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Colorado Program For Immigrant Children And Pregnant Women Blows Past Cost Estimates By 611%
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Colorado Program For Immigrant Children And Pregnant Women Blows Past Cost Estimates By 611%

By Jesse Paul and John Ingold | The Colorado Sun The state predicts that the Covering All Coloradans program will cost Colorado $104.5 million in the fiscal year that began July 1. Nonpartisan fiscal analysts estimated the cost would be $14.7 million. roviding health care to children and pregnant people who would qualify for Medicaid if not for their immigration status will cost Colorado more than six times what was projected this year.  Because of higher-than-forecast enrollment, the state is expecting that the Cover All Coloradans program will cost the state $104.5 million in the fiscal year that began July 1. When Democratic state lawmakers passed a bill in 2022 launching the health insurance safety net initiative, nonpartisan fiscal analysts estima...
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All 66 Colorado Democrat Lawmakers Press Polis To Reject Clemency For Tina Peters
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

All 66 Colorado Democrat Lawmakers Press Polis To Reject Clemency For Tina Peters

By: Jesse Paul | The Colorado Sun The letter warned that clemency would be a gift to conspiracy theorists and risks undermining the safety of future elections. All 66 Democrats in the Colorado legislature signed onto a letter Wednesday urging Gov. Jared Polis not to reduce the prison sentence of former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, a missive that escalates the party’s near-universal disapproval of Polis’ posture toward the case.  “This is about the security and assuredness of our elections,” the letter said. “This is about the future of our democracy, and of free and fair elections in our nation. We ask you to stand with us in safeguarding the future.” The letter says that clemency is “for those who have taken accountability for their crimes, understand ...
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Wolf Advocates Push Stricter Rules Before Wolves Can Be Killed For Livestock Attacks
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Wolf Advocates Push Stricter Rules Before Wolves Can Be Killed For Livestock Attacks

By: Tracy Ross | The Colorado Sun Wolf advocates want to make it harder to legally kill reintroduced wolves and ensure ranchers first exhaust a detailed list of nonlethal hazing methods. It’s the latest in a debate between animal protection groups and hunters that is coming to a head this spring in various venues.  The Center for Biological Diversity says Colorado Parks and Wildlife regulations don’t do enough to protect animals. Hunting groups want the status quo. The fight has already played out at the Parks and Wildlife Commission meeting last week when the center introduced a petition to ban the sale of commercial fur in Colorado. They’re also backing a bill to ban the killing of beavers on Colorado public lands.   The center said no...
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Xcel Warns Grid May Need Coal Plants Longer Amid Delays In New Energy Projects
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Xcel Warns Grid May Need Coal Plants Longer Amid Delays In New Energy Projects

By: Mark Jaffe | The Colorado Sun The plants in Pueblo and Hayden were slated to phase out between 2025 and 2030. Now the company has proposed running all their units for four more years. Xcel Energy, facing what it says is a shortfall in electricity generating capacity for the next two years, is proposing to run its four coal-fired units until 2030. Comanche Unit 2, in Pueblo, was supposed to close at the end of 2025. One unit at the Hayden Station is to close in 2027 and the second unit is slated to shut in 2028. Comanche Unit 3 is set to close in 2030. Comanche 3 suffered turbine damage in August taking the unit offline. Xcel Energy initially said repairs would be completed in June, but in a March 2 report to state regulators the company said it h...
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Food Shaming Concerns Delay Colorado Plan to Ban Soda Purchases With Food Stamps
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Food Shaming Concerns Delay Colorado Plan to Ban Soda Purchases With Food Stamps

By: Jennifer Brown | The Colorado Sun The SNAP rule change was delayed by a state board after a 7-hour hearing including fierce opposition from the governor’s fellow Democrats, Hunger Free Colorado and Save the Children. A plan to prohibit Coloradans from using food-assistance benefits to buy soda and sugary fruit juices was stalled Friday by a state board after opponents argued it was an overreach that could harm the dignity and autonomy of low-income families. The rule would ban the use of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, called SNAP, to buy soda as well as juices with added sugars or artificial sweeteners. Gov. Jared Polis won approval from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the “healthy choice” rule in August, but needed...
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Heated Debate Over Furbearer Hunting Prompts Increased Security At Colorado Wildlife Meeting
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Heated Debate Over Furbearer Hunting Prompts Increased Security At Colorado Wildlife Meeting

