Rocky Mountain Voice

Menu

The Denver Gazette

Denver Council Rejects Mayor’s Budget, But Johnston’s Spending Plan is Alive and Well
No Comments
The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Denver Council Rejects Mayor’s Budget, But Johnston’s Spending Plan is Alive and Well

By Deborah Grigsby | The Denver Gazette The Denver City Council rejected Mayor Mike Johnston’s $1.66 billion spending plan, but the proposal, as amended, will still govern operations, as the charter requires the city to have a budget in place by Nov. 12. In a split 6-6 vote on Monday, councilmembers expressed disappointment with various aspects of the budget process, citing its complicated nature and “lack of collaboration and transparency.” One councilmember was absent. Councilmembers Chris Hinds, Kevin Flynn, Diana Romero-Campbell, Jamie Torres, Amanda Sandoval and Darrell Watson voted in favor of the budget, while Councilmembers Flor Alvidrez, Shontel Lewis, Stacie Gilmore, Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez, Paul Kashmann, and Amanda Sawyer balked at the spending plan. At-large C...
Read More
Six Colorado counties hike lodging taxes while two hold the line
No Comments
The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Six Colorado counties hike lodging taxes while two hold the line

By Rachael Wright | The Denver Gazette Six mountain communities across Colorado voted on Tuesday to raise their lodging taxes after the state legislature passed a bill allowing counties to triple such taxes and spend the money on a wider range of projects, including public infrastructure, childcare and housing for workers.  Lodging tax increases passed in Eagle, Gilpin, Hinsdale, Ouray, Routt and Park but failed in Chaffee and Custer counties. Rural mountain communities have struggled for years under the pressures of increased tourism. Supporters said the new state law would allow those communities to pass along some of their increased costs to visitors. Before the new law’s adoption, the tax revenue could be used only for tourism marketing and some worker housing. Some of...
Read More
Fort Lewis College Faces Political Fire from GOP Lawmakers After Blocking Turning Point USA
No Comments
The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Fort Lewis College Faces Political Fire from GOP Lawmakers After Blocking Turning Point USA

By: Marissa Ventrelli | The Denver Gazette Republican state lawmakers are criticizing the student government at Durango’s Fort Lewis College for rejecting a proposal to establish a Turning Point USA chapter on campus. Turning Point USA is a nonprofit organization that advocates for conservative issues on high school and college campuses. Its founder, Charlie Kirk, was killed during a campus event in Utah in September. According to the Durango Herald, more than 30 students spoke on the matter during a four-hour-long meeting last week, with most expressing opposition to the proposal. The effort to bring Turning Point USA to the Fort Lewis campus was led by senior Jonah Flynn, who told the Durango Herald he wanted to “keep the conversation going” about conservative values in ...
Read More
Denver City Council Blocks Proposal to Cut Police Budget for Homeless Services
No Comments
The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Denver City Council Blocks Proposal to Cut Police Budget for Homeless Services

By Deborah Grigsby | The Denver Gazette A push to shift millions of dollars away from the Denver Police Department to pay for homeless families’ shelter failed on Monday night, when councilmembers waded through more than two dozen amendments. The council voted against a pair of amendments, sponsored independently by Councilmember Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez and At-large Councilmember Sarah Parady, both of which proposed a one-time budget reallocation of $9 million from the police department to Denver’s Department of Housing Stability (HOST) to pay for the needs of approximately 240 homeless families. The two amendments would have taken funding from DPD’s recruiting program, as well as from its service and supply budget line. When asked how HOST might use the additional cash infus...
Read More
Why Colorado’s Elections No Longer Belong to Its Voters
No Comments
The Denver Gazette, Approved, Commentary, State

Why Colorado’s Elections No Longer Belong to Its Voters

By: Vince Bzdek | Commentary, The Denver Gazette Why is Michael Bloomberg, the former presidential candidate, three-term New York mayor and founder of the financial info firm that bears his name, spending millions on Colorado elections? The short answer: because he can. The liberal New Yorker has donated $2.7 million to support Denver’s flavored tobacco ban, Referendum 301, to be decided on Tuesday. Two of his donations to that campaign were the largest individual contributions in Denver history, according to an Axios analysis. Bloomberg is also the largest donor in the 2026 governor’s race, giving $500,000 to a super-PAC supporting U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet’s campaign. “This is a very large donation for a statewide race,” Seth Masket, professor of political sc...
Read More
Aurora Police Arrest Man Deported Three Times After I-225 Shooting
No Comments
The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Aurora Police Arrest Man Deported Three Times After I-225 Shooting

