Question 2K and the Xcel franchise: how the Council went from 6-7 to 10-2
Denver's deal with Xcel Energy expires Dec. 31. Last year the Council kept it off the ballot by one vote. This year it sent a reworked version to voters.
If you pay a gas or electric bill in Denver, Question 2K is about you.
The measure would grant Xcel Energy a 20-year franchise to keep running its gas and electric systems in Denver's streets and rights-of-way, Denverite explained. The current agreement expires Dec. 31, 2026. The city expects about $30 million a year from the 3% franchise fee on bills, and customers would keep paying that fee even if voters say no, the Denver Gazette reported. The city's 2K page says a rejection could mean lost funding and delayed projects.
There's little organized opposition, according to local coverage. Some advocates have urged the city to push Xcel for more.
What our records add
2025: kept off the ballot by one vote. Last summer, the Council took up a bill to put an earlier franchise on the November 2025 ballot (25-0922, Legistar). It failed on final consideration on Aug. 11, 2025, 6-7 (meeting, roll call).
- No (7): Alvidrez, Gilmore, Gonzales-Gutierrez, Hinds, Kashmann, Lewis, Parady
- Yes (6): Flynn, Romero Campbell, Sandoval, Sawyer, Torres, Watson
Denverite reported that members who voted no wanted time to rework the agreement and gather public input. Two weeks earlier, on July 28, 2025, the same bill had been ordered published 8-5. Alvidrez, Gonzales-Gutierrez, Hinds, Lewis and Parady voted no.
2026: a 10-2 vote to refer. This year's version, 26-0970, passed final consideration on July 27, 2026 (Legistar, meeting):
- No (2): Lewis, Parady
- Absent (1): Gilmore
- Yes (10): everyone else
So four members who voted no in 2025 voted yes in 2026: Alvidrez, Gonzales-Gutierrez, Hinds and Kashmann. Our records show the vote, not the reasons for it.
It came as a package. That same night, the Council approved a companion "Denver Energy Partnership Agreement" with Xcel's Public Service Company of Colorado, aimed at "sustainable, reliable, and affordable energy," by the same 10-2 vote (26-0973, Legistar). A separate operating agreement, 26-0974, also moved forward. The Council's Budget and Policy Committee had a briefing on the franchise agreement on June 2, and the Governance committee approved the referral 5-0 on June 30, with Sandoval and Torres absent.
Related. On Monday, Oct. 26, the Council votes on a proclamation opposing statewide Amendment 82, which would create a constitutional right to buy and sell natural gas (agenda).
What's next
- Nov. 3: Voters decide 2K. The full text is in the Denver ballot information booklet.
- Dec. 31: The current franchise expires. If 2K fails, the city and Xcel would likely have to negotiate again, according to voter guides.