Senate Ethics Committee appears skeptical of Faith Winter’s story

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The Colorado Senate Ethics Committee voted unanimously Thursday to advance its investigation into a complaint filed by the Northglenn City Council against state Sen. Faith Winter for appearing to be intoxicated at a community meeting in April.

The committee discussed the evidence against Winter during a three-hour hearing at the Capitol. Some highlights:

• Winter admitted to drinking alcohol before the Northglenn event, but not in excess. “I expected the meeting to be emotionally charged, so I had a drink before walking in,” she said in a written statement to the ethics committee, asking for the complaint to be dismissed. (The gathering was about a state plan to open a controversial mental health transitional living facility.) However, Winter appeared to be so intoxicated — her speech was slurring and halting, according to a video recording — that police officers at the event encouraged her to get a ride home and the next day she entered treatment for substance abuse.
• Winter, the assistant Senate majority leader, cited the culture of alcohol use at the Capitol in her response, saying “it is used in many ways, including promoting camaraderie and as a coping mechanism.”
• “Though I regret having a drink before entering the April 3 community meeting, and I would reverse that decision if I could, I can confidently say that I have fulfilled my responsibilities and duties as a senator,” she wrote. “… Northglenn alleges that I consumed alcohol while acting as a senator, but consuming alcohol while acting as a senator is commonplace in this state, so much so that it is widely publicized.”
• Winter submitted a letter from a doctor saying she is being treated for substance abuse and taking medication to curb alcohol cravings “and has demonstrated a strong commitment towards achieving her treatment goal.”

Members of the bipartisan committee wrestled this week with how to evaluate the complaint.

“One of the big questions we have is: Was Senator Winter acting in her official capacity as a senator at the meeting on April 3?” said state Sen. Dylan Roberts, a Frisco Democrat who sits on the panel.

SOME SKEPTICISM TOWARD WINTER

Members of the committee appeared to be skeptical of parts of Winter’s letter.

• Several members rejected Winter’s link between her actions at the Northglenn meeting and the Capitol drinking culture. “I am incredibly troubled about that,” Sen. Bob Gardner, R-Colorado Springs, said. “We make this culture, we are the culture.” Roberts said he strongly disagrees that the Capitol culture is to blame for Winter’s behavior.
• Winter wrote in her letter that she was never invited to speak at the April 3 meeting in Northglenn. Committee members raised questions about that claim. “I think there was an expectation, at least by those who organized the meeting, that she was there not only to be in attendance, but to be on the panel speaking,” Roberts said.
• Winter also wrote that she hadn’t received any letters from constituents expressing that they have lost confidence in her. Denver Democratic Sen. Julie Gonzales, however, said there were plenty of people raising concern. “There are a number of emails from constituents to the Northglenn City Council,” she said. “Not one, but two public bodies (the Northglenn and Westminster city councils) discussed that behavior.”

The committee unanimously voted at the end of their meeting Thursday that probable cause exists that Winter committed misconduct in her official capacity. They also voted to give Gonzales, the panel’s chair, subpoena power to gather additional materials and testimony should they be needed.

Winter now has seven days to request a hearing at which she would be able to testify, present evidence and cross-examine witnesses while being represented by a lawyer. The hearing would have to happen 14 days after it is requested.

After the hearing, or if Winter doesn’t request one, the panel will vote to either dismiss the complaint or find that action should be taken against Winter, including in the form of a reprimand, censure or expulsion.

MATT GRAY COMES TO WINTER’S DEFENSE

Former state Rep. Matt Gray, who abandoned his 2022 reelection bid after being arrested on suspicion of drunken driving while attempting to pick his kids up from school, posted on social media that Winter was being forced to “experience a protracted hearing about one of the worst days of her life after apologizing many times.”

“Congrats to Northglenn and Colorado taxpayers,” he said, also referring to Winter in the post as his fiancee.

DO THE MATH

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All but about $84,000 of that cash has gone to support Marisol Rodriguez, an education consultant who focuses on charter schools, in her race against former Boulder Valley School Board President Kathy Gebhardt. The outcome of the race could swing the 5-4 majority on the state board that is willing to overturn local school districts when they deny charter school applications.

