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Governor Issues Disaster Order as Wildfires Sweep Western Colorado
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State, Approved, denvergazette.com

Governor Issues Disaster Order as Wildfires Sweep Western Colorado

By Nick Smith | The Denver Gazette After several lightning strikes set parts of western Colorado aflame two weeks ago, five wildfires have consumed 42,431 acres as incident management teams make headway on containment. A drought in the West, hot temperatures and powerful wind gusts have allowed the fires to thrive while crews have had to deal with challenging mountainous terrain. The Turner Gulch, Sowbelly, South Rim and Wright Draw fires prompted several evacuations and caused Gov. Jared Polis to issue a disaster declaration. This allowed the state to mobilize its resources, including supplies, equipment and personnel, to assist in battling the blazes. The declaration also allowed Colorado to request aid from FEMA and other federal agencies, should that become necessary. The d...
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Garbo: Why real conservatism demands judgment, not just an algorithm
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, Commentary, State, Top Stories

Garbo: Why real conservatism demands judgment, not just an algorithm

By C. J. Garbo | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice In Colorado political circles, the Liberty Scorecard has become a popular benchmark for judging whether a state legislator is a “true conservative.” It’s cited in primaries, shared in campaign materials, and weaponized in internal party battles. On its face, it’s a helpful tool - shining light on legislative votes and offering a snapshot of where elected officials land on key liberty-related issues. Used wisely, it can inform voters and hold lawmakers accountable. But here’s the problem: many conservatives are no longer using the Liberty Scorecard as a tool. They’re using it as a final verdict. This shift from tool to litmus test is not only unwise - it’s politically self-defeating. Treating the Liberty Scorecard as the defi...
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Restoring Education: Veteran educator Priscilla Rahn invites teachers to reconnect and rebuild
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, State, Top Stories

Restoring Education: Veteran educator Priscilla Rahn invites teachers to reconnect and rebuild

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice This August, as educators across the country prepare for a new school year, veteran teacher and author Priscilla Rahn is offering something more than just a back-to-school refresher—she’s offering a movement. With over three decades of experience in public education, Rahn has worn nearly every hat in the system: teacher, principal, teacher evaluator and higher education mentor. Now in her 32nd year, she’s channeling that experience into her new book, Restoring Education in America: An Inspirational Teacher Toolbox, along with a powerful professional development book study designed to reignite teachers’ passion and purpose. “I was inspired to write the book because I’ve observed how professional development has changed,” Ra...
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Colorado gun dealers say new license law is death by paperwork
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completecolorado.com, Approved, State

Colorado gun dealers say new license law is death by paperwork

By Savana Kascak | Complete Complete DENVER—A new Colorado law subjecting gun dealers already regulated by the federal government to onerous state licensing and regulatory burdens is more about a hostile legislature stifling gun rights than anything else, according to some in the firearms industry. House Bill 24-1353, Firearms Dealers Requirements and Permit, requires federally licensed firearms dealers (FFLs) also obtain a $400 state permit issued by the Colorado Department of Revenue (DOR) that must be renewed every three years. Employees must complete an annual training course on gun safety and storage and get fingerprinted for a criminal background check. DOR agents can conduct random on-site inspections at any point to ensure the law is being followed. Governor Jared Polis...
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42 Percent of Colorado Roads in Poor Condition as CDOT Spending Soars
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State, Approved, DENVER7

42 Percent of Colorado Roads in Poor Condition as CDOT Spending Soars

By Danielle Kreutter | Denver7 DENVER — Across the state, there has been no significant improvement in infrastructure over the last five years, according to the latest "report card" from the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). Colorado received a cumulative grade of "C-," the same as the last study the ASCE conducted in 2020. The report looks at more than a dozen different types of infrastructure. The majority of the categories remained the same compared to the last report card. Roads were one of two categories that went down. Colorado roads were graded as a "D+." The overall grade for Colorado from ASCE has remained unchanged since 2020 Across the state, there has been no significant improvement in infrastructure over the last five years, according to the ...
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James: Metro elites power down rural Colorado energy while calling it a ‘just transition’
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ScottKJames.com, Approved, Commentary, State

