By BRIAN PORTER | The Rocky Mountain Voice
Brian Urdiales, a Realtor and former member of City Council in Fort Morgan, has announced he will seek the Republican nomination for Colorado House District 63, setting up an opposed primary.
The seat is presently held by Rep. Richard Holtorf, R-Akron, the minority whip in the Colorado House of Representatives. Holtorf, who is not seeking re-election, was among the first to enter the race for the U.S. House of Representatives District 4 seat when U.S. Rep. Ken Buck, R-Windsor, announced he would not seek re-election.
“We see the policy in Denver and at the state capitol, and we know in Morgan County and other areas of Eastern Colorado that one size government does not fit all,” Urdiales said.
He opposed top-down government policies while on City Council, such as voting against implementation of the state’s plastic per-bag fee of 10 cents.
“That bag fee is an example of policy that started in Denver and Boulder, and then it was passed in state legislation,” Urdiales said. “I voted against it because it was just a tax on the consumer. Maybe, a better idea could have been some sort of incentive to anyone shopping with cloth bags.”
Similarly, he’s opposes recyclable straws because “what’s in those is bad for the consumer.”
As a member of City Council, Urdiales voted against implementation of state building code, because he was concerned it would raise costs on home builders and buyers.
“They wanted to mandate electric-vehicle plugins in your garage, and required there be room on a sub-panel for solar,” he said. “If we need affordable housing, these are measures that make it more expensive. We could offer a credit to the builder and home buyers instead, for installing these items in construction.”
Urdiales served as an advisor to former U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Yuma, in a capacity with the Colorado and National Association of Realtors.
He became heavily involved with the Colorado Association of Realtors, serving a term as chair of governmental affairs of the state association, and in volunteer work through the national association and in regional leadership. Urdiales served on the Colorado Association of Realtors’ Legislative Political Committee in areas of land and housing. He is a member of the Greeley Area Realtor Association.
Urdiales, a native resident of Fort Morgan, graduated from Fort Morgan High School, where he was an all-conference cross country runner and qualified for the state meet. He attended Colorado State and worked in the banking field as a lender and as a consultant in the energy field, before returning to Fort Morgan about two decades ago to sell real estate with his father, now operating as the Urdiales Group.
In his service on City Council, he was appointed as a member of the Fort Morgan Library Board and has attended other boards periodically.
Additionally, Urdiales has attended meetings with the United Way, One Morgan County and other groups to assist with needs specific to housing, he recalls. Urdiales also has taken on a weekly route delivering meals to the homebound in Fort Morgan, with clients served in all three wards of the city.
“I would like to continue fighting, to push back against Gov. Jared Polis and the Democrats’ radical agenda,” Urdiales said. “You will find I’m someone for common sense solutions to government.”
That would include his support of restoring local control to schools and municipalities, he said.
“I want to protect our Eastern Colorado values and traditions,” Urdiales said. “We don’t need the state legislature and Front Range telling us how to do our business.”
He plans to serve in the state legislature in a similar way to how he represented a ward on City Council.
“On City Council, I think people appreciated that I didn’t always vote yes. I’ve had calls of appreciation for that,” he said. “I would always do my research and my reading, and do what is best for my constituents. When I got phone calls – good or bad – it didn’t matter where they came from in Fort Morgan, I listened to it.”
Urdiales has two children, Keenan, 20, and Ella, 15. His partner is Jeni Elrick. He is the son of Danny and Eleanor Urdiales.
More information on Urdiales is available at UrdialesforColorado.com.