The cash supporting Rodriguez has come from the super PAC Progressives Supporting Teachers and Students, as we reported Wednesday. Since that story, the super PAC has spent $53,000 on a mailer opposing Gebhardt, $126,000 on internet ads supporting Rodriguez and opposing Gebhardt and $51,000 on a mailer supporting Rodriguez.

Progressives Supporting Teachers and Students is funded by the Colorado League of Charter Schools independent spending committee, which gets its money from an affiliated nonprofit that doesn’t disclose its donors.

Colorado Labor Action, funded primarily by the Colorado Education Association, has spent about $42,000 in support of Gebhardt. Colorado Education Association Victory Fund spent $41,000 on a mailer supporting her this week.

MORE MONEY IN THE 3RD CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

In the six-way Republican primary in Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District, the Congressional Leadership Fund, a Republican super PAC tied to House Speaker Mike Johnson, increased its spending in opposition to former state Rep. Ron Hanks.

The group has now dropped about $434,000 on a TV ad attacking Hanks and labeling him a “liberal” — which is laughable if you know anything about Hanks.

That’s more than the nearly $415,000 spent by the Democratic super PAC Rocky Mountain Values boosting Hanks.

Democrats see Hanks as the easiest candidate for Democrat Adam Frisch to beat in November, and national Republicans seem to agree. (Frisch this week started running ads attacking Hanks’ leading primary opponent, Grand Junction attorney Jeff Hurd.)

Hanks had a few words about the advertising when reached by The Unaffiliated.

“Rocky Mountain Values has more truth and integrity in advertisements than Speaker Mike Johnson has in his,” Hanks said. “We are dead set on winning this (primary) and we feel we’re going to win this. And I think Adam Frisch is eminently defeatable in the general election.”

Colorado GOP Vice Chairwoman Hope Scheppelman shared Frisch’s ad attacking Hurd in a Republican Facebook group in an effort to support Hanks. (The state party has endorsed Hanks, an ally of Colorado GOP Chairman Dave Williams.)

Just one thing: The version of the ad shared by Scheppelman cuts off the disclaimer that it came from Frisch’s campaign.

THE NARRATIVE

FEC report clearly shows Colorado GOP spending to directly benefit Chairman Dave Williams

The Colorado GOP spent nearly $20,000 in late May to help party Chairman Dave Williams in his 5th District Congressional campaign.

That represented the largest single expense of the nearly $90,000 the party spent in May, according to a Federal Election Commission filing late Thursday. The party raised about $56,000 last month and began June with about $550,000 in the bank.

Williams has faced intense criticism for using party resources to benefit his congressional bid as he faces conservative commentator and activist Jeff Crank in the Republican primary in the 5th District. Last week, in an interview with 9News, Williams denied using party money on his campaign.

“There’s been no direct spending from the party for myself,” he said.

But the FEC report filed by the Colorado GOP late Thursday clearly refutes that claim. It discloses $19,445.29 spent by the party in support of Williams’ congressional campaign. No other candidates directly benefited from party spending last month.

The Colorado GOP sent a mailer in late May promoting Williams and his endorsement from Donald Trump. The FEC report says the $19,445.29 was spent by the party to support Williams’ congressional campaign May 28, the same day The Sun received a copy of the mailer. (The report doesn’t say what the money was spent on, just that it was spent to support Williams.)

The party sent two more mailers in early June promoting Williams and attacking Crank. The Colorado GOP’s June spending won’t be revealed until late July.

The Colorado GOP’s largest contributions in May were nearly $17,000 from the Douglas County Republican Central Committee and nearly $5,000 from the Weld County Republican Central Committee.

The party’s donations included $2,350 from four candidates endorsed by the party, including $1,000 from former state Rep. Ron Hanks, who is running in the six-way GOP primary in the 3rd Congressional District.

