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The man Polis vowed to destroy: Kevin Kauffman’s final fight for truth and legacy
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, State, Top Stories

The man Polis vowed to destroy: Kevin Kauffman’s final fight for truth and legacy

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice They tried to bury him. He’s still standing—with the paperwork to prove it. On his 50th birthday, Kevin Kauffman stood waist-deep in the waters off Eilat, Israel. His son handed him a sealed envelope his accountant asked him to deliver on this day. He opened it, read what was inside and stood in silence. It wasn’t just a numerical milestone in that envelope—it carried the weight of a life built by a self-made man. Kauffman had earned every cent the hard way, guided by mentors, not inheritance.  What he saw didn’t make him feel powerful. It made him reflect. “The achievement led me to a deeply felt realization—I had a responsibility to my family and my community,” Kauffman said. “So I started thinking about how to give some of it ba...
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Bled dry by the state: One oil company’s fight to survive ECMC’s war of attrition
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, State, Top Stories

Bled dry by the state: One oil company’s fight to survive ECMC’s war of attrition

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice An oil company’s $7M cleanup plan became the state’s excuse to shut it down. Jeffrey Kauffman stood at the edge of an excavation site—not to check production, but to explain why there wasn’t any. There was no rig, no flaring, no signs of oil moving to market. Just a fenced-off hole in the earth—and a state agency that wouldn’t let them fill it back in. “This one’s cost between $200,000 and $300,000,” said Kauffman, who serves as KPK’s Chief Operating Officer. “We submitted clean soil results months ago. Still no approval to close it.” The site is one of roughly a dozen that KPK has excavated under orders from the Colorado Energy and Carbon Management Commission (ECMC). Some holes have remained open since early 2024. This one, the s...
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The Rule 211 gamble: How two towns used Colorado law to effectively shut down an oil company’s core assets
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, State, Top Stories

The Rule 211 gamble: How two towns used Colorado law to effectively shut down an oil company’s core assets

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice Buried wells, sworn affidavits and a state determined to make an example. This is the opening chapter of a three-part series on one oil and gas company’s final stand—and what the documents and data actually reveal. Start with the towns. Stay for the verdict. Start with the towns. Stay for the verdict. In September 2024, the cities of Dacono and Frederick uploaded a PDF to the Energy and Carbon Management Commission’s (ECMC) filing system. It was short, simple—and explosive. The two municipalities weren’t asking for a cleanup, a fine or a negotiated fix. They were asking the state to order the permanent plugging and abandonment of 45 wells operated by K.P. Kauffman Company (KPK). Their argument relied on Rule 211, a provision historically u...
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From Oregon to Colorado: Wolves Bring Carnage, Questions
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The Gazette, Approved, State

From Oregon to Colorado: Wolves Bring Carnage, Questions

By Marianne Goodland | The Denver Gazette Colorado Parks and Wildlife announced Wednesday that another wolf from the original 10 that came from Oregon has died in Wyoming. Wyoming law prevents divulging more details on the wolf's death, although the tracking collar is being returned to Colorado. With the death of the female wolf identified as OR-2304, that makes four of the 10 animals from Oregon that have now died. All told, a total of 10 wolves out of the original 25, including the 15 brought to Colorado in January from British Columbia, have died. In a statement, the state wildlife agency said it would not comment further on the latest mortality since it took place outside of Colorado. Wildlife officers are also on the hunt for an uncollared wolf that killed three sheep i...
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Colorado Forced To Defend Controversial Gas Stove Warning Law in Court
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State, Approved, kdvr.com

Colorado Forced To Defend Controversial Gas Stove Warning Law in Court

By Heather Willard | KDVR Fox 31 DENVER (KDVR) — The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers is taking the state to court in a First Amendment lawsuit aimed at stopping a new law that would require warning labels on gas stoves. The law went into effect on Wednesday, one of hundreds of new laws that came into effect, and requires the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to establish a page with “credible, evidence-based information on the health impacts of gas-fueled stoves.” The bill also requires that retailers have a yellow adhesive label on display models of gas stoves that states: “Understand the air quality implications of having an indoor gas stove.” The label then must have a link or a QR code so consumers can see the webpage created by the health dep...
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Strict Colorado Firearm Laws Coincide with Record Homicide Increase
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State, Approved, Breitbart

