Donors have pocketed a total of $1.9 million to defeat Initiatives 308 and 309, the Denver ballot measures that would ban the sale of fur y ban slaughterhouses in the city.
These opposition committees, which so far have raised and spent several times more than the animal rights group backing both initiatives, are the only ones that have raised a dime to defeat any of the city’s nine ballot measures on Tuesday’s ballot, according to campaign finance reports filed in mid-October.
Meanwhile, campaigns in support of five ballot questions, including the measures, as well as two sales tax increase proposals, have combined to raise $3.9 million. Reports cover fundraising through Oct. 14, and final pre-election reports updating their finances are due Friday.
Aside from campaigning on the proposed bans, the strong fundraising is an indication that supporters of the measures without much in the way of organized opposition – such as the large sales tax increases sought to stabilize Denver Health’s finances, through Election Question 2Qand significantly expand affordable housing projects and programs in the city, by. Issue 2R – are not standing idly by.
In fact, supporters of the two tax committees still had $1.8 million available in mid-October to get their messages out during the last three weeks of the election season, when voting began.
Here are the key takeaways from the latest campaign finance figures available at. the city’s online dashboard..
Slaughterhouse ban is the most expensive campaign.
While spending on municipal ballot measures. it has paled in comparison to state ballot questions. Ordinance 309, the slaughterhouse ban, is the focus of this year’s most expensive campaign. Meat industry groups opposed to it are driving fundraising.
The ordinance, sponsored by Pro-Animal Future, would shut down the only operating slaughterhouse in Denver today. This is the Superior Farms lamb slaughterhouse in north Denver, which employs 160 people and accounts for up to 20% of all U.S. capacity to slaughter lambs and process their meat for consumption.
Three opposition campaigns, including one that also opposes Ordinance 308 (the fur ban), had raised $1.9 million as of the last report deadline. That’s nearly 33% of the nearly $5.9 million in total fundraising reported by all city issue committees so far in the 2024 election cycle.
The trio of committees that formed to oppose 309, called “Hands Off My Hat Denver,” “Stop the Ban. Protect Jobs” and “Eat Local. Denver Strong.” – reported a combined $307,257 cash on hand as of Oct. 14. Hands Off My Hat is the group that also opposes Initiative 308.
The combined amount the opponents still had to spend was more than the proponents had raised. The Pro-Animal Denver committee reported fundraising $303,270 – to spend on both 308 and 309 – but on October 14 had only $7,309 left.
The campaign, along with other supporters, has attempted to make up the fundraising shortfall through press conferences and broadcasting hidden-camera investigations on Superior Farms’ practices at the slaughterhouse.
Aidan Cook, campaign director for Pro-Animal Future, said the money poured into the opposing campaigns is a clear demonstration that animal agriculture lobbyists “realize it’s a real threat to the hyper-industrialized factory farm business model.”
“Denver voters should be aware that these lobbyists don’t care about workers … they only care about protecting their profits,” he said.
On the other side of the issue, Ian Silverii, spokesman for the committee Stop the Ban. Protect Jobs. committee, referred to the slaughterhouse ban measure as a “twisted experiment” as proponents of the measure set out with the broader goal of ending all animal agriculture as it currently exists.
“It turns out that when you’re up against people whose livelihoods are at stake, they fight back,” he said of his campaign’s considerable fundraising advantage.
The largest donations to the opposition campaigns include $250,000 from the Meat Institute, a nonprofit meat and poultry industry trade group; $83,000 from the Colorado Livestock Association; and $80,000 from the American Sheep Industry Association, based in Denver’s south suburbs.
Superior Farms itself has donated more than $171,000 in monetary and in-kind contributions to the campaign. The employee-owned company is based in California.
Campaign funding in support of the bans.
This summer, opponents charged that Pro-Animal Future made donations through its own nonprofit organization, which concealed the identity of the organizations contributing to its campaign. But municipal web records today identify donors by name.
Among the largest contributors to Pro-Animal Denver were $110,000 from. the Phauna Foundation and $50,000 from the Craigslist Charitable Fund y Animal welfare evaluators.. Phauna “seeds ambitious animal rights organizations and individuals working to end human exploitation of other species,” according to its website, and the latter two organizations claim to oppose factory farming and other forms of animal exploitation.
For the fur ban measure, records show that the Yes on 308 campaign declared $10,475 in in-kind contributions from the Humane Society of the United States for staff time.
Campaigns to raise sales tax generate big profits.
No one has donated money to defeat Ballot Issue 2Q, the 0.34% sales tax designed to raise $70 million a year to financially stabilize Denver Health, the city’s social safety net hospital.
The same can be said of Proposition 2R. This measure, spearheaded by Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, would surpass even the record 2Q request and increase the city’s sales tax rate by 0.5 percentage points. At would raise about $100 million per year to boost affordable housing and development programs in the city.
If both are approved, the effective city sales tax rate for most purchases, which is now 8.81%, would increase to 9.65%.
Despite the lack of organized opposition, the committees backing these two measures have nonetheless raised a total of $3.2 million this cycle to get their messages to voters.
The Healing Denver committee, which backs 2Q, has raised $1.9 million and, as of Oct. 14, still had nearly $700,000 on hand. Major contributors include. Heart of Denveran organization created to support the campaign and promote the hospital’s benefits to the city. It has contributed more than $257,000.
The Thiry-O’Leary Living Trust, linked to former DaVita dialysis company CEO Kent Thiry and his wife, Denise O’Leary, has donated $150,000. And the advocacy arm of Gary Community Ventures have contributed a total of $125,000. Johnston was managing director of Gary from early 2020 to the end of 2022 prior to run for mayor.
Gary Advocacy has also been a major contributor to the committee supporting Issue 2R, the affordable housing tax. The organization donated $200,000 to the campaign on October 1.
Leading the way in support of 2R is. Action Now Initiative LLCan affiliate of Arnold Ventures, a philanthropic organization created by the former Enron executive and hedge fund manager. John ArnoldJohn Arnold, who had already contributed to an independent expenditure committee that supported Johnston’s mayoral bid last year. This year, the LLC has contributed $250,000 of the $1.35 million raised to date by the Affordable Denver committee in support of the tax measure.
Affordable Denver was still holding most of its money as of Oct. 14, with a closing balance of just over $1.12 million, although it is possible that reported spending had not yet reflected some TV ad bookings.
Unions line up for collective bargaining.
Other ballot measures in Denver mostly lower profile issues raised by the City Council. Among these, only one has received financial support through Stronger Denver, the committee supporting Referred Question 2U.
Such a measure would grant rank-and-file city employees the right to unionize and bargain collectively with the municipal administration, a right now enjoyed by the city’s public safety employees.
Not surprisingly, the contributions that have fueled the 2U campaign to date, $378,180, have come from unions. This includes more than $253,000 from the Communication Workers of America and its affiliates, $25,000 from the union Colorado Education Associationand $25,000 from the Teamsters and its local affiliates.
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