The GOP paid party Treasurer Tom Bjorklund’s consulting firm $11,750 in May, and Williams’ firm $8,000. It also sent a $10,000 donation to the Claremont Institute in California, which employs attorney and election denier John Eastman, who is representing the party in a federal lawsuit seeking to block unaffiliated voters from casting ballots in Republican primaries.

A California judge recommended Eastman be disbarred for his actions of trying to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election to keep Trump in office.

Colorado Democrats reported raising $113,000 in May while spending $102,000. The party ended the month with $384,000 in cash. The Democratic National Committee was responsible for much of that fundraising, as well as Democratic candidates paying the party for voter lists.

COLORADO GOP SPENDING IN THE 8TH DISTRICT

The Colorado GOP paid for a mailer sent this week to voters in the 8th Congressional District promoting former state Rep. Janak Joshi and attacking state Rep. Gabe Evans in the Republican primary there.

Joshi was endorsed by the Colorado GOP.

The mailer paints Evans as disloyal to Trump and weak on tax policy and abortion.

Evans is the preferred choice of national Republicans to take on Democratic U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo in November in the highly competitive district.

THE POLITICAL TICKER

HOUSE DISTRICT 6

U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse, D-Lafayette, this week endorsed Denver attorney Sean Camacho in his Democratic primary bid against state Rep. Elisabeth Epps. “Sean has proven that he has what it takes to represent the people of Colorado’s House District 6,” Neguse said in a written statement. “I’m proud to support Sean because I know he will work hard to create and protect the opportunities that all Coloradans deserve.”

DCCC

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has reserved $1.55 million in TV ad time in the Denver media market leading up to the November election, part of a $28 million initiative across eight states. The time will likely be used for ads to help Democratic U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo of Thornton win her reelection bid in the highly competitive 8th Congressional District.

THE LOBBY

Randy Drennen, who previously served as the vice president of the Colorado Contractors Association, has been named the executive director of the Rocky Mountain Mechanical Contractors Association. Bradford begins work in July and takes over from Dave Davia, who is now president and CEO of Colorado Concern. “I’m looking forward to partnering with the RMMCA Board and labor partners in promoting workforce and business development opportunities and advocating for business-friendly policies that will benefit the skilled trades industry in Colorado,” Drennen said in a written statement.

TRENT LEISY

Republican Trent Leisy filed an amended quarterly Federal Election Commission report for April on Tuesday after The Unaffiliated earlier in the day reported that his previous filing declared no donations or expenditures and made no mention of an outstanding $100,000 loan Leisy said he made to his campaign in October. The updated report Leisy submitted Tuesday mentioned the loan, along with $1,700 in contributions and spending of less than $100. Leisy also submitted a note to the FEC trying to explain discrepancies in his previous filings. Leisy exited the 4th District race in March, but his FEC account remains active —and purportedly he has $101,000 in leftover campaign funds sitting around. He is now running to represent state House District 65 in northern Colorado.

READ MORE

• Elisabeth Epps, Tim Hernández — two of the Colorado legislature’s most liberal lawmakers — battle to keep their jobs
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• An experiment doled out money to homeless people in Denver, no strings attached. Here’s what happened.  
• Only one Colorado town lets nonresidents vote. Now it’s considering adding LLCs to voter rolls.
• Elisabeth Epps’ nonprofit raises questions about transparency, conflicts
  — Axios Denver
• Colorado GOP chair does not believe his anti-gay rhetoric is “hate”
  — 9News
• Black lawmakers rejoice as Juneteenth donations give final boost to launch Colorado racial equity study
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• Colorado is about to elect a six-month member of Congress. What can they actually get done?
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• Ahead of contentious primary, Republican voters in El Paso County consider who they want to send to Congress
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• Only 1 Colorado rancher has been paid following a wolf depredation this year. Why?
  — The Vail Daily
• Denver finally puts a price tag on Mayor Mike Johnston’s homelessness initiative
  — The Denver Post 🔑

🔑 = source has article meter or paywall

REVENUE FORECASTS

Early TABOR forecasts give Democrats upper hand in tax deal

When Colorado lawmakers first announced the bipartisan tax deal that brought back automatic income tax cuts under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, we noted in The Unaffiliated that those tax cuts may not happen as often as conservatives would like.