James: Metro elites power down rural Colorado energy while calling it a ‘just transition’

By Scott K. James | Commentary, ScottKJames.com As Craig faces a coal plant shutdown, rural Colorado communities are being gutted in the name of environmental virtue-signaling. Jobs, power, and people are being discarded—and the so-called “just transition” is anything but. Rural Colorado towns like Craig are being sacrificed on the altar of metro-area environmental guilt—and no amount of “just transition” branding is going to save them. In a July 19, 2025, piece for The Denver Gazette, reporter Scott Weiser rather artfully dives into the coming shutdown of Tri-State’s Craig Station—one of the largest coal-fired power plants in the state—and the ripple effect it’s having on energy, jobs, and entire communities. It’s a wonderfully written story, but the outcome sucks. Mean...
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Trailblazers among us: Meet the RMV award winners changing Colorado from the ground up
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, State, Top Stories

Trailblazers among us: Meet the RMV award winners changing Colorado from the ground up

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice At the Mountain Majesty Gala last month, the room was on its feet. Eric Trump had just wrapped his keynote, a message aimed straight at the grassroots: Colorado is yearning to be red. But the loud applause that night wasn’t reserved only for the headliner.  It also came when everyday Coloradans—organizers, volunteers and first-time leaders—were called up for something new: the first Trailblazer Awards.  It was for the people doing the work when no one’s watching. It was a moment to take in, struck not just by who received the awards—but why. These weren’t political celebrities. They were parents, satirists, engineers and organizers.  Most had never sought attention. But they’d earned it. Here are the stories of Trailblaze...
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Colorado AG Weiser sues Mesa County deputy for helping ICE make arrest
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kdvr.com, Approved, State

Colorado AG Weiser sues Mesa County deputy for helping ICE make arrest

By Colleen Slevin | Fox31 DENVER (AP) — Colorado’s Democratic attorney general on Tuesday sued a sheriff’s deputy for allegedly helping federal immigration agents find and arrest a college student who had an expired visa. Attorney General Phil Weiser also disclosed that his office is investigating whether other law enforcement officers on a regional drug task force the deputy worked on have been sharing information to help federal agents make immigration arrests in violation of state law limiting cooperation in immigration enforcement. The federal government has sued Colorado over such laws. On June 5, Mesa County Deputy Alexander Zwinck allegedly shared the driver’s license, vehicle registration and insurance information of the 19-year-old nursing student in a Signal chat us...
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Colorado GOP elects Holtorf as vice chair: ‘We’re standing at a crossroads’
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado GOP elects Holtorf as vice chair: ‘We’re standing at a crossroads’

By Ernest Luning | Colorado Politics A sharply divided Colorado Republican Party elected former House Minority Whip Richard Holtorf to fill the state GOP's vacant vice chair position Monday night during an online meeting that laid bare ongoing disputes that have consumed the state party for more than a year. Roughly 400 Republican state central committee members cast their votes for the party's No. 2 job nearly two hours into a special meeting held on the Zoom teleconference platform to replace Darrel Phelan, the state GOP's previous vice chair, who attributed his abrupt resignation last month to his frustration over state chair Brita Horn's refusal to let him help run the party. Horn, Phelan and Russ Andrews, the state party secretary, won election to their po...
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Boebert Delivers Big for Small Colorado Towns with ZIP Code Bill
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State, Approved, CBS News

Boebert Delivers Big for Small Colorado Towns with ZIP Code Bill

By Austen Erblat | CBS News A bill that aims to help smaller cities and towns collect more local revenue has passed out of the U.S. House of Representatives and could soon go to the president's desk to be signed into law. The legislation, sponsored by U.S. Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert, whose district includes a large swath of Northern Colorado and the Eastern Plains, would create unique ZIP codes for 15 communities across the state, as well as dozens more in other states. All eight members of Colorado's Congressional delegation -- four Democrats and four Republicans -- all voted in favor of the bill. Colorado's Democrats joined 71 others in Congress to bring the final vote on the bill to 278-121, with 31 members of Congress not voting on the bill. One town that could benefit ...
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