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Colorado Kicks Off Regulatory Surge with 200+ New Laws
State, Approved, DENVER7

Colorado Kicks Off Regulatory Surge with 200+ New Laws

By Stephanie Butzer | Denver7 More than 200 new laws go into effect in Colorado on Wednesday, and they touch on subjects ranging from domestic violence to wildfires, and tax incentives to education. Denver7 has compiled a list of all of these laws below. A few more laws passed in 2025 will go into effect this September and October, followed by more in January and February 2026. Click on any of the links below to explore more details about each bill, including who sponsored it, when it was passed and what the vote was, and the fiscal impacts. You can explore the "2025 Digest of Bills," prepared by the Office of Legislative Legal Services, here. Below is a list of all of the Colorado laws that go into effect on Aug. 6, 2025: H.B. 25-1005 Tax Incentive for Film Festivals ...
Colorado Lawmakers Sound Alarm on Budget Crisis and AI Regulation Vacuum
State, Approved, denvergazette.com

Colorado Lawmakers Sound Alarm on Budget Crisis and AI Regulation Vacuum

By Marianne Goodland | Denver Gazette Will there be a special session this month? Multiple sources have told Colorado Politics that on Wednesday the governor will call the General Assembly back to Denver on Aug. 21. Members of the Joint Budget Committee showed signs Tuesday that they're ready to go — and need only the word from the governor to get started. Policymakers' main challenge will be cuts totaling $955 million in general funds, the result, according to Democrats, of federal tax policy changes that came out the budget adopted by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump on July 4 but which Republicans argued is a problem of the state's own making. Secondarily, the call could include a request to fix Senate Bill 24-205, the artificial intelligence regulation that ...
Elk Fire forces evacuations: Northwest Colorado battles fast-growing blaze
Fox31, Approved, State

Elk Fire forces evacuations: Northwest Colorado battles fast-growing blaze

BY SPENCER KRISTENSEN | KDVR - FOX 31 DENVER (KDVR) — Three large wildfires caused by lightning strikes are burning in northwest Colorado in Rio Blanco and Moffat Counties, the Bureau of Land Management reported on Monday morning. Here’s what to know about each fire: Elk Fire The Elk Fire is the largest of the three fires. Initially reported on Aug. 2, the fire has grown to 3,000 acres as of Monday morning and is burning in the Oak Ridge area, nearly 10 miles east of Meeker. The fire is burning on private, state and BLM lands. Evacuation and pre-evacuation orders The Rio Blanco Sheriff’s Office ordered evacuations on Sunday and continued with pre-evacuation orders on Monday afternoon. READ THE FULL STORY AT KDVR - FOX 31
Boebert gets Trump nod for another run in Colorado’s conservative stronghold
Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Boebert gets Trump nod for another run in Colorado’s conservative stronghold

By Ernest Luning | Colorado Politics Calling her a "MAGA Warrior," President Donald Trump this week endorsed U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert's reelection bid in Colorado's 4th Congressional District, the state's most heavily Republican seat. The staunch Trump ally is seeking a fourth term in Congress next year. A former restaurant owner and Second Amendment activist, Boebert was elected to two terms representing the Western Slope-based 3rd Congressional District in 2020 and 2022 before moving across the state last year to run for the safer seat, which covers Douglas County and the Eastern Plains. "Congresswoman Lauren Boebert is an America First Patriot, who is doing an incredible job representing Colorado’s 4th Congressional District!" Trump posted on Truth Social, the social media...
Daniel: Colorado’s political ruling class has turned common sense upside down
Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, Commentary, State, Top Stories

Daniel: Colorado’s political ruling class has turned common sense upside down

By Bobbie Daniel | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice There was a time when Colorado ran on common sense. We valued hard work, local control, and the idea that if you played by the rules, you’d get a fair shake. But somewhere along the way, the folks running this state traded those values for political theater and personal ambition. Today, agriculture, coal mining, oil and gas, small businesses, and law enforcement — the very things that help keep our state running — are treated like the enemy. The latest example proves just how upside‑down things have gotten: the Attorney General of Colorado is suing a Mesa County deputy… for doing his job. Now, I don’t know about you, but where I come from, you don’t punish the people who keep you safe. Yet here we are — living in a state wh...
Gaines: Is CDPHE’s harm reduction program normalizing meth and crack on the taxpayer’s dime?
Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Gaines: Is CDPHE’s harm reduction program normalizing meth and crack on the taxpayer’s dime?

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project CDPHE's harm reduction via Colorado Health Network, Inc. The Colorado Politics article linked first below is about a meth flyer that was circulating in Denver and causing some heartburn. It's a flyer which offers tips on how to smoke not only meth but also crack cocaine. The flyer was produced and distributed by Access Point Denver.Quoting the article:"Operated by Colorado Health Network, Access Point Denver is a harm reduction program offering services such as drug checking, overdose prevention and sterile needle exchanges to reduce the transmission of diseases among drug users. In June, the Denver City Council unanimously approved a 24-month contract extension worth more than $3 million that funds Access Point Denver’...
Colorado Sued for for Taxing Overtime Pay Exempted by Trump
State, Approved, Westword

Colorado Sued for for Taxing Overtime Pay Exempted by Trump

By Michael Roberts | Westword The lawsuit challenges a recently passed Colorado law that will continue taxing overtime pay at the state level. As President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act temporarily cuts federal taxes on overtime pay, some Colorado Republicans are seeking to force the state to follow suit. The conservative advocacy group Advance Colorado filed a lawsuit on Thursday, July 24, challenging a new law that will continue taxing overtime pay at the state level, regardless of federal changes. The lawsuit was filed in Denver District Court against Governor Jared Polis and the head of Colorado’s tax agency. Other plaintiffs attached to the suit include Republican State Senator Barbara Kirkmeyer and Fremont County Commissioner Kevin Grantham. The lawsuit target...
Colorado Delegation Unites to Demand $140M Water Funds Release
State, Approved, The Colorado Sun

Colorado Delegation Unites to Demand $140M Water Funds Release

By Shannon Mullane | The Colorado Sun The state’s congressional delegation sent a bipartisan letter to federal agencies, calling on them to fund Colorado River drought-response projects. Colorado’s entire congressional delegation, Republicans and Democrats alike, is calling for the release of $140 million in frozen funds for Colorado River water projects. In January, the last days of the Biden administration, the Bureau of Reclamation awarded funding for 17 projects as part of the federal drought-response effort in the overstressed Colorado River Basin. Three days later, President Donald Trump issued sweeping executive orders that aimed to reshape federal spending priorities to match his administration’s policies. The Colorado projects were caught in the maelstrom. Co...
TABOR Undermined as Almost Half of Colorado Budget Now Exempt
State, Approved, coloradopolitics.com

TABOR Undermined as Almost Half of Colorado Budget Now Exempt

By Hannah Metzger | Colorado Politics State spending that is exempt from Colorado's Taxpayer's Bill of Rights has increased by nearly 30% over the past 30 years, according to a report by the public policy think tank Common Sense Institute.  While TABOR places a limit on how much revenue the state can retain each fiscal year, certain sources — such as voter-approved changes, federal funds, and state enterprises — are exempt. According to the Bell Policy Center, enterprise funds are state-owned "businesses" that provide goods or services in exchange for revenue. Examples include the state lottery and the Colorado Healthcare Affordability and Sustainability Enterprise (CHASE). According to the Common Sense Institute report, 46% of total state spending — ab...

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