003, both of which are available online under Referring Legislation here.

Summary of prop MM:

Proposition MM on the Fort Collins City ballot covers meal plans for all students in the state of Colorado. This proposition is to ensure that the Colorado students will have a healthy meal provided for them at school; these meals will include breakfast and lunch. In order to be able to make this happen, an increase in taxes from the residents of Colorado is necessary. The hope is that by the end of 2026, this proposition will be able to generate 95 million dollars in order to be able to pay for things such as the cost of food, so the meals can be free, wages of the school cafeteria employees, and SNAP outreach costs. If passed, this issue will mainly affect households earning more than 300,000 dollars annually. The tax money from those households will be going to the "Healthy School Meals for All" program and the "Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP)", just to ensure healthy and good-quality food for all the students in Colorado.

What a “yes” vote means:

A “yes” vote on Proposition MM increases state income taxes for households earning $300,000 or more annually. The increased tax revenue will be used to offer free school meals to all public-school students, implement previously approved local food purchasing and employee wage components of the Healthy School Meals for All program, and help fund SNAP. “SNAP provides food benefits to low-income families to supplement their grocery budget so they can afford the nutritious food essential to health and well-being.” (USDA)

What a “no” vote means:

A “no vote on Proposition MM would mean you vote to keep the state income taxes the same for households earning 300,000$ USD or more annually. This means that the "Healthy School Meals for All" program would not be receiving more funding. Also, if you vote “no”, starting in January 2026, free school meals will only be given to kids who qualify under the "National School Lunch Program", and at schools with a lot of low-income students. 

Fiscal impact of Proposition MM:

First and foremost, it should be noted that unless you pay taxes on $300,000 or more, this proposition, as far as taxes go, will not affect how much tax you owe. The second thing is that federal deductions must be added back into your income before you pay taxes. What proposition MM does for people with an income (jointly or singularly) that is more than $300,000 per year, with their deductions currently having their limit set at $12,000 per year for single filers and $16,000 per year for joint filers, this proposition would lower the limit to $2,000 for joint filers and $1,000 for single filers. This is not to say that suddenly people with an income more than $300,000 per year, suddenly owe $11-12,000 more per year, but that they can deduct that much less from their income. This would functionally raise the amount they owe by $297 for single filers and $404 per year for joint filers. 

This would give $95 million more in tax income. However, it would only increase the yearly state budget by $39.2 million for 2025-26 and by $79.7 million in 2026-27. All funding would go to the free and reduced lunch programs across Colorado. To learn more, consult this reading here.

Citations:

USDA. “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) | Food and Nutrition Service.” USDA Food and Nutrition Service, 4 August 2025. Accessed 8 October 2025.