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Protect Kids Colorado working toward ballot initiative, ‘moving the needle’ on bills, co-founder Erin Lee says
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Protect Kids Colorado working toward ballot initiative, ‘moving the needle’ on bills, co-founder Erin Lee says

By Brian Porter | Rocky Mountain Voice Protect Kids Colorado is locked in for another run this summer at a ballot initiative protecting children, co-founder Erin Lee said Monday evening in an organizational call. "We're a broad coalition," Lee said. "We are proudly non-partisan. We come together for initiatives that protect kids and strengthen families." She has grown concerned with school districts and hospitals which have not complied with directives from the federal government related to gender-affirming medicine and diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Members of her organization have been watching bills of interest in the 75th Colorado Legislature and appearing to testify with a position. Examples of some positive bills she gave include House Bill 25-1251, by Republic...
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Rep. DeGraaf gets a laugh out of stove-labeling bill he calls a ‘feel-good’ measure for Democrats
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Rep. DeGraaf gets a laugh out of stove-labeling bill he calls a ‘feel-good’ measure for Democrats

By Brian Porter | Rocky Mountain Voice In a moment Tuesday which appeared to even make the Colorado House Speaker, a Democrat, chuckle, Republican Rep. Ken Degraaf criticized House Bill 25-1161 before it was passed out of the chamber on party lines. The measure, by Democrat Rep. Alex Valdez and Democrat Sen. Cathy Kipp, requires the labeling of gas stoves to indicate "this appliance should be ventilated to the exterior when in use." The bill does not explicitly cause an installer to vent a gas stove outdoors. "I know you'll vote for it, because it is a feel-good bill," said DeGraaf, suggesting the bill is simply virtue signaling by the political Left. "I'll make fun of you for it anyways." He explained how stoves generally work in homes throughout the state, including in areas ...
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Gun advocates call proposed legislation a ‘massive infringement’
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Approved, State, The Center Square

Gun advocates call proposed legislation a ‘massive infringement’

By Elyse Apel | The Center Square As the Colorado General Assembly moves forward with multiple bills further restricting firearm access in the state, gun advocates are pushing back. The Colorado State Shooting Association, the official state association of the National Rifle Association, spoke with The Center Square in an exclusive interview, highlighting some of its key concerns with the trends in Colorado. “A lot of this legislation just comes after the very lowest crime segments of the population and the people who handle firearms and ammunition the most responsibly,” said Huey Laugesen, executive director of the Colorado State Shooting Association. “I think that a lot of responsible and law-abiding gun owners in Colorado are really starting to feel like this legislature j...
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Parker widow to lobby for stricter penalties for careless driving at Colorado State Capitol this week
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Approved, CBS Colorado, State

Parker widow to lobby for stricter penalties for careless driving at Colorado State Capitol this week

By Olivia Young | CBS Colorado A Parker widow turned street safety advocate is taking her fight to the Colorado State Capitol this week. On Wednesday, she plans to lobby for changes to state law, including stricter penalties for careless driving. "My husband, Chuck, went on an early morning bike ride the morning of July 4 in 2019, and he never made it home," said Teri Vogel. In the five-and-a-half years since Vogel's husband was killed in a hit-and-run, she has not stopped fighting for change. "We were determined to see a greater good come from such a preventable and senseless death," Vogel said. READ THE FULL STORY AT CBS COLORADO
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6% of Colorado land is supposed to be protected by conservation easements. But who enforces them?
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Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

6% of Colorado land is supposed to be protected by conservation easements. But who enforces them?

By Jerd Smith | The Colorado Sun The landscape of sprawling pastures dotted with ponderosa pines and towering square buttes that bridges Interstate 25 south of Castle Rock and north of Monument is vast, quiet and largely undeveloped. Colorado voters wanted it that way 25 years ago when conservation groups, a former governor and a billionaire stepped in to forever protect this high-profile corridor from future development. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE COLORADO SUN
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Business leaders win key votes on two environmental bills
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Approved, State, The Sum & Substance

Business leaders win key votes on two environmental bills

By Ed Sealover | The Sum & Substance Colorado legislators pushed backed against environmental activists in two ways Thursday, rejecting a bill to require extensive emissions reporting by large corporations and advancing a plan to study how to consider more fully the impact on jobs of future climate regulations. The dual decisions by the House Energy and Environment Committee marked an eye-opening change in direction after legislators have spent most of the past six years passing increasing emissions regulations. And Democratic legislators who sided with Republicans and business groups on the bills stated it is time to think more about the economic impact of state rules and to avoid adding burdensome regulations that could have negligible effects on the state’s air quality. REA...
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In fix to vet shortage, HB 1131 will graduate more vets, CSU dean says as measure advances in Senate
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

In fix to vet shortage, HB 1131 will graduate more vets, CSU dean says as measure advances in Senate

By Brian Porter | Rocky Mountain Voice Veterinarians are in extremely short supply in all four corners of Colorado. The solution? The authors of House Bill 25-1131 say, ironically, a veterinarian shortage can be fixed through the graduation of more veterinarians. "We are seeing a shortage of veterinarians all over rural Colorado, and the state, quite frankly," Republican Sen. Byron Pelton said. The bill was termed a free-market solution to the state’s growing veterinary shortage by Republican Rep. Dusty Johnson and Democrat Rep. Andrew Boesenecker, who ushered it through the Colorado House on a 65-0 vote of the lower chamber. The bill was similarly advanced Monday out of the Senate's Education Committee on a unanimous vote and is being fast-tracked through the upper chamber ...
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HB 1096 asks local governments to adopt ‘instant permitting’ for residential solar projects
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Approved, Law Week Colorado, State

HB 1096 asks local governments to adopt ‘instant permitting’ for residential solar projects

By Michael Rummel | Law Week Colorado A bill that would require local municipalities and counties in Colorado to implement an automated permitting process for residential solar panel installation passed its first committee hearing, but several of the aye votes for the measure came with reservations.  House Bill 25-1096, dubbed “Automated Permits for Clean Energy Technology,” was brought to the Colorado House Energy and Environment Committee by Democratic Reps. Lesley Smith and Kyle Brown. It has one prime sponsor on the Colorado Senate side, Democratic Sen. Matt Ball.  “HB-1096 seeks to remove the red tape to help Colorado reach its climate goals by asking local governments to adopt instant permitting solutions for residential solar projects,” Brown said in the hearing. “In 2...
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Citing overreach by Democrats, Sen. Mark Baisley becomes second Republican to enter race for governor
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Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

Citing overreach by Democrats, Sen. Mark Baisley becomes second Republican to enter race for governor

By Bente Birkeland | The Colorado Sun The list of Republicans aiming for Colorado’s top office is growing. Two current statehouse Republicans have officially entered the race for governor in 2026, when Democratic Gov. Jared Polis is term limited. Colorado has not elected a Republican governor since Bill Owens handily defeated a Democrat in 2002.  READ THE FULL STORY AT THE COLORADO SUN
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Colorado Senate committee advances bipartisan bill to repeal parts of Farmworkers Bill of Rights
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Approved, coloradopolitics.com, State

Colorado Senate committee advances bipartisan bill to repeal parts of Farmworkers Bill of Rights

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics A bill seeking to repeal a portion of the 2021 Farmworkers Bill of Rights cleared its first hurdle last week when the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee advanced the measure. Senate Bill 128 won a bipartisan 5-2 vote, with two Democrats and three Republicans in favor and two Democrats voting against it. It now heads to the full Senate for debate. The short hearing showed that divisions remain between moderate and progressive Democrats, with a compromise deal collapsing just before debate. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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