California voters were on track to defeat Proposition 45, a Chamber of Commerce-sponsored plan to put hard deadlines on reviews under the state's bedrock environmental law. In Colorado, voters turned down a measure that would have written a right to buy and sell natural gas into the state constitution.
As of Wednesday afternoon, with 58% of California's votes counted, a little more than 54% opposed Prop 45 and roughly 46% supported it. A simple majority was all it needed to pass.
The measure would have overhauled the California Environmental Quality Act, known as CEQA, by limiting environmental review of major projects to 365 days. Lawsuits alleging harms such as threats to air and water quality or tribal cultural resources would have had to be resolved within 270 days, and changing the law afterward would have required a two-thirds vote of the Legislature.
Backers said the deadlines would speed construction of housing, clean energy, broadband and other infrastructure. Opponents, among them some affordable housing advocates, said the rules would narrow review and weaken the ability of communities and tribes lacking federal recognition to curb pollution on their neighborhoods or ancestral lands.
Woody Little, who speaks for the No on Prop 45 coalition of more than 550 labor, health and environmental groups, said it was too early to declare a result but that millions of Californians had voted to defend core environmental protections. He said the outcome should tell the Legislature which side its voters are on. Amelia Matier, a Yes on Prop 45 spokesperson, was not immediately available Wednesday.
Support eroded as the campaign went on. Polling by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California found backing fell from 73% in July to 46% in October. The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office put the measure's potential annual price tag for state and local governments above $100 million, partly to address environmental damage from projects approved with limited review or public input.
Noelle Chambers, executive director of the Amah Mutsun Land Trust, called the likely defeat encouraging and said consultation with tribes is fundamental to restoring Indigenous stewardship of Amah Mutsun homelands.
Meaningful tribal consultation is essential to protecting ancestral lands and cultural resources, particularly for non-federally recognized tribes whose voices are too often marginalized
Noelle Chambers, executive director of the Amah Mutsun Land Trust
Colorado's natural gas fight
With 81% of Colorado's votes tallied Wednesday afternoon, Amendment 82 had failed. Proposed by the conservative group Advance Colorado, it aimed to block state and local limits on natural gas sales, such as bans on gas infrastructure in new buildings, and to overturn existing rules restricting the fuel.
Environmentalists feared the first-of-its-kind amendment would threaten the state's climate goals. Kelly Nordini, CEO of Conservation Colorado, said it would have made Colorado the first state to enshrine one industry's profits in its constitution, and her group's organizers criticized anonymous donors who backed it. Advance Colorado could not immediately be reached.
Data centers, utilities and water
Elsewhere, voters had approved 38 ballot measures restricting data centers as of Wednesday afternoon, according to tracking by Data Centers on the Ballot.
Early results showed Tucson, Arizona, voters rejecting a 25-year franchise deal with Tucson Electric Power that would have delivered $64 million for sustainability and infrastructure projects. Critics said it would have bound the city to a for-profit utility; the vote followed the company's push for a major rate increase and its support for Project Blue, the state's most contentious data center proposal.
Corpus Christi, Texas, voters approved a citizen-led measure imposing steep fees on water use by refineries and chemical plants during future droughts. Michigan voters approved a citizen initiative barring utilities, electric companies and certain government contractors from making campaign contributions.
In Florida, voters overwhelmingly passed Amendment 3, a property tax cut. Because state water management districts rely partly on local property tax revenue, they are projected to lose more than $89 million in 2027 alone.
