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Colorado taxpayers footed $7.3M bill for dead Medicaid enrollees, audit finds
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Approved, denvergazette.com, State

Colorado taxpayers footed $7.3M bill for dead Medicaid enrollees, audit finds

By Nicole C. Brambila | Denver Gazette Thousands of deceased Coloradans stayed on the state’s Medicaid rolls, as the state continued paying managed care organizations to cover them, a lapse federal investigators flagged as wasteful in a recent audit. Colorado made an estimated $7.3 million in capitation payments between 2018 and 2020, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG). The payments continued for some Coloradans months after their deaths because of outdated reporting and system delays, state officials said. Simply stated, capitation payments are fixed monthly fees paid to managed care organizations for each Medicaid enrollee. “We know that there is fraud, waste, and abuse in the system that we have...
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House Minority Leader Pugliese: Parental rights transcend party lines
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Approved, Newsmax, State, Top Stories

House Minority Leader Pugliese: Parental rights transcend party lines

By James Morley III | Newsmax Colorado House Minority Leader Rose Pugliese, R-Colorado Springs, told Newsmax Saturday that "parental rights in an issue that transcends party lines" in light of recent bills passed in the state Legislature that she said aim to erode the authority of parents. Last week, the Colorado House of Representatives passed House Bill 1312, which Pugliese said will punish a parent for referring to a transgender child by their birth name and gender, calling it "coercive control." "What this bill basically says is if you don't subscribe to a certain ideology, you could lose your children," she said during an appearance on "America Right Now." READ THE FULL STORY ON NEWSMAX
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Linnebur: Rural Colorado’s energy boom isn’t luck—it’s leadership
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Approved, State, The Daily Sentinel

Linnebur: Rural Colorado’s energy boom isn’t luck—it’s leadership

By Tyler Linnebur and Evan Underwood | Commentary, The Daily Sentinel Rural Colorado is experiencing a surge in economic growth thanks to smart federal policy and local energy leadership. Federal energy tax credits, combined with Colorado’s all-of-the-above energy strategy, are revitalizing rural communities by creating diverse, durable jobs and attracting new investment. By supporting both traditional and renewable energy sources, Colorado is proving that a balanced approach delivers real results where they’re needed most. Energy legislation over the past few years reinforced efforts to boost clean energy production and manufacturing across the country. These programs support technologies ranging from solar and wind to energy storage, electric vehicles, and advanced manufacturing. B...
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CPW confirms second gray wolf reintroduced to Colorado dies in Wyoming
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Approved, DENVER7, State

CPW confirms second gray wolf reintroduced to Colorado dies in Wyoming

By Stephanie Butzer | Denver 7 DENVER — For the second time this year, a gray wolf that was translocated to Colorado from Canada as part of the second round of reintroductions has died in Wyoming. Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) sent a brief press release about the second death around 6:45 p.m. Friday, saying they had learned about the male wolf's death in Wyoming on April 9. The wolf was part of the 15 animals — which included seven males — that had been captured in British Columbia earlier this year and brought to Colorado. CPW coordinated with Wyoming Game and Fish to obtain the wolf's GPS collar. Wyoming state law prevents other details from being shared, CPW said. When the first translocated wolf died in Wyoming on March 16, a CPW spokesperson told De...
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State sends $8M to 12K residents—billions more remain in unclaimed property
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Approved, DENVER7, State

State sends $8M to 12K residents—billions more remain in unclaimed property

By Shannon Ogden | Denver7 DENVER — Colorado, you have some money coming to you. The Colorado Department of the Treasury is mailing $8 million in unclaimed property to 12,000 Coloradans. The checks will arrive in the next few weeks and can be cashed immediately without further action. Twice yearly, companies transfer assets to the Department of Treasury when they can't locate the owners. The state said it currently holds more than $2 billion in unclaimed funds owed to 15 million people or entities. State Treasurer Dave Young said this round of checks includes some sizeable payouts. READ THE FULL STORY AT DENVER7 NEWS
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Why HJR25-1023’s logic for killing TABOR collapses under basic constitutional history
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Approved, completecolorado.com, State, Top Stories

Why HJR25-1023’s logic for killing TABOR collapses under basic constitutional history

By Rob Natelson | Complete Colorado To understand why some members of the Colorado legislature are unworthy of your trust, look no further than their current effort to take away your state tax refunds and abolish your right to vote on taxes, spending, and debt. An astounding 44 of 100 lawmakers are sponsoring House Joint Resolution (HJR) 25-1023. This resolution would spend tax dollars on a lawsuit to void the Colorado Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). Coloradans voted to add this valuable protection to the state Constitution in 1992. I’ve listed the sponsors at the end of this column, so you can see who they are and what districts they so poorly represent. I’ve also included a link so you can see their party affiliation and email addresses and another link so you ...
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Justice: Colorado’s HB1312 is sacrificing families to the trans lobby
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Approved, State, The Daily Caller

Justice: Colorado’s HB1312 is sacrificing families to the trans lobby

By Tiffany Justice | The Daily Caller No parent should ever be forced to enable harm to their child. It’s a primal instinct—to shield, to nurture, to guide our kids through life’s storms. Yet, Colorado is charging toward a law that turns this instinct upside down, branding it abusive for parents to question their child’s desire to “change their gender.” This isn’t a minor policy tweak; it’s a full-frontal assault on parental rights, propped up by the flimsy facade of “gender-affirming care”—a practice I see as abuse cloaked in compassion. The legislation at the heart of this, HB25-1312, cleared the Colorado House in early 2025 and is winding through the Senate as of April. Its supporters pitch it as a shield for transgender individuals, but peel back the rhetoric, and the real ta...
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Over 20 Colorado pastors unite in urgent call to action against HB25-1312
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Over 20 Colorado pastors unite in urgent call to action against HB25-1312

By Jen Schumann | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice “If you don’t speak up now, it may be too late.” That’s the message from a growing coalition of Colorado pastors urging fellow faith leaders to take a public stand against HB25-1312 — a bill they say undermines parental rights, criminalizes biblical truth and puts families at risk. Pastor Jeff Anderson, Senior Advisor for Faith Outreach to Congressman Jeff Crank, sent a letter Friday afternoon to pastors across Colorado urging them to speak out against the bill.  “We want to bring to your attention a critical issue affecting parental rights in Colorado,” Anderson wrote. “This bill includes provisions that could have significant implications for parents and families.” The bill, titled “Legal Protections for Transge...
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Colorado refuses to certify DEI removal order, risks $800M in school funds
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Approved, Chalkbeat Colorado, National, State

Colorado refuses to certify DEI removal order, risks $800M in school funds

By Melanie Asmar | Chalkbeat Colorado Colorado will refuse a demand from the Trump administration to certify that its schools have eliminated what the federal government says are illegal diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, state Commissioner of Education Susana Córdova said Thursday. “I am not signing that,” Córdova said. “I am not asking our districts to sign that.” However, Córdova told the State Board of Education she will sign a new assurance that the state is in compliance with Title VI, which bans discrimination on the basis of race, “so that my name, in addition to the department’s previous commissioner who signed our previous assurance, is on file and on record to be able to indicate that we are fully enforcing Title VI.” The U.S. Department of Educatio...
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