Douglas Co. representative calls for Coloradans of all walks to get involved with legislation
By Jen Schumann | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice
State Rep. Brandi Bradley, a Republican from House District 39 in Douglas County, won’t back down in the fight against government overreach.
With the 75th General Assembly now in full swing, Bradley is focused on key bills she will pursue. They aim to protect children and parental rights, enhance public safety and combat the high cost of living. Bradley is calling on grassroots Coloradans to join her.
“The line in the sand has been drawn,” Bradley said. “Conservatives can’t just sit back and watch our rights be taken away. It’s time to stand up.”
She is rated fifth out of 100 legislators on the Colorado Liberty Scorecard, a measurement of the lawmaker’s support toward conservative legislation.
A top priority for Bradley is to reintroduce the Digital Media bill. It aims to remove inappropriate content from school devices and empower parents to hold schools accountable.
“No one thinks that adult content should be on a second grader’s Chromebook,” Bradley explained. “We’re going to hold vendors accountable for having these ads on our kids’ Chromebooks.”
Although the bill passed the House unanimously last year, scheduling conflicts halted it in the Senate. This year Bradley is hopeful for bipartisan support. She’s encouraged by Democrat Rep. Junie Joseph (HD 10) joining her as a co-sponsor. The Boulder County Democrat serves as Majority Caucus co-chair.
“Rep. Joseph is going to get on this bill,” Bradley noted. “We fought some good battles, and she knows I’m in this for the right reasons.”
Bradley sees the bill as part of a larger effort to protect parental rights in education, she said, adding the cause resonates across party lines.
Bradley’s Child Rape Bill aims to end probation eligibility for first-time child sexual assault offenders. For Bradley, this is a personal fight to protect society’s most vulnerable members.
“There should not be probation eligibility for raping a child,” Bradley stated, firmly. “It’s unacceptable that first-time offenders can get probation in Colorado.”
“Law enforcement is completely behind me on this. The Colorado District Attorneys’ Council (CDAC) has to vote unanimously on legislation, and unfortunately, we see what’s happening with [Denver DA] Beth McCann,” Bradley said. “We just had four stabbings on 16th Street Mall, because that man got out on a PR bond. His bond was a promise to pay $100 — he didn’t have to pay a dime. He was out on a sexual assault PR bond, and he fatally stabbed two people and injured two others.”
Bradley shared how McCann’s office opposed her previous legislation aimed at protecting children from sexual exploitation.
“Her office came and testified against my bill to put people who pander, solicit and traffic children for prostitution in jail with mandatory minimum sentences,” Bradley said. “They argued that if you rape a child in Colorado, you don’t automatically go to jail, so why would we put people in jail who don’t physically touch children?”
Despite the pushback, Bradley is determined to achieve legislative success on the issue.
“I said, ‘OK, fair — we’ll come back, and we’ll run this bill again this year,’ ” she explained. “They’re probably going to say we don’t have the money, but I’m going to find the money. Then we’ll put them on the hotspot.”
Bradley doesn’t shy away from holding Democrat elected officials accountable. She called out Gov. Jared Polis on Twitter/X for assertions he made about violent crime at his State of the State address.
“He made a statement about having zero tolerance for violent crime,” Bradley said. “Well, this is a violent crime. When you rape a child, that is a violent crime.”
Bradley stressed that her bill (HB25-1073) isn’t just about punishment — it’s about preventing future harm to children and communities.
Retail theft is another pressing issue in Colorado. It forces businesses to close and drives up prices for consumers. Bradley’s Retail Theft Bill, which has not yet been released on the state legislature’s website, aims to fix this by creating stricter penalties for theft.
“We’ve got stores closing all over Colorado due to theft,” Bradley explains. “They aren’t just raising prices for profit — they’re covering the cost of theft.”
Bradley is working with district attorneys to make the bill prosecutable to hold offenders accountable.
“We’re making sure if you steal anything under $300, it’s a misdemeanor, and over that it’s a felony,” Bradley said. “People need to know there are consequences.”
More than just a response to theft, Bradley asserts that the bill is fundamental to preserving public safety.
“We’re not going to sit back and watch people take $2,000 worth of groceries out of Safeway,” Bradley warned. “It’s going to escalate into violent crimes if we don’t stop it.”
As government overreach and reckless spending cripple Coloradans, Bradley and her Republican colleagues continually call on the Democrat majority to join them in making a course correction.
“We’ve gone from spending $30 billion to now $46 billion,” Bradley pointed out. “You can’t spend what you don’t have.”
Continued government expansion since COVID-19 concerns Bradley. While small businesses were shut down, the government added thousands of employees and expanded its reach.
“Polis was growing government by 6,000 employees while we were shutting down 25% of small businesses,” Bradley said. “We need to cut costs and stop this unsustainable growth.”
Bradley reflected, “People say all the time, don’t turn us into California. We’re there. We’re the third least safe state in the country. We are above California and New York. We rate highest in package theft and auto theft and property theft.” She added, “Colorado has told California to hold our beer.”
She also voiced deep concern about upcoming legislation she expects will target both gun rights and small businesses in Colorado.
“I think we’re gonna see harsh legislation against the Second Amendment,” Bradley said. “We’ll see if Polis is going to sign this assault weapons ban—3.0 is what we’re calling it. From what I’ve seen, it would ban 80 to 90 percent of guns, anything with a detachable magazine, even hunting rifles. It is truly one of the worst gun bills I’ve seen.”
Despite Bradley’s criticism of Polis, she also commented on how his stance has altered.
“I saw a different side of Polis in the State of the State [address]. He was really almost begging his party to listen to small businesses,” she said. “And it is falling on deaf ears.”
Bradley argues that grassroots involvement from Coloradans is essential for legislative change to take place.
“We need all hands on deck,” Bradley urged. “Conservatives can’t rely on a few people to fight these battles. It’s time to get involved.”
She stressed practical steps that residents can take to engage in the legislature. They include attending legislative and committee sessions, writing to representatives and joining local conservative groups that organize calls to action.
“It’s easy to park around the capitol,” Bradley said. “It’s easy to walk in and watch what’s happening. People need to see how their rights are being taken away.”
For Rep. Bradley, the session is more than policy. It’s about Colorado’s future. She is optimistic, despite being in the minority. She calls on Coloradans to join her in the fight.
“There’s always hope,” Bradley said. “If you’re a believer, you have to approach it with a glass-half-full mentality. We’ve gained three seats (since the 74th session). We’re not stopping.”