Remember: That deal, struck between Democratic Gov. Jared Polis and top lawmakers in both parties, was negotiated as a trade-off for both sides.

Progressives in the legislature got tax credits for low-income parents and workers. Polis and conservatives got an across-the-board temporary income tax cut in years when the TABOR surplus exceeds $300 million. And all of the above would grow or shrink depending on the size of the surplus.

Two months later, a scenario where progressives get their cake (in the form of tax credits) and eat it, too, (by avoiding an income tax cut) doesn’t just seem plausible — legislative forecasters say it could happen as soon as next budget year.

On Thursday, economists with Colorado Legislative Council Staff and the governor’s Office of State Planning and Budgeting presented their first quarterly revenue forecasts since the TABOR overhaul was passed into law.

Notably, both forecasts anticipate the tax credits being triggered to their maximum amount in the 2025 and 2026 tax years. But neither one expects the maximum tax cut to kick in amid slowing economic growth.

“Even though we’re expecting pretty weak revenue performance in this year and next fiscal year, we still think that the revenue forecast … is going to be sufficient to fully turn on those credits,” Greg Sobetski, the chief legislative economist told the Joint Budget Committee.

If you’re a progressive, the TABOR forecast from legislative analysts is something of a dream scenario. Next budget year, it calls for maximum tax credits, no income tax cut and, as a cherry on top, the remaining refunds are expected to be so small they would be distributed evenly to all taxpayers, rather based on income under the six-tier sales tax refund system.

If you’re a conservative, that’s probably not your preferred use of the TABOR surplus. While most Republicans supported the legislation that revamped the refund mechanisms, they generally opposed the new tax credits for low-income families.

CREDITS COME FIRST

So why would the tax credits get activated but not the tax cuts? It has to do with how they’re triggered — and when.

The tax credits kick in if the December revenue forecast expects General Fund revenue to grow by at least 2% in the following year’s budget (or 3% after 2026). The tax credits reach their maximum level at a 3.75% compound annual growth rate — something that’s expected to happen in each of the next two tax years.

Meanwhile, the tax cuts only kick in if there’s at least $300 million left in the TABOR surplus after a senior property tax break is accounted for. And in Colorado budget-land, credits always come first, reducing the surplus before a tax cut can be triggered.

Here’s how it would shake out if the current forecasts hold up:

• In the current budget year, which ends June 30, both forecasts generally agree. After accounting for tax credits, the state would have a surplus of around $1.4 billion. Of that, around $800 million will be distributed through the six-tier sales tax refund and $166 million will cover a senior property tax break. Income taxes would be cut by 0.15%, or over $460 million, their maximum amount.
• In the 2024-25 budget, which starts July 1, both forecasts call for the maximum amount of tax credits — around $800 million that low-income residents could claim on their 2025 taxes. The governor’s forecast would have $695 million leftover, enough for a small tax cut and $374 million in sales tax refunds, distributed by household income. The legislative forecast has just $328 million left — enough to cover the senior homestead exemption and give everyone a $26 flat sales tax refund.
• In the 2025-26 budget, the credits are expected to max out again at around $900 million. But both forecasts expect some tax cuts — just not the full amount. The governor’s forecast expects a $290 million income tax cut, while legislative council staff predict a $400 million tax cut.

One thing to watch: Only the governor’s December forecast will matter for the 2025 tax year. Under the law, whichever forecast the JBC picked to set the budget controls the following year’s tax credits and cuts.

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

THE BIGGER PICTURE

• Could AI reject your resume? California tries to prevent a new kind of discrimination
  — CalMatters
• Why Democrats think Biden’s problem is Biden
  — Politico
• Biden’s lead with women is smaller than Trump’s with men, a warning for Democrats
  — The New York Times 🔑
• Trump’s campaign has lost whatever substance it once had
  — The Atlantic 🔑

🔑 = source has article meter or paywall

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.