By Kyla Pearce | The Denver Gazette Aurora police officers arrested a suspect in connection with a shooting on I-225 last weekend in what officials described as a case in which camera technology and cooperation with federal immigration agents played a major role. The case also illustrated the stark differences between the cities of Denver and Aurora in how they approach the use of surveillance videos and working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Police on Thursday apprehended Celin Villeda Orellana, 38, on charges of attempted first-degree murder, first-degree assault, menacing and illegal discharge of a firearm, all felonies, according to Acting Assistant Chief Mark Hildebrand in a news conference on Friday. Orellana has been deported three times since 2007. Th...
Read More
Hospitals on life support: Report says 70% of Colorado facilities losing money
No Comments
The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Hospitals on life support: Report says 70% of Colorado facilities losing money

By Marissa Ventrelli | The Denver Gazette Nearly 70% of Colorado hospitals ended 2024 with “unsustainable” margins, according to a new financial report from the Colorado Hospital Association. Tom Rennell, the group’s senior vice president of financial policy and data analytics, said hospitals’ expenses are outpacing their revenue, as an increasing number of Colorado patients are losing their insurance coverage, partially due to the post-pandemic Medicaid unwind. “Over the last several years since the COVID times and through the high inflationary times, hospitals have been experiencing some significant econmic turbulence,” Rennell said. “We don’t have the full picture yet, but I can tell you that what we’re seeing so far in 2025 is that there has been even more of a deterioration a...
Read More
Feds to Polis administration: Stop importing wolves from Canada
No Comments
The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Feds to Polis administration: Stop importing wolves from Canada

By Marianne Goodland | The Denver Gazette Efforts by Colorado Parks and Wildlife to bring in more wolves from Canada later this year may have hit a snag after the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service told the state it may not do so. In an Oct. 10 letter, Brian Nesvik, director of USFWS, told Gov. Jared Polis and Jeff Davis, director of Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), that Colorado is not allowed to bring in gray wolves from Canada or Alaska. Any wolves brought to Colorado as part of the wolf reintroduction program must come from one of the lower 48 states, the agency said. Nesvik cited what’s called 10(j) rule, noting USFWS authorized the state to release and establish gray wolves in Colorado as an experimental population “subject to Service oversight.” However, the 10(j) rule o...
Read More
Data Shows Fewer Repeat Offenders Yet More Violent Crime in Colorado
No Comments
The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Data Shows Fewer Repeat Offenders Yet More Violent Crime in Colorado

By Marissa Ventrelli | The Denver Gazette Colorado’s latest justice data reveals an apparent contradiction: while fewer offenders are returning to prison, violent crime is climbing across the state. A detailed analysis released this month shows Colorado’s recidivism rate has fallen sharply—among the steepest declines nationwide. Yet the same dataset shows that violent offenses, including assault and homicide, have steadily increased since 2013. Analysts point to bail reforms, reduced arrests, and shifting sentencing priorities as major contributors. Supporters of these policies say they prevent unnecessary incarceration, while critics contend they have weakened accountability and deterrence. The findings come as Colorado lawmakers continue to debate whether recent justice refor...
Read More
Audit Finds Serious Financial Failures at Colorado’s Health Exchange
No Comments
The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Audit Finds Serious Financial Failures at Colorado’s Health Exchange

By: Marianne Goodland | The Denver Gazette Worries that the quasi-governmental agency that operates Colorado’s official state-based health insurance marketplace was spending money for political purposes turned out to be unfounded, according to a new audit. But the state audit found that Connect for Health Colorado has serious problems with its financial management, including a lack of oversight on the use of a credit card by its chief executive officer. That questionable spending included up to $13,000 on alcohol alone over an 18-month period. The audit released Monday by the Legislative Audit Committee looked into the financial management and sponsorship activity of Connect for Health Colorado. It found that the organization’s policies and oversight need major change...
Read More

FD863768-0ACF-495E-9D21-2EF784DFFA6B[1]

Join us at RMV's Freedom Festival

Click Here for Tickets!

This will close in 0 seconds