A bipartisan effort to clarify how much money political nonprofits can spend supporting or opposing Colorado ballot measures before they have to disclose their donors would likely allow the so-called dark-money groups to keep their finances secret in most cases. Two political nonprofits that often work against each other on Colorado ballot initiatives — the […]
Chris Holbert
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
Colorado Republicans’ hopes of winning in 2022 clash this week with 2020 election deniers
Colorado Republicans’ hopes for winning in November could hinge on a clash this week between those in the party still focused on baseless claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen and those who want to focus on the future. The GOP’s state assembly, where Republican primary candidates will be selected by party insiders, is […]
Posted inBusiness, Marijuana, News, Politics and Government
Colorado employers would no longer be able to fire their workers for using cannabis if a new bill passes
Colorado employers would be prohibited from denying employment to or firing workers because of their off-the-clock cannabis use – either medical or recreational – under a measure introduced last week at the statehouse. House Bill 1152 would also require employers to let their workers consume medical marijuana while on the job. The legislation would include […]
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
“A fighting tone”: Colorado Republicans are heading into the 2022 legislative session on the offensive
Republicans in the Colorado legislature have been mostly playing defense over the past three years. But that posture is changing in 2022, an election year that will determine whether conservatives will remain relegated to the sidelines of Colorado politics. This year, Republicans are going on the offensive. Republicans see the 2022 legislative session that began […]
Posted inEducation, News, Politics and Government
Proposition 119, which would have raised Colorado marijuana taxes to pay for out-of-school learning, fails
Colorado voters on Tuesday rejected a proposal to increase taxes on recreational marijuana to pay for out-of-school support services for students like tutoring and therapy. Supporters of Proposition 119 admitted defeat at about 8:30 p.m. With more than a million ballots counted at 10 p.m., the measure was failing with 54% rejecting the initiative and […]
Posted inEducation, Health, News, Politics and Government
Colorado Senate passes bill making it easier for children to receive cannabis-based medication at school
Colorado’s Senate has passed legislation to make it easier for children with complicated medical conditions to receive cannabis-based medication at school. Wednesday’s 33-1 vote sends the bill to the House. One champion of the legislation is Republican Senate minority leader Chris Holbert, who cited emotional testimony by Benjamin Wann, a Douglas County student who takes a cannabis-based […]
Posted inBusiness, COVID, Economy, Health, Housing, News, Politics and Government, Transportation
Colorado lawmakers, governor unveil $700M state economic stimulus plan. Here’s where the money will go.
Top Democratic and Republican state lawmakers on Wednesday joined Gov. Jared Polis to unveil the broad strokes of a roughly $700 million state economic stimulus plan, most of which is set to go to “shovel-ready” infrastructure projects, including repairs to the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnels and Interstate 70 bridges The shovel-ready projects will total $170 million, […]
Posted inEducation, News, Politics and Government
As Colorado legislature reconvenes, leaders pledge funds for K-12, higher education
By Jason Gonzales and Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat Colorado Colorado lawmakers returned to work Tuesday with Democratic leaders pledging to restore cuts made to K-12 and higher education during the early months of the pandemic last year and to invest more in education. “The uphill recovery and the many daunting tasks before us may be mighty, […]
Posted inBig Idea, COVID, News, Politics and Government
Big idea: Republicans think Colorado should rethink how much emergency power a governor should have
In theory, Gov. Jared Polis could keep Colorado under emergency-declaration status for as long as he’s leading the state, giving himself broad powers that he wouldn’t otherwise be able to wield during calmer times. Big spending? Yes. Suspending regulations? That’s OK. Creating temporary laws? The governor has that power. Republicans in the Colorado legislature want […]
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
U.S. Census delays are threatening to upend Colorado’s new redistricting process
Delays by the U.S. Census Bureau in sharing detailed population data are threatening to upend Colorado’s new redistricting process ahead of the 2022 election, injecting uncertainty into a politically fraught undertaking that will affect the state’s political landscape for the next decade. Because of slowdowns related to COVID-19, the Trump administration’s failed efforts to add […]