DENVER – Colorado’s state constitution is confusing and easy to change. New Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper says efforts to revise the state constitution are “a huge issue” – but Hickenlooper isn’t ready to say what he thinks should be done.

The governor talked about Colorado’s muddy state constitution in a lunch talk Thursday with newspaper editors and publishers. Hickenlooper was asked about proposals from lawmakers in both parties to address confusing language in the state constitution, or at least change how easily the document itself can be changed.

“I think that those conflicting elements in the constitution are a huge issue. But I’m not sure I want to come out and say, ‘Alright, here’s my plan to solve it.’ Because as soon as I do that, I begin to color the conversation,” Hickenlooper said.

Colorado has a relatively low petition threshold to put constitutional amendments before voters. Also, the current state constitution includes budgetary limitations that sometimes conflict with each other – most notably a requirement that many taxes can’t be raised without a public vote, alongside another requirement that K-12 education spending rise to keep pace with inflation. Legislative leaders from both parties have proposed making it harder to change the state constitution.

The governor insisted his public neutrality doesn’t mean he isn’t taking seriously the calls to change the constitution.

“Is it a good idea to make it so easy to put something on the ballot to change the state constitution? We are, I think, the easiest state in the country, or very close to it, to put something on the ballot. Those are the kinds of questions everybody should be discussing. And they shouldn’t be thinking, ‘I’m against the governor’ or ‘I’m for the governor,’” Hickenlooper said.