Issue 300, the so-called citizen initiative authored by Colorado Springs resident Douglas Bruce, got on the citywide ballot last November with a lot of help from out-of-state residents, including Michael Rhodes, city clerk’s records show
Although Rhodes was not present during a campaign finance hearing in Denver on May 24-25, spectators and witnesses heard him telling a Denver petition circulaton firm that it had a “cherry opportunity to make a stupid amount of money” by circulating petitions for three statewide measures at a conservative rally.
Rhodes is the head of ProVote America, a petition circulation company based in Los Angeles. He has not responded to emails requesting an interview.
Rhodes was the second-largest collector of signatures for Issue 300, gathering 2,162 signatures, or 14.5 percent, of the valid signatures needed to get on the ballot. Rhodes also gathered thousands of signatures for three statewide measures that will be on the November ballot.
Opponents say the measures, called Amendment 60, Amendment 61 and Proposition 101, would have a devastating impact on the state economy. Amendment 61, for example, would forbid the government from issuing bonds, which would stop big construction projects like the Southern Delivery System.
Issue 300, which ends payments to the city from its revenue-producing entities, will reduce city coffers by $100 million over the next eight years, Vice Mayor Larry Small has said.
Residents of Colorado Springs will be feeling the impact for years to come.
Former reporter Perry Swanson and I went to the City Clerk’s Office a couple of months ago and built a database of the petition circulators on Issue 300. Our research showed that at least 14 of the 16 top signature gatherers listed below do not live in Colorado Springs. Here’s what we found:
| Circulator first last | Total verified signatures | % of total |
| Steve Rickabaugh | 2,259 | 15.1% |
| Michael Rhodes | 2,162 | 14.5% |
| Jane Harwell | 1,101 | 7.4% |
| Richard Riscol | 927 | 6.2% |
| Catherine E. Gilsey | 804 | 5.4% |
| Larry Bradshaw | 775 | 5.2% |
| Jackie Glenn Hisey | 676 | 4.5% |
| Rick Signorino | 663 | 4.4% |
| Glenda Bittner | 601 | 4.0% |
| Thomas Glenn | 458 | 3.1% |
| Stephen Thompson | 454 | 3.0% |
| Richard Thurston | 423 | 2.8% |
| Thomas T. Glenn | 360 | 2.4% |
| Chris Jones | 342 | 2.3% |
| Bonnie J. Todd | 337 | 2.3% |
| Shirley Harbaugh | 305 | 2.0% |
| Bruce Nozolino | 209 | 1.4% |
| Douglas N. Stinehagen | 187 | 1.3% |
| William J., Jr. Boswell | 176 | 1.2% |
| Helen P. Collins | 159 | 1.1% |
| Ida C. Wieland | 154 | 1.0% |
| Charles Aligaen | 137 | 0.9% |
| Gregory Alan Johnson | 119 | 0.8% |
| Daniel Herod | 92 | 0.6% |
| Janice McLain | 81 | 0.5% |
| Patricia Whitney | 81 | 0.5% |
| Gordon Stewart | 73 | 0.5% |
| Robert Myhren | 70 | 0.5% |
| Carla Stewart | 67 | 0.4% |
| Charles Sorrels | 67 | 0.4% |
| Christopher E. Whitney | 59 | 0.4% |
| Michael Yates | 56 | 0.4% |
| Robert Clark | 52 | 0.3% |
| Lewis Boughton | 49 | 0.3% |
| John Adams | 46 | 0.3% |
| Magnus Lane | 43 | 0.3% |
| Robert Carlone | 37 | 0.2% |
| Charles D. | 35 | 0.2% |
| Candice Kuhn | 29 | 0.2% |
| Mike Young | 27 | 0.2% |
| Carl J. Fritzen | 22 | 0.1% |
| Judith LeDean | 21 | 0.1% |
| Gretchen Ann Kasamger | 20 | 0.1% |
| John Yates | 19 | 0.1% |
| Charles Cline | 16 | 0.1% |
| Douglas Bruce | 15 | 0.1% |
| Gergory Erie Williams | 15 | 0.1% |
| Phyllis Philip | 15 | 0.1% |
| Dina Bradford | 9 | 0.1% |
| Zachary Roy | 8 | 0.1% |
| Johnson Desani | 7 | 0.0% |
Hey Mr. Bruce – nobody warned you not to get on Eileen’s bad side. Warning her not to call or email – EVER – just made her dig deeper.
ProVote America carried 300 at the same time as 60-61 & 101 – did they use carbonless copypaper, asking citizens to “press hard – we need your legible signature on all 4 copies”
Eileen Wellsome, it could be worth looking into how “efficiently” the combined-issue clipboards were presented !?!
Red flags:
80% of verified signatures for 300 were collected from paid, nonresident mercenaries. Rhodes, CEO of the mercenary company, was the second-most prolific circulator: but even at 2 bucks each he couldn’t gross over $5G – deduct transportation and equipment costs and it’s a ‘stupid amount of money’?!?. Oh yeah, the rent was free. Rriiiiight. FLAG: if Bruce kicked in a bonus or Rent-in-lieu-of-pay for the added state measures (no matter if they are different election cycle and under state rules), no wonder the SOS investigates improper campaign funding.
More red flags: 40% of the 60/61/101 signatures came from COS. It appears the rest of the state didn’t hire Rhodes or were not under Bruce’s thumb. Flag: place #17 & 18 above are none other than Doug’s most ardent and vocal lackeys, YET combined, they got less than 3% of all signatures. Flag: Bruce sandbagged, not even filling one petition sheet (15 measly signatures) !!? Was he too busy bossing the others?
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