Strict Colorado Firearm Laws Coincide with Record Homicide Increase

By Awr Hawkins | Breitbart News Data from Ammoland News indicates Colorado witnessed an exponential increase in firearm homicides after embracing a state-level gun control agenda in 2013. On February 10, 2013, less than two months after the heinous attack on Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, Breitbart News noted that Colorado Democrats were declaring war on the Second Amendment. That war included bans on “high capacity” magazines, requirements for universal background checks, fees for existing background checks, and allowing victims of gun violence to sue firearm manufacturers for the misuse of weapons. Since then, Colorado Democrats’ push for gun control has continued unabated. Most recently, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) signed a semiautomatic ban that repres...
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Colorado at risk of losing $156 million solar grant under Biden-backed EPA shift
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Colorado at risk of losing $156 million solar grant under Biden-backed EPA shift

BY MICHAEL BOOTH | THE COLORADO SUN Subsidies for lower-income families to get access to solar panels and cheaper bills are under threat from the GOP administration The Environmental Protection Agency wants to cancel $7 billion in solar installation grants, including $156 million already awarded to Colorado, according to national news reports, and Colorado state officials and solar industry leaders are scrambling to learn what is happening to a highly touted program.  The Colorado Solar and Storage Association said the cancellation, if confirmed, would mean yet another federal blow to clean energy efforts, where Colorado has led the way nationally in converting power generation to renewable sources and promoting solar use in lower-income neighborhoods.  “It’s dev...
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Garbo: Colorado Democrats set the house on fire, then send you the insurance bill
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, Commentary, State, Top Stories

Garbo: Colorado Democrats set the house on fire, then send you the insurance bill

By C. J. Garbo | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice If you’re a Colorado homeowner staring down another massive insurance premium hike - welcome to the consequences of single-party rule. For over a decade, Democrats have run this state. For the last four years, they’ve enjoyed unchecked supermajorities. And yet, while your coverage hasn’t improved, your bill has exploded. In just two years, my own homeowners insurance jumped 190%: - 2023–24: $3,029 - 2024–25: $5,230 (+72.66%) - 2025–26: $8,768 (+67.65%) I’ve filed zero claims. My house hasn’t changed. But the policies passed under Democratic control have made everything worse. This is what happens when public policy is written by unskilled, untalented, uninformed people who face no meaningful opposition or accountabil...
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New Colorado laws raise stakes in domestic abuse response
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DENVER7, Approved, State

New Colorado laws raise stakes in domestic abuse response

BY BRANDON RICHARD | DENVER 7 DENVER — More than 200 new state laws will take effect on Wednesday, including laws that provide additional protections for survivors of domestic abuse. Denver7 dug into one of the new laws and spoke with community members to find out how it will address a problem they say is long overdue for a solution. Eunice Brownlee is a survivor of domestic abuse. While she was never physically abused, she told Denver7 she endured constant emotional and financial abuse and was afraid of losing custody of her daughter. “There were all kinds of stuff that happened, and our life became very challenging,” Brownlee said. “One of the things that most people don't understand is that coercive control is the thing that keeps people trapped in relationships b...
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Wildfires Force New Evacuations Across Rio Blanco and Garfield Counties
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Approved, kdvr.com, State

Wildfires Force New Evacuations Across Rio Blanco and Garfield Counties

By  Spencer Kristensen | KDVR Fox 31 DENVER (KDVR) — As crews continue to battle wildfires across the state, more evacuations and pre-evacuations have been ordered due to several fires growing in size. Multiple agencies in different jurisdictions around Colorado ordered a new round of evacuations and pre-evacuations on Wednesday afternoon. Rio Blanco County: Lee and Elk Fires There are two large wildfires in Rio Blanco County that have burned more than 30,000 acres. Evacuations have already been sent for certain areas in the county, and the Rio Blanco Sheriff’s Office continued with more evacuations and pre-evacuations on Wednesday. Zone 40 Zone 40 is located southwest of Meeker and just east of Lion Canyon. The area contains a stretch of Highway 13. Immediate e...
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