Colorado lawmakers have backed off a measure to introduce new health, safety and operational standards in state jails, instead opting to pursue a study after pushback from sheriffs and counties. It follows the passage of a law last year, heavily opposed by sheriffs, to limit the use of solitary confinement in the state’s largest jails. […]
Colorado lawmakers
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
These Colorado legislative districts are poised to be the new battlegrounds after redistricting
The new Colorado House and Senate maps drawn through the once-in-a-decade redistricting process would shift the state’s legislative battlegrounds. The maps still need final approval from the Colorado Supreme Court, but if they are adopted fights for control of the General Assembly would likely no longer be mostly contained to the Denver area. For instance, […]
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
Colorado lawmakers passed 508 bills during this year’s legislative session. Here are 65 you need to know about.
Colorado lawmakers introduced 623 bills during the 2021 legislative session that ended last week, passing 508 of them and spiking the rest. Democrats were able to advance a number of big policy priorities in their third year in the statehouse majority, including a bill to lower health insurance premiums and a measure to enact new […]
Posted inEducation, News, Politics and Government
Colorado’s education pie just got bigger. Now lawmakers want to give a larger slice to higher-needs students.
Expecting a cash infusion after the Colorado Supreme Court gave its blessing to raising local school district taxes, lawmakers are proposing major changes to how the state spends its education dollars. House Bill 1325 would expand the definition of children living in poverty and qualifying for additional funding and, for the first time, give districts more […]
Posted inEconomy, News, Politics and Government
Colorado lawmakers launch last-minute effort to drive down property taxes and combat skyrocketing assessments
State lawmakers on Wednesday introduced an eleventh-hour bill to temporarily reduce property tax assessment rates, hoping to help Coloradans contend with skyrocketing real estate prices and the rising property tax bills that follow. The measure, Senate Bill 293, would also allow people to put off a portion of their increased residential property tax payments until […]
Posted inBusiness, Health, News, Politics and Government
Colorado lawmakers wage multifront assault on high drug costs
By Markian Hawryluk, Kaiser Health News Tired of waiting for federal action to reduce prescription drug costs, Colorado is acting on its own — even if it must do so with one arm tied behind its back. Unable to set prices or change patent protections, the state is exploring creative legislative and administrative approaches to […]
Posted inBusiness, COVID, News, Politics and Government
Colorado governor signs $34 billion budget into law, setting aside historic reserves and funding $800M stimulus package
Gov. Jared Polis signed Colorado’s $34.1 billion fiscal year 2021-22 budget into law on Monday, restoring cuts made as the coronavirus crisis descended on the state last year while also saving a historic amount for future economic downturns. The Joint Budget Committee, the legislature’s budget-writing panel, had to contend with constantly changing tax-revenue projections that […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, News, Politics and Government
Federal appeals court to consider future of lawsuit over Colorado’s TABOR
The Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will consider whether a long-running lawsuit challenging Colorado’s strict tax and spending limits as unconstitutional can proceed. Colorado Politics reports that a nine-judge panel will consider on Monday a review of the lawsuit, which was filed in 2011 by group of elected officials. The 1992 Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, News, Politics and Government
Here’s what you need to know about Democrats’ gun control bills introduced after the King Soopers shooting
Colorado Democrats on Thursday formally introduced three anticipated gun control bills in response to the Boulder King Soopers mass shooting. The measures would require that a background check be completed before any firearm purchase, regardless of how long it takes, and prohibit people convicted of certain misdemeanors from buying a gun for five years. They […]
Posted inHealth, News, Politics and Government
Dark-money group spends record amount lobbying against Colorado Democrats’ effort to shrink health care costs
A national nonprofit working against Colorado Democrats’ bill to drive down health care costs in the state is setting spending records, with a dark-money nonprofit dropping nearly $560,000 to oppose the measure over a nine-month period. Partnership for America’s Health Care Future, funded by hospitals, insurers and other business interests, is now the top single-year […]