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Colorado Democrats want to raise tax obligation, keep TABOR refund to pay for school meals
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Colorado Democrats want to raise tax obligation, keep TABOR refund to pay for school meals

By Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics Colorado Democrats want to increase the tax obligation of Coloradans earning at least $300,000 and allow the state to keep dollars due to be refunded to residents under two ballot proposals they say would fix a $50 million deficit in a program meant to provide free meals to all students.      If the ballot measures succeed, taxpayers under this income bracket will pay an average of $385 more in tax obligations for individuals and $570 for joint filers.  The proposals would generate about $107 million a year.    READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Colorado Senate committee extends organ and tissue donation fund indefinitely
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Colorado Senate committee extends organ and tissue donation fund indefinitely

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics The Senate Health and Human Services Committee approved an indefinite extension of the Emily Keyes - John W. Buckner Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Fund, which was set to expire in two years. Buckner's widow, former Sen. Janet Buckner, D-Aurora, was on hand for the committee's unanimous decision. It was her first return to the Capitol since retiring in January. Emily Keyes, for whom the fund was first named, was a high school student at Platte Canyon High School and was murdered by a 53-year-old gunman in 2006. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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State lawmakers place 10 interim, year-round committees on hold, citing fiscal concerns
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State lawmakers place 10 interim, year-round committees on hold, citing fiscal concerns

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics Citing fiscal worries, legislative leaders on Tuesday approved a proposal to put 10 interim and year-round committees on hold that would otherwise meet once the legislature concludes its 2025 session on May 7. They also said they would not accept lawmakers' requests for new interim panels, known as "letter committees,” this year. The Executive Committee of the Legislative Council, comprised of the six top leaders of the House and Senate, cited budgetary constraints as the reason for holding interim committees. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Democratic bill cutting reimbursement rates for Colorado’s urban hospitals sparks debate, backlash
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Democratic bill cutting reimbursement rates for Colorado’s urban hospitals sparks debate, backlash

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics A bill that won a party-line vote in the House Health & Human Services Committee aims to cap the price insurers pay urban hospitals for health services for state employees and those insured in the small group market. As introduced, House Bill 1174 would set reimbursement rates that health insurance carriers pay to mostly urban hospitals for covered services. There are about 200,000 insureds in the small group market and 60,000 state employees, which is about 6% of the total health insurance market. The bill won a party-line 8-4 vote from the committee over the objections of businesses and healthcare providers statewide, from the largest urban facilities to some of the state's smallest rural healthcare providers. The bill also raised con...
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Colorado House’s Judiciary Committee advances bill to add 15 judges
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Colorado House’s Judiciary Committee advances bill to add 15 judges

By Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics Colorado's House Judiciary Committee advanced a bill to establish 15 new judgeships throughout the state by a vote of 9-2 on Tuesday. Senate Bill 24 is the Judicial Department's top priority this year. As originally proposed, it would have added 26 judge seats in the trial courts and three seats on the Court of Appeals. The numbers did not come close to the projection calculated by a series of recent workload studies, which estimated Colorado needs approximately 43 more district judges, 20 more county judges and six appellate judges. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Superintendent’s cuts result in $5M in annual savings from 38 central office positions
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Superintendent’s cuts result in $5M in annual savings from 38 central office positions

By Nicole C. Brambila | Colorado Politics, via The Denver Gazette Denver Public Schools Superintendent Alex Marrero laid off dozens of employees in the central office to save the district roughly $5 million annually. The 38 eliminated positions will be effective July 1, according to a memo sent to staff on Friday. “We are facing great uncertainty compounded by significant concerns for our future funding from both the state and national levels,” Marrero wrote. “This all comes on top of a period of declining birth rates and lower enrollment across our city and the nation. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Prosecution of former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters to be reviewed by Justice Department
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Prosecution of former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters to be reviewed by Justice Department

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics The U.S. Department of Justice has announced it will review the Colorado case that led to the prosecution of former Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Tina Peters. In May 2021, Peters was convicted of multiple felonies and misdemeanors related to a security breach involving election equipment at the Mesa County Clerk and Recorder's Office. The Justice Department's intervention is connected to a federal lawsuit Peters filed against the Larimer County Sheriff, seeking to be released from jail while the appeals process moves forward. Peters was sentenced to nine years in prison, with six months to be served in county jail and the rest in state prison. She was convicted of four felonies, including three counts of attempting to influence a public se...
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Campaign finance complaint against Jena Griswold to be investigated
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Campaign finance complaint against Jena Griswold to be investigated

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics The Colorado Department of Law said it will investigate a campaign finance complaint against Secretary of State Jena Griswold tied to a website proclaiming a run for governor. The Jan. 14 complaint from The Public Trust Institute, which is represented by Suzanne Taheri of West Group Law, alleged that Griswold “expended funds on a gubernatorial campaign and had a website dedicated to a gubernatorial run but has not registered a committee or filed a candidate affidavit for governor.” The website — jenaforgovernor.com — first surfaced in August but was taken down soon after 9News reported its existence on Dec. 20. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Colorado Senate committee advances bipartisan bill to repeal parts of Farmworkers Bill of Rights
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Colorado Senate committee advances bipartisan bill to repeal parts of Farmworkers Bill of Rights

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics A bill seeking to repeal a portion of the 2021 Farmworkers Bill of Rights cleared its first hurdle last week when the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee advanced the measure. Senate Bill 128 won a bipartisan 5-2 vote, with two Democrats and three Republicans in favor and two Democrats voting against it. It now heads to the full Senate for debate. The short hearing showed that divisions remain between moderate and progressive Democrats, with a compromise deal collapsing just before debate. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Colorado Senate passes bill to extend public’s wait time for records requests
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Colorado Senate passes bill to extend public’s wait time for records requests

By Thelma Grimes | Colorado Politics A measure allowing Colorado government entities to take even longer to process public records requested by residents passed in a 26-7 vote in the Senate on Wednesday. Currently, public entities must respond to Colorado Open Records Act requests within three business days and within seven for “extenuating circumstances.” If approved, SB 77 will give records custodians five days to respond to CORA requests and 10 days under "extenuating circumstances." News media would be exempt from the new rules, keeping current deadlines in place. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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