Rocky Mountain Voice

Commentary

Polis Vetoes Open Records Bill—But Conservatives Say It’s Too Little, Too Late
Approved, Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Polis Vetoes Open Records Bill—But Conservatives Say It’s Too Little, Too Late

By Rocky Mountain Voice Editorial Board Governor Jared Polis vetoed a controversial bill last Thursday that would have made it more difficult—and more expensive—for Coloradans to access public records. But transparency advocates across the political spectrum say his sudden concern about responsive governance contradicts years of actions that have consistently chipped away at public accountability. Senate Bill 25-077, sponsored by Sen. Cathy Kipp (D–Fort Collins), would have: Extended response deadlines for open records requests from three to five days, and up to ten under “extenuating circumstances” Allowed government agencies to bundle multiple requests from the same person to increase feesEliminated the first free hour of research time for follow-up requests Created diffe...
Joondeph: Democrats are dying on the most unpopular hills in politics
American Thinker, Commentary, National, Top Stories

Joondeph: Democrats are dying on the most unpopular hills in politics

By Dr. Brian C. Joondeph | Commentary, American Thinker The phrase “the hill you choose to die on” is an expression meaning a belief, opinion, or position that one is fiercely committed to defending, even when it is impractical or contrary to one’s long-term goals. It suggests a willingness to fight or resist to the point of losing, rather than pivoting, conceding, or compromising. In the political world, most players lack conviction or principles. They are swayed by the political winds, the latest opinion polls, or the size of the most recent campaign contributions they receive. Their positions are primarily situational, influenced by their proximity to the next reelection bid or which Sunday morning talk show has invited them as guests. Democrats, finding themselves in the minor...
Treta: Denver’s broken permitting system is driving up housing costs—and it’s time to fix it
Commentary, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Treta: Denver’s broken permitting system is driving up housing costs—and it’s time to fix it

By Robert Treta | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice I’ve been designing and building homes in Denver for 28 years. I pulled my first permit in 1997—for a small room addition on a house. It took one day. One. That kind of efficiency used to be the norm. Permitting was straightforward, business-friendly, and a basic example of how local government should work. But over the past two decades, I’ve watched the city’s permit approval process become increasingly bloated, inefficient, and damaging—not just to builders like me, but to every Denverite who rents or buys a home. This problem isn’t new. Denver’s permit delays became a real issue as far back as 2007, when the wait time for a standard permit grew to four months. Now, in 2024, the average wait time is 385 days. That’s more t...
Anderson: Education dollars should help all students perform, while lawmakers focus on funding gender ideology
Approved, Commentary, State, The Business Times

Anderson: Education dollars should help all students perform, while lawmakers focus on funding gender ideology

By Christy Anderson | Commentary, Business Times Let’s look at the facts. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in 2024, only 36 percent of Colorado’s fourth-graders read at a proficient level, and just 42 percent are proficient in math. These numbers should alarm every parent, educator, policymaker and taxpayer. Beneath the surface of annual graduation celebrations lies a troubling reality: Many students are not prepared for life after high school. Colleges are restructuring their curricula to accommodate lower proficiency levels, and remedial classes are becoming the norm, not the exception. As an educator with 25 years of experience in Mesa County Valley School District 51 and a Realtor who works closely with families across our community, I’ve seen firstha...
Hancock: HB25-1312 replaces truth with dogma and calls it progress
Approved, Colorado Politics, Commentary, State

Hancock: HB25-1312 replaces truth with dogma and calls it progress

By Michael A. Hancock | Commentary, Colorado Politics From the rugged ridgelines of the Rockies now echoes a different kind of thunder — not from the skies above, but from the marble halls of Colorado’s State Capitol, where lawmakers are ushering in a bill that feels less like legislation and more like dogma. House Bill 25-1312, ostentatiously named the “Kelly Loving Act,” is heralded as a civil rights measure. But dig past the buzzwords and you’ll find something far more troubling: a secular creed imposed with such fervor it borders on religious zealotry — and as such, possibly violates the U.S. Constitution’s Establishment Clause. At the heart of the bill is a sweeping redefinition of “coercive control” in family law. If passed, courts would be mandated to treat “deadnaming” and...
Pastor Drake: Resurrection is the call to become fully alive, fully human–and spiritually reborn
Approved, Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Pastor Drake: Resurrection is the call to become fully alive, fully human–and spiritually reborn

By Pastor Drake Hunter | Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Easter isn’t just a day we remember—it’s the day that redefined reality. The cross? It wasn’t the end. It was the narrow gate. The resurrection? Not an escape plan—it’s an invitation to walk a different kind of road.  One paved not by religion, but by redemption. Not by performance, but by passion.  Through the suffering, death, and triumph of Jesus Christ, God revealed the true way to life: a restored, fully human life—and very few ever experience it, even among those who call themselves religious.  Jesus said it plainly: “Small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” — Matthew 7:14   “I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!” — Matthe...
Enos: What rushed gender and abortion bills say about the legislature’s priorities
Approved, Christian Home Educators of Colorado, Commentary, State

Enos: What rushed gender and abortion bills say about the legislature’s priorities

By Colleen Enos | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Transparency is not really our current General Assembly’s goal. We would like to believe that our state government works for us, but the majority party in charge is more concerned with covering its own tracks to avoid any repercussions of accountability with the voters.  They also consider any opposing views or opinions to be dissent that must be squashed at all costs, even if it means forcibly gagging their opposition by disallowing all debate. This is not exactly an overflow of reasoned debate, which we would like to encourage amongst our lawmakers. For example, HB25-1312, Legal Protections for Transgender Individuals, was introduced in the State House on Friday, March 28th, at the end of the day and assigned to the J...
Menten: HB25-1327 punishes citizen participation and violates the Constitution
Approved, Colorado Politics, Commentary, State

Menten: HB25-1327 punishes citizen participation and violates the Constitution

By Natalie Menten | Colorado Politics Petition rights in Colorado have been under increasing attack, and that trend continues with House Bill 25-1327 (HB 25-1327), recently introduced in the Colorado State legislature. Among other things, HB 25-1327 would reduce the time available for citizen-led initiative efforts by moving the deadline for Title Board hearings up by two weeks. Under current law, Title Board hearings may be held through the third Wednesday in April. This bill shifts that deadline to the first Wednesday in April— a 14-day reduction in time that proponents would otherwise use to finalize their language before gathering nearly 200,000 signatures within a tight window to secure a spot on the ballot. It’s worth noting Colorado voters recently rejected a similar propos...
Tristan: Politics came between me and my daughter – love and faith brought us back
Approved, Commentary, National, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Tristan: Politics came between me and my daughter – love and faith brought us back

By George Tristan | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice A fundamental hallmark of the saga of human history, has been and continues to be, invention. Take communications for example. Less than 200 years ago, we relied on the Pony Express to send and receive communications over long distances. Then, on May 24, 1844, Samuel Morse sent the famous message "What hath God wrought" from Washington, D.C. to Baltimore, Maryland – marking the first long-distance telegraph transmission in the United States.  Advance the hourglass of time forward 180 years to 2024, to the first human trials of Neuralink’s brain computer devices, which will enable people with medical conditions such as paralysis, spinal cord injuries, or neurological disorders, to connect with devices using only their tho...

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