As DPS asks voters for $44 million, the city plans $3.7 million more from its climate fund for school programs

Denver voters decide Ballot Issue 4A on Tuesday, Nov. 3, a $44 million property tax increase for Denver Public Schools. The City Council has no role in that measure; the school board put it on the ballot. But the day after the election, a Council committee takes up a separate, much smaller deal between the city and DPS: $3.7 million more from the city's Climate Protection Fund for sustainability and job training programs in the schools.

Why it matters: both decisions shape what Denver students get in the next several years, and both are paid for with local tax dollars.

Ballot Issue 4A, briefly

The district would use the $44 million a year mostly for raises, according to Chalkbeat Colorado's voter guide:

• $25.8 million for a flat $1,750 raise for full-time employees, prorated for part-time staff;
• $4 million for career and technical education;
• $2.9 million for student mental health;
• $2 million for special education;
• $9.3 million for charter schools, which state law says must share in the money.

Chalkbeat estimated the cost at about $11.50 more a year per $100,000 of home value, or about $72 for a median-priced Denver home. Voters last approved a DPS mill levy override in 2020, for $32 million. The school board sent this one to the ballot in August, Colorado Politics reported. No written opposition was filed for the official ballot guide, Chalkbeat said, though the Denver Post's editorial board urged a no vote.

The city's DPS climate agreement

26-1410 would amend an existing agreement between the city's Office of Climate Action, Sustainability and Resiliency and DPS. It adds $3.7 million, for a new total of $4.18 million, and extends the agreement five years, to Feb. 6, 2032 (request).

The amendment replaces the current scope of work starting Dec. 18, 2026. Under it, DPS would run:

• yearly Renewable Energy and Electric Vehicle academies, with classes, hands-on projects and student fellowship grants;
• paid internships in clean energy, electric vehicle technology and natural resources;
• a "Climate Champions" program funding at least 10 student-led climate projects a year;
• food-producing gardens and outdoor classrooms at up to 60 schools;
• in the first year, a district-wide sustainable purchasing plan and study of pilots like bulk milk, reusable dishes and food waste audits;
• a pilot rewarding families for shifting how students get to school, plus a study of e-bike storage.

The money comes from the Climate Protection Fund. Because DPS is another government, the agreement was not competitively bid, the request says. Programs are meant to prioritize under-resourced students.

What our records add

It has been waiting since September. The amendment was introduced Sept. 21 and has sat in the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee since, our matter record shows. It is listed for committee consent on Wednesday.

The original deal never came to a vote. We found no earlier Council vote on the $480,000 agreement. City contracts generally need Council approval at $500,000 or more, so the expansion is what brings it to the Council.

The climate fund is also in the budget fight. The 2027 budget's companion bills would move $15.4 million in unspent Climate Protection Fund money to the fund's capital projects account for 2027 projects, as our Long Bill story explains.

The city already pays DPS for school food. Healthy Food for Denver's Kids, the city's voter-approved children's food tax, has its own agreements with DPS, including chef education across 166 schools (25-1030) and food access (26-0978). Our story on that program has more.

What's next

• Tuesday, Nov. 3: Election Day. Ballots must be received by 7 p.m.
• Wednesday, Nov. 4, 1 p.m.: Transportation and Infrastructure Committee takes up 26-1410.
• If approved: The agreement goes to the full Council. The new scope would begin Dec. 18.