Posted inNews

Colorado governor, lawmakers unveil plan to slash property taxes by $700M to head off business group’s ballot measure

Colorado property owners would get a $700 million break on their rising tax bills over the next two years under a plan unveiled Monday by Gov. Jared Polis and state lawmakers that’s aimed at preventing a business group from pursuing an even larger reduction in November.  The legislature, in a deal reached in the final […]

Posted inNews, Politics and Government

A Democrat wants Colorado voters to eliminate a Capitol delay tactic the GOP has used many times

Colorado Republicans don’t have enough votes to stop legislation at the state Capitol. They haven’t in almost four years.  So when the GOP wants to try to prevent the Democratic majority from passing a bill, they really have only one tactic: delay.  The main way Republicans have tried — sometimes successfully — to slow down […]

Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns

Opinion: As a rabbi and former lawyer, I see reforming Colorado’s system for sealing arrest records as a moral imperative

As a spiritual leader of B’nai Havurah, the Denver Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation, I have a moral obligation to support efforts that advance second chances and create greater equity and opportunity for all people. I am particularly moved to protect those most harmed by injustice and marginalization.  That is why I strongly support House Bill 1214, […]

Posted inElection 2020, Opinion, Opinion Columns

Opinion: Prop. 116 would divert money from schools and health care. Why you should vote no.

A good rule of thumb when you find yourself in a hole is to stop digging. Coloradans are working to overcome many difficulties right now. The worst thing that could happen is approving Proposition 116 (formerly known as Initiative 306), which would take even more money out of our schools and our health care system […]

Posted inBusiness, Crime and Courts, News, Politics and Government

Colorado’s consumer protection laws are getting much tougher — and that could help with the state’s opioid lawsuit

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser campaigned on a platform of protecting the state’s consumers from bad-acting businesses. But when he took office in January, he quickly believed that the state’s laws provided him with an arsenal of spitballs to battle a problem that really needed a cannonball-sized solution. “I took office and very quickly there […]

Posted inGrowth

Colorado is set to invest more in affordable housing than ever before. And it nearly spent even more.

Colorado’s set to make what could be the largest ongoing investments in affordable housing in the state’s history. And yet, some housing advocates will walk away a little disappointed about what might have been. Just days ago, a package of bills moving through the state legislature would have invested more than $600 million in affordable […]

Posted inBusiness, Politics and Government

Lawmakers take aim at disclosure loopholes in Colorado lobbying laws

Colorado lawmakers have introduced a measure to eliminate loopholes in lobbying laws and require more disclosure to the public, part of an effort to address long-standing concerns about transparency. The legislation — House Bill 1248 — would require more frequent reporting by lobbyists what bills they were hired to track and the position taken by […]

Posted inBusiness, Politics and Government

Dark money and disclosure gaps are priorities for new state election chief, Democrats

Political flyers with no mention of who paid for them. Mailers that mention candidates, but with no disclosure of the donors who covered the cost of the messages. Nonprofits donating millions of dollars to super PACs, with no ability for voters to learn where the money came from. And an enforcement system that relies on […]