Will Sundance ditch Utah for Colorado?

---

I’ve been spending a lot more time at the creek near my house. Despite the fact that my allergies are trying to kill me this year, I’m loving this lush season of foliage at the water’s edge. I learned from a faded trailside sign that most of the trees are either Plains cottonwoods, peachleaf willows or crack willows, and I find a new favorite every day. Once I pick one out, I’ve been trying to identify it and study its grand form, but I also spend a lot of mornings just staring up into a tangle of branches, sniffling and trying not to touch my eyes.

If you like picking favorites, help us pick out Colorado’s Best! Voting is open now. Let us know about the best hike in the northeast, the best bakery on the Western Slope or the best barber in Denver.

Unfortunately there’s no best tree category, but I don’t think I’d be able to pick just one anyway.

Here’s the news.

THE NEWS

GOVERNMENT & POLITICS

Colorado ends budget year $164M in the red with potential tax cuts looming on November ballot

---

One accounting maneuver and one accounting misstep have pulled Colorado’s state budget into a $164 million hole, forcing the state to dip into its reserves. And that’s before taking into account the $2 billion to $3 billion in proposed tax cuts on the November ballot. Brian Eason breaks it down.

READ MORE

• Colorado tribes want to get into lucrative online sports betting. But a long-running dispute with the state is getting in the way. A ballot measure could lift a cap on revenue that the state collects from sports gambling, potentially generating millions of dollars for water programs. As Jerd Smith reports, tribes want in on the action, but their tax-exempt status is creating friction.

---

OUTDOORS

Two teens rescue skier in Skywalker Couloir using skills they learned on Eldora ski patrol

Bodhi Governson and Malachi Brooks, two Front Range teens who have been skiing “since they were able to walk,” were partway down the Skywalker Couloir in the Indian Peaks when a skier went tumbling by. Luckily for the fallen skier, Governson and Brooks have been training as ski patrollers since they were 16 and 15 years old, and the pair immediately snapped into action. Tracy Ross has what happened next.

READ MORE

• Boulder climber, mentor were the first women to set a new Flatirons climbing route. Now you can watch them do it. “Here to Climb” documents professional climbers Sasha DiGiulian and Lynn Hill as they establish the first ascent of The Queen Line, a three-pitch route in the Flatirons.

---

ARTS

Boulder tries to persuade Sundance Film Festival to ditch Utah and move to Colorado

---

The prestigious Sundance Film Festival is a big point of pride for Park City, Utah, but lately it seems the festival — which attracts over 100,000 visitors each year — has outgrown the 8,000-person mountain town. In April, the Sundance Institute put out a call for new host cities. On Thursday, Boulder threw its hat in the ring. Parker Yamasaki has more.

READ MORE

---

ENERGY

Are new tariffs on solar good or bad for Colorado?

In early June the Biden administration ended a two-year “pause” on tariffs for solar panel parts from Asian countries as part of a long-term plan to bolster U.S.-based renewable energy parts. The reinstated tariffs, up to 50% on solar panel parts, are combined with billions of dollars in tax credit subsidies for U.S. manufacturers. So how does that affect Colorado’s clean energy industry? According to Michael Booth, “it’s complicated.”

READ MORE

---

MORE NEWS

• It’s a pup! Colorado wildlife officials confirm Grand County wolves have reproduced. A gray wolf pup was spotted in Grand County, and it’s likely up to five others were born. The group of wolves released in December is now officially a pack.  
• FACT BRIEF: Did Colorado wildlife workers try heavy metal music to scare a bear out of a tree? During a six-hour stalemate with a bear in a tree, Colorado Parks and Wildlife turned to some creative solutions. Justin George explores how black bears feel about Black Sabbath.

---

THE COLORADO REPORT

• Search continues for 3 children last seen in Arvada around 11 a.m. Thursday. Police said Friday there are “concerns” for the safety of three children — Enfinity, 13; Craig, 10; and Damian, 7 — who have not been seen since Thursday morning.
  — 9News
• Bear conflicts are increasing in one of Colorado’s busiest resort areas. Local governments have instituted trash ordinances with mixed results in preventing human-bear conflicts, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
  — Summit Daily
• DIA’s new West Security Checkpoint is saving travelers time, officials say. The state-of-the-art screening area opened in the northwestern corner of the airport’s Level 6, and early data suggests it’s speeding things up for travelers.
  — The Denver Post 🔑
• Denver PrideFest celebrates a milestone this weekend. Here’s a look back at 50 years of the celebration. The event has evolved over the years from its modest beginnings, growing during good times but also during times of adversity for Colorado’s LGBTQ community.
  — KUNC

🔑 = source has article meter or paywall

THE OPINION PAGE

COMMUNITY

• Training foreign doctors already in Colorado will go a long way to solving state’s physician shortage.  My Denver hospital has a model to train talented foreign M.D.s, and it needs more state support to grow
  — Philip Fung, M.D., an academic hospitalist at Denver Health  

CARTOONS

Jim Morrissey notes that Colorado has become the first state to enact an AI law, but lawmakers already are planning changes. Will they be enough?

CARTOON

In “What’d I Miss?” Ossie and Myra reflect on social media’s penchant for promoting bad information, and have some suggestions for judging its reliability.

CARTOON

Drew Litton observes that whatever you think of the big book chain Barnes & Noble, it did rescue a flailing Colorado institution.

CARTOON

The Colorado Sun is a nonpartisan news organization, and the opinions of columnists and editorial writers do not reflect the opinions of the newsroom. Read our ethics policy for more on The Sun’s opinion policy and submit columns, suggest writers or provide feedback at opinion@coloradosun.com.

Podcast Playlist

CONVERSATION

Each weekday The Daily Sun-Up podcast brings you a bit of Colorado history, headlines and a thoughtful conversation. We keep it tight so you can quickly listen, or stack up a few and tune in at your leisure. You can download the Sun-Up for free in your favorite podcasting app, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or RSS to plug into your app. This week we hit on national monument pushback and the upcoming primary.

• “We don’t want Moab in Colorado.” The discussion about a potential national monument for 400,000 acres around the Dolores River is heating up. Outdoors reporter Jason Blevins talks about the community meeting where Sen. Michael Bennet heard from many frustrated residents.
  LISTEN
• A look inside our event Climate Change Hits Home. Environmental reporter Michael Booth is hosting a free online event July 9, and he takes a few minutes on the Sun-Up to talk about his panel and where the conversation about insurance changes due to climate change will go.
  LISTEN
• Local tech companies question Colorado’s new AI law. Business and tech reporter Tamara Chuang has more behind-the-scenes insight about the recent bill the governor signed and possible changes after swift pushback from surprised local tech companies.
  LISTEN
• Meddling in the Republican primary in a hotly contested race. Ahead of Tuesday’s primary, money is pouring into the Republican race in the 3rd Congressional District. And you may be surprised by who is responsible for the spending. Sun political reporters Jesse Paul and Brian Eason break down what the influx is aimed at accomplishing.
  LISTEN
• How did we die in 2023? This and other topics, like teen pot use declining and big solar news from the Western Slope as the Temperature team of Michael Booth and John Ingold talk all things health and environment.
  LISTEN

🗣️ Remember, you can ask Siri, Alexa or Google to “play the Daily Sun-Up podcast” and we’ll play right on your smart speaker. As always we appreciate your feedback and comments at podcast@coloradosun.com.

---

Off to the creek I go.

— Parker & the whole staff of The Sun

Corrections & Clarifications

Notice something wrong? The Colorado Sun has an ethical responsibility to fix all factual errors. Request a correction by emailing corrections@coloradosun.com.

Type of Story: News

Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.