By Tracy Ross | The Colorado Sun A CPW official cited large turnout and “detailed information about public testimony” as reasons for checking people for weapons at the door at the Wednesday meeting. Tension over furbearer regulations has prompted increased security for the Colorado Parks and Wildlife commission meeting Wednesday, when commissioners will vote on petitions from opposing groups focused on hunting and trapping of animals for their fur, including fox, coyote, beaver, bobcat, pine marten and otters.  CPW has encouraged attendees to arrive early to the meeting at the Double Tree Inn in Westminster where the agency will enforce the hotel’s ban on firearms and weapons by conducting security checks prior to entry.  CPW is taking the ...
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Federal Audit Finds Colorado Misspent $78 Million On Autism Therapy
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Federal Audit Finds Colorado Misspent $78 Million On Autism Therapy

By Jennifer Brown | The Colorado Sun The state must repay the federal government $42.6 million after “questionable billing patterns.” Colorado made at least $77.8 million in improper payments for Medicaid services for children with autism and must refund the federal government $42.6 million, federal officials said Monday.  Auditors at the federal Office of the Inspector General found the state Medicaid program has been improperly covering care by uncredentialed behavioral technicians for children with autism, among other billing discrepancies.  The audit released Monday comes as the state is already dealing with a $1 billion budget shortfall and cuts to Medicaid benefits that have affected multiple programs for people with low incomes and disabi...
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Xcel Reports $903 Million Colorado Profit While Seeking Higher Electric And Gas Rates
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Xcel Reports $903 Million Colorado Profit While Seeking Higher Electric And Gas Rates

By Mark Jaffe | The Colorado Sun On Feb. 18, the PUC also approved 4,100 MW of new generation — a mix of wind, solar, natural gas and storage — to be fast-tracked in an effort to get federal tax credits before they expire. The proposed gas rate increase would raise gas customers’ bills by an average $7.59 to $74.41 a month to pay for safety improvements, meet rising operating and maintenance costs and provide investor returns. The electricity rate increase Xcel Energy is seeking would raise bills about 10% to $110 a month to recover infrastructure investments, operating costs and lost revenue sources. “Enough is enough. Coloradans are being crushed under the weight of gas and power bills that get bigger every year,” Sarah Tresedder, senior climate and energy o...
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Taxpayers To Fund Legal Defense For Democrats In Vail Ethics Case
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Taxpayers To Fund Legal Defense For Democrats In Vail Ethics Case

By Taylor Dolven | The Colorado Sun A legislative committee Thursday approved representation for the Democrats in the Opportunity Caucus, which hosted the Vail gathering. Taxpayers will cover the legal bills for 15 Democratic state lawmakers who face ethics complaints related to a dark money-funded weekend retreat held in Vail last month.  The legislature’s Committee on Legal Services, a bipartisan panel, voted unanimously Thursday to hire attorney Mark Grueskin of the firm Recht Kornfeld to represent the Democrats. He will be paid $250 an hour for his work. The Committee on Legal Services regularly approves publicly funded legal counsel for lawmakers who are sued or face other legal issues in their official capacity. Work on any future appeals for the 15 Demo...
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Gov. Polis Seeks Answers As Colorado’s Largest Publicly Traded Company Leaves for Florida
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Gov. Polis Seeks Answers As Colorado’s Largest Publicly Traded Company Leaves for Florida

By Tamara Chuang | The Colorado Sun Valued at $300B, Palantir was the largest publicly traded company in Colorado. CEO Alex Karp recently bought a monastery in Old Snowmass. Palantir Technologies, a government contractor known for mass surveillance technology aided by artificial intelligence, has moved its headquarters out of Denver in favor of the Miami area, the company said Tuesday in a post on X.com.  The company left Palo Alto, California, in 2020 to move to Denver. Founded by billionaire Peter Thiel and its CEO Alex Karp, Palantir was in the news this month after activists behind the “Purge Palantir” database publicized the company’s donations to two of Colorado’s Democratic members of Congress. U.S. Rep. Jason Crow of Aurora and Sen. John Hickenlooper ...
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