For just the second time, the Colorado General Assembly is giving the public the chance to comment on how the state should spend billions of dollars. The Joint Budget Committee — a panel of six lawmakers that crafts the $32 billion spending bill — will take public testimony Monday at 1:30 p.m. in the Legislative […]
2020 legislative session
Posted inPolitics and Government, Technology
Where’s the line between political speech and credible threats? A Colorado bill is asking the question.
Kyle Mullica opens his email and finds one he received last year after introducing a bill at the state Capitol. The expletive-laden missive ends with this message: “The world would be better if your home burned down with you and your family in it.” The first-term state representative scrolls to find another message. This one […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, News, Politics and Government
Colorado renters may have eviction records even though they’ve never been evicted. Lawmakers want to change that.
Every time an eviction case is filed by a landlord in Colorado, it produces a court record, even if the tenant wins and gets the case dismissed. Those eviction filing records are swiftly scraped up by third-party tenant screening companies that use them to produce rental reports for landlords that aren’t always accurate. “And so […]
Posted inEducation, News, Politics and Government
Colorado could soon expand protections for student journalists by shielding their advisers from retaliation
Colorado lawmakers this year hope to broaden First Amendment protections for the state’s student journalists by passing legislation shielding public school employees who work with them from administrative retaliation. The bill would also broaden explicit free speech protections for student journalists to include audio and visual storytelling platforms. “This bill will update our law in […]
Posted inAnnotated, News, Politics and Government
Gov. Jared Polis wants to go even bigger in 2020. Here’s his State of the State address, annotated.
Gov. Jared Polis celebrated his first-year wins during his second State of the State address Thursday, imploring the General Assembly to go even further by expanding preschool education and reducing Colorado’s prison population. He also urged lawmakers to cut prescription drug costs and create a government-managed public option health care system. The Democratic chief executive’s […]
Posted inColoradans, Education, News, Politics and Government
Republicans put education atop their priority list at the Capitol. We look at 8 of their ideas.
A school safety assessment for each district. A bonus for high-rated teachers. A scholarship for students who graduate high school early. And a tax credit for teachers who buy school supplies for their students. The ideas are part of a package of 24 bills put forward by Republican lawmakers on the opening day of the […]
Posted inAnnotated, News, Politics and Government
In Colorado House, Democrats celebrate achievements and promise more. Here’s the agenda, annotated.
In remarks to open the 2020 legislative session, House Speaker KC Becker outlined the Democratic majority’s lengthy agenda — which touched on everything from criminal justice reform to tackling the burgeoning cost of health care. The Boulder lawmaker made clear Democrats plan to continue their far-reaching effort to reshape the state that began a year […]
Posted inAnnotated, News, Politics and Government
Colorado’s Senate president was unusually progressive in his opening remarks. Here they are, annotated.
New year, new Senate President Leroy Garcia. The Pueblo Democrat struck an uncharacteristically liberal tone during his opening day remarks Wednesday as Colorado’s 2020 legislative session got underway at the Capitol. While the address was thin on policy specifics, Garcia delved into issues like socioeconomic class disparities and money in politics. He also spent a […]
Posted inPolitics and Government, Transportation
Before Colorado’s legislative session starts, transportation spending sits at impasse and frustration is mounting
The Colorado General Assembly convenes Wednesday at a familiar impasse about how to improve the state’s roads and reduce traffic congestion – one that appears headed for more political theatrics this session. The Democratic majority is reiterating their position that new revenue through taxes or fees is required to meet the state’s roughly $9 billion […]
Posted inBusiness, Education, Energy, Environment, Growth, Health, News, Politics and Government, Transportation
Colorado’s 2020 legislative session begins this week. Here’s a rundown of 10 issues to watch.
A year after engineering a major policy shift in Colorado, the Democratic-led General Assembly returns to the state Capitol this week with much left on its to-do list. Like the 2019 session, the question this year is how far the party will go in the 120-day lawmaking term to reshape how Colorado provides health care, […]