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Colorado River management proposals receive mixed reactions, with hints of possible legal battle
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Colorado River management proposals receive mixed reactions, with hints of possible legal battle

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics The U.S. Department of the Interior's alternative proposals to guide the management of the Colorado River received mixed reactions from key negotiators and officials whose support is crucial in the river's successful operation in the years to come. Several reiterated they don't want litigation, which would tie up any plans in the court systems for years, but they also acknowledged — or at least hinted — that a legal battle is a plausible outcome. "We don't want a legal fight," said Tom Buschatzke, the Arizona Department of Water Resources director. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Two water bills by Colorado Sen. John Hickenlooper advance in lame duck session
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Two water bills by Colorado Sen. John Hickenlooper advance in lame duck session

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics The race to get bills signed into law before President Joe Biden leaves office is on, and two water bills sponsored by Sen. John Hickenlooper, D-Denver, are trying to get on that list. The first is an extension of the Colorado River Basin System Conservation Act, which earlier this year put $125 million into the system conservation pilot program operated by the Upper Colorado River Commission. Under the latest iteration, the act would be extended until 2026. The system conservation pilot program is a voluntary, temporary, and compensated agreement to conserve consumptive use (or depletion) of agricultural, municipal, or industrial water. It was tested between 2015 and 2018 and allowed lapses, but it was restarted in 2023. However, the progr...
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Trump’s pick for energy secretary, Colorado’s Chris Wright, says the real crisis is ‘energy poverty’
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Trump’s pick for energy secretary, Colorado’s Chris Wright, says the real crisis is ‘energy poverty’

By Scott Weiser | The Gazette, via Colorado Politics President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Secretary of Energy, Colorado's Chris Wright, views the world divided between the haves and have-nots — with a specific eye toward access to energy, arguing that, instead of a “climate" agenda, America should focus on ensuring a wide array of cheap, abundant and sustainable energy sources that include geothermal, nuclear, oil and gas.  He argued that this approach is the antidote to what he described as an “energy crisis,” in which a minority of the world’s population has access to abundant energy, while the rest lives in “energy poverty.” The approach, which he outlined in several articles for Colorado Politics and The Denver Gazette, will likely serve as a philosophical guidepo...
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Colorado’s new 23rd Judicial District office to open in Douglas County following residential concerns
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Colorado’s new 23rd Judicial District office to open in Douglas County following residential concerns

By Noah Festenstein | Colorado Politics Colorado’s newest judicial district in 60 years has found an office in northern Douglas County following years of planning and residents' pushback on some proposed sites. With a new judicial district comes the need for a new office. The office is intended to house the diversion unit from the Justice Center in Castle Rock. It will also offer pretrial and some probation services. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Business groups warn against changes to Colorado’s union law
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Business groups warn against changes to Colorado’s union law

By Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics A major fight is brewing at the state Capitol, where unions plan to push for legislation they said would give workers "more freedom to negotiate for workplace safety and better pay" but which business groups warned would upend a system that is pivotal attracting companies and keeping Colorado economically competitive. At issue is the Labor Peace Act's requirement that two elections be held in order to form a union and establish "union security." The first election must be won by a simple majority, while the second must receive at least 75% approval. Colorado is the only state with a second vote in which a supermajority is required to pass. Several business groups said the proposed changes could unravel what has been a successful pitch to ou...
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Colorado to pay $1.5 million in same-sex wedding websites case
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Colorado to pay $1.5 million in same-sex wedding websites case

By The Denver Gazette | Via Colorado Politics Colorado agreed to pay more than $1.5 million in attorneys’ fees following the conclusion of a case involving a graphic designer who did not want to create wedding websites for same-sex couples. Lorie Smith, who feared she would run afoul of the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act if she refused to create websites for same-sex weddings through her graphic design company, 303 Creative, sued the Colorado Civil Rights Commission and the state's attorney general. The case made it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled last year in favor of Smith, concluding that Colorado sought to "force an individual to speak in ways that align with its views but defy her conscience about a matter of major significance" and therefore violated he...
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Three finalists picked from pool of 34 for Aurora’s open seat on City Council
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Three finalists picked from pool of 34 for Aurora’s open seat on City Council

By Kyla Pearce | Denver Gazette, via Colorado Politics Aurora councilmembers on Monday picked three candidates to interview for the open at-large position on the council. The interviews will happen in early December. Dustin Zvonek, the city's previous mayor pro tem, announced his early departure from his position from the council in October, opening up a seat on the 11-person body. The council received a total of 34 applications for the position. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, lawmakers spar over proposed budget
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Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, lawmakers spar over proposed budget

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics The Colorado legislature's budget drafting body, stung by criticism from the governor over hiking Medicaid provider rates last spring higher than what he wanted, bit back when Gov. Jared Polis met with the committee last week to discuss his 2025-26 budget proposal. Gov. Jared Polis and members of the Joint Budget Committee sparred over the size of his proposed cuts. Polis effectively argued that his proposal responsibly makes budget reductions, while lawmakers questioned his decision to fund projects or services — such as landscaping for the governor's mansion — when the state is practically in "recession" mode when it comes to budgeting.       A veteran legislator said the governor's budget proposal is no...
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Former Jeffco Clerk and Recorder George Stern mulling run for Colorado secretary of state
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Former Jeffco Clerk and Recorder George Stern mulling run for Colorado secretary of state

By Ernest Luning | Colorado Politics Former Jefferson County Clerk and Recorder George Stern is considering a run for Colorado secretary of state in two years, the Democrat told Colorado Politics. Stern, 37, said his experience turning around one of the largest county clerk's offices in the state could help bolster trust in Colorado's elections at a time when the state's voting system has been under heightened scrutiny. "I think it's more important than ever that we have people with election administration experience serving as secretaries of state throughout the country, as we work to continue to defend the integrity of our elections and also to rebuild trust in our elections," Stern said in an interview. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Groups accuse Colorado Bureau of Investigation of skirting oversight in forensic lab investigation
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Groups accuse Colorado Bureau of Investigation of skirting oversight in forensic lab investigation

By Jenny Deam | The Gazette, via Colorado Politics Two groups accused the Colorado Bureau of Investigation of skirting a federally required oversight process to investigate misconduct in its forensics lab, adding to mounting allegations of wrongdoing at the embattled agency. In a five-page letter dated Wednesday, the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado and the Korey Wise Innocence Project demanded more accountability and transparency in the CBI’s ongoing investigation of its former star forensic scientist, Yvonne Woods, known as Missy, who was found to have mishandled, falsified or deleted DNA findings for years at the lab. Those problems have thrown into question the fate of an unknown but potentially vast number of past criminal convictions in Colorado that reli...
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