Rocky Mountain Voice

Menu

Tag: Colorado Capitol

Polis Faces Decision On Bill Allowing Lawsuits Against Immigration Agents
No Comments
The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Polis Faces Decision On Bill Allowing Lawsuits Against Immigration Agents

By Lucas Brady Woods | The Colorado Sun The measure would allow lawsuits in state court over alleged constitutional violations by federal immigration agents. The state legislature passed a bill Thursday that allows Colorado residents to sue federal immigration officers in state court over alleged constitutional rights violations. Supporters say the measure, Senate Bill 5, would fill a gap in the law that largely does not include a pathway for challenging conduct by federal officials, including immigration authorities like U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE. The bill still needs to be signed by Gov. Jared Polis before it becomes law “We’re creating a circumstance where, if ICE is violating your constitutional rights by unlawfully search...
Read More
Transparency for All, Not Just Some
No Comments
Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, State, Top Stories

Transparency for All, Not Just Some

By Dusty Johnson | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Editor's update: SB26-147 is scheduled for third reading and final passage in the House today, Wednesday, May 6, 2026. The legislative day began at 11 a.m. Coloradans may listen live at sg001-harmony.sliq.net/00327/Harmony/en/PowerBrowser/PowerBrowserV2/20260506/74/18834#info_  Coloradans deserve a government that operates in the open. They deserve to know who is influencing their laws, how those decisions are being shaped, and how taxpayer dollars are being used in that process. That is exactly why I am proud to sponsor SB26-147.  At its core, this bill is simple. It applies the same transparency standards to everyone involved in lobbying, including those working inside government.  Right now, private ...
Read More
The Capitol flagpole is not a friendship bracelet
No Comments
Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, State, Top Stories

The Capitol flagpole is not a friendship bracelet

By C. J. Garbo | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Colorado’s State Capitol is not a festival stage. It is a civic altar of sorts, the place where law is made, rights are protected, and citizens who disