More than 160 cities, towns and counties opted out of Senate Bill 152, and some built their own gigabit service that was 4,000 times faster. But there were other reasons for the repeal.
Colorado Municipal League
Posted inBusiness, Climate, Energy, Environment, News, Politics and Government
Colorado gave local governments more power to regulate oil and gas. And some are using it.
Empowered by a new state law and regulations, towns, cities and counties across the Front Range are flexing their muscle and moving to regulate oil and gas operations that come to town. Two years ago this month, sweeping legislation was signed into law reorienting Colorado’s approach to regulating oil and gas development. That in turn […]
Posted inHousing, News, Politics and Government
Colorado cities can’t force developers to build affordable housing. Democratic lawmakers want to change that.
More than two decades ago, Telluride’s leaders were grappling with the growing pains of a booming resort industry. Housing prices shot up, forcing many workers to live outside of San Miguel County. The town responded by passing an ordinance in 1994 requiring developers to create affordable housing for a portion of the new workers generated […]
Posted inElection 2020, News, Politics and Government
Amendment 76 explained: More than just affirming only citizens can vote in Colorado elections
On first glance, Amendment 76 looks redundant. Colorado’s current constitution states that “every citizen” of the U.S. who is 18 or older, has state residency and is registered to vote can participate in elections. Amendment 76 seeks to change that language to “only a citizen.” Federal, state and local elections in Colorado are already only […]
Posted inBusiness, Energy, Environment, News, Politics and Government
Colorado is quickly becoming a patchwork of oil and gas rules after a major law change
When county commissioners met this summer to ponder local control of oil and gas operations in Boulder County, residents came with signs proclaiming “I am over O&G’s $ influence.” In Weld County there were “Recall Jared Polis” T-shirts — a sartorial critique of the governor who signed the new oil and gas legislation. The audience […]
Posted inGrowth, News, Politics and Government, Transportation
Colorado is spending record sums on transportation. But state highways are getting less.
By the end of the new fiscal year, Colorado state lawmakers will have pumped a record-setting $1.7 billion extra into transportation over a two-year stretch, with over $1 billion more on the way. But they also made history in another way, to little fanfare: For the first time, lawmakers are sending money from the state’s […]
Posted inBusiness, News, Politics and Government
Here’s how Colorado Democrats aim to close the gender pay gap, starting with more wage transparency
When Joyce Sterling, a law professor at the University of Denver, studied pay discrepancies among lawyers in the 1990s, she quickly learned there was a big pay gap between men and women with the same skill set. A key finding? “Women don’t always know they’re paid less,” she said. More than a decade later, she […]
Posted inColoradans, News, Politics and Government
Sam Mamet, Colorado’s man for all municipalities and a fixture in state politics, says “So long!”
VAIL — Sam Mamet has been to every hall of power in every corner of Colorado, advising local leaders on how best to support their communities. And they’re always glad he came. Since 1979, Mamet has championed local governance for the Colorado Municipal League. As the executive director of the 96-year-old nonpartisan group representing Colorado’s […]
Posted inBusiness, Environment, News, Politics and Government
Colorado’s ban on banning plastics has cities’ plans to outlaw single-use bags and straws in limbo
On its way to considering a ban on those flimsy disposable plastic grocery store bags, the city of Denver found out it can’t. Apparently, there is a Colorado law that bans municipalities from banning plastics, and Denver isn’t the only one to be taken aback. This may seem peculiar in a state where at least […]
Posted inBusiness, Growth, News, Politics and Government
Across Colorado, taxpayers granted Gallagher tax relief to a record number of fire protection districts
A record number of Colorado special taxing districts — largely those in charge of fire protection — asked voters for tax relief on Tuesday. And overwhelmingly, voters approved requests to escape the constitutional stranglehold that has choked special district-budgets in recent years. More than 120 special districts — including several metropolitan, a few library and […]