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Colorado is Venezuelan gang’s ‘command center’
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Colorado is Venezuelan gang’s ‘command center’

By The Denver Gazette staff | Denver Gazette Via Colorado Politics The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration confirmed on Monday that it regards Colorado as “ground zero" for "some of the most violent criminals in America" and the "command center" of a transnational gang that originated in the prisons of Venezuela. “We are learning that the command and control for TdA in the entire United States of America is right here in Colorado,” Derek Maltz, the acting director of the DEA, said in a Denver7 report.   Maltz was referring to Tren de Aragua, a gang that started in Tocorón Penitentiary Center in Aragua, a state in north-central Venezuela. TdA has expanded the footprint of its criminal enterprises into at least eight Latin American countries, including Brazil, Colomb...
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Colorado Joint Budget Committee addresses wolf reintroduction concerns with budget footnotes
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Colorado Joint Budget Committee addresses wolf reintroduction concerns with budget footnotes

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics While agricultural organizations did not succeed in their efforts to halt the reintroduction of more wolves, they found a more sympathetic ear among policymakers at the state Capitol. In their work on "footnotes," which are directions to state departments on administering appropriations, the Joint Budget Committee adopted two items related to the wolf reintroduction program. Footnotes do not have the force of law, although state agencies comply. Even when the governor vetoes a footnote, usually due to a separation of powers issue, he often directs the agencies to comply anyway. The first said the annual $2.1 million general fund appropriation should be used to implement Proposition 114, the narrowly-adopted 2020 ballot measure that resulted...
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Mayor Mobolade asks White House to work with Colorado Springs during D.C. trip
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Mayor Mobolade asks White House to work with Colorado Springs during D.C. trip

By Brennen Kauffman  | Colorado Politics Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Mobolade met with White House staff earlier this month to make the case for Colorado Springs' strategic value to the administration. Mobolade was in Washington March 8-12 for the National League of Cities' annual Congressional City Conference, an event where thousands of city officials meet with federal staff and members of Congress. During the trip, Mobolade met with the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, the liaisons between President Donald Trump's White House staff and local governments nationwide. Mobolade had talked to the office in February and, while there last week, said he offered to have Colorado Springs serve as a sounding board and testing ground for national policies. READ THE FULL STORY A...
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Colorado building owners face $17 million per year fine under energy bill
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Colorado building owners face $17 million per year fine under energy bill

By Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics A measure aimed at easing some of the near-term requirements from a 2021 law that seeks to reduce greenhouse emissions is facing opposition from the industry it claims to be assisting, with businesses noting the bill allows for tens of millions of dollars in fines. House Bill 1269, sponsored by Reps. Jenny Willford, D-Northglenn, and Alex Valdez, D-Denver, seeks to ease some of the requirements outlined in a 2021 law, which established the building performance program in the Colorado Energy Office. Under that bill, buildings over 50,000 square feet, which amounts to about 8,300 buildings statewide, are required to achieve a 7% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2026. After hearing from building owners who argued that the sta...
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Colorado veterinary professional associate bill sparks debate among advocates and critics
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Colorado veterinary professional associate bill sparks debate among advocates and critics

By Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics Advocates argue that a bill establishing implementation procedures for the newly created veterinary professional associate position includes provisions that contradict the intent of what Colorado voters approved in Proposition 129 in November. House Bill 1285, sponsored by Reps. Karen McCormick, D-Hygiene, and Sens. Cathy Kipp, D-Fort Collins, and Byron Pelton, R-Sterling, tasks Colorado's Board of Veterinary Medicine with adopting rules regarding the education, accreditation, and scope of practice for veterinary professional associates. This is a first-of-its-kind position established through Proposition 129, which passed with nearly 53% of the vote in last year’s election. The bill passed in an 11-1 vote, with Rep. Mandy Lindsay, D-Aurora...
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Federal judge dismisses claims against Academy District 20 officials for ejecting man from meeting
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Federal judge dismisses claims against Academy District 20 officials for ejecting man from meeting

By Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics A federal judge on Monday concluded a man who was ejected from an Academy District 20 school board meeting in December 2023 had not stated viable claims that district officials violated his constitutional rights. Brett Dayberry had been speaking during the public comment period about "numerous extremely vile passages" in a book that was available in his granddaughter's school library. When he started quoting passages that employed profanity, the board president told Dayberry to refrain from using those words. Dayberry continued, prompting security to remove him from the meeting. Dayberry then alleged the El Paso County-based district and its officials violated his First Amendment rights and his right to equal protection of the laws. But after ...
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Appeals court says reduction in parenting time, even a substantial one, is not a ‘restriction’
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Appeals court says reduction in parenting time, even a substantial one, is not a ‘restriction’

By Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics Colorado's second-highest court ruled for the first time on Thursday that even if a judge substantially reduces the amount of time a parent may spend with their child, it is not a "restriction" that requires a heightened justification. A three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals acknowledged that under its interpretation of the law, a judge could theoretically slash a parent's time with their child to a single overnight visit a year without having to find the child's health or development is endangered. "In any event, if the General Assembly wishes to establish some threshold of purely quantitative change that would require more than merely being in the child’s best interests, it is of course free to do so," wrote Judge Ted C. Tow III in the ...
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Early cash surge in Colorado’s 8th congressional district as Democrats target Rep. Gabe Evans’ seat
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Early cash surge in Colorado’s 8th congressional district as Democrats target Rep. Gabe Evans’ seat

By Ernest Luning | Colorado Politics Democratic congressional candidate Manny Rutinel has raised more than $1 million since launching his bid in late January to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans in Colorado's swingy 8th Congressional District, his campaign said. In just six weeks, Rutinel entered seven-figure territory with the help of more than 23,000 individual contributors, for an average contribution of less than $35, according to the Commerce City state lawmaker's campaign. More than 99% of contributions were under $100, a campaign spokeswoman added. Evans, an Army veteran and retired police officer, is serving his first term representing the Northern Front Range district after defeating Democratic incumbent Yadira Caraveo by fewer than 2,500 votes in last year's...
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Bill to add 15 judges heads to Colorado governor’s desk
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Bill to add 15 judges heads to Colorado governor’s desk

By Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics Legislation to add 15 new judgeships in trial courts across the state is headed to the governor's desk for signature, as Colorado's House of Representatives approved the bill on Thursday with no votes in opposition. Senate Bill 24 is the Judicial Department's top legislative priority, and was originally intended to add 29 new judgeships over a two-year period. Three of those would have gone to the Court of Appeals, and the remaining positions were earmarked for various trial courts. However, due to budgetary concerns, lawmakers scaled back the bill to add just 15 new seats over the next two years. "We are grateful to the bill sponsors and the General Assembly for moving this bill through the legislative process, especially ...
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Colorado fuel retailers face up to $20,000 fine for failing to post warning stickers about global warming under proposed bill
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Colorado fuel retailers face up to $20,000 fine for failing to post warning stickers about global warming under proposed bill

By Scott Weiser | Denver Gazette via Colorado Politics According to a proposal by Democrats at the Colorado state Capitol, up to a $20,000 fine will hang over the heads of every retailer who sells either liquid or gas fuels if they don’t have global warming warning stickers on their pumps and products if House Bill 25-1277 is signed into law. The bill, Increasing Transparency Impact of Fuel Products, sponsored by Rep. Jennifer Bacon, D-Denver, Rep. Junie Joseph, D-Boulder and Sen. Lisa Cutter, D-Jefferson County, says retail outlets selling petroleum-based fuel products must put stickers on pumps, store displays and other retail items or face fines. “Evidently the purpose of the bill is to shame buyers for purchasing a product necessary for them to use in many cases to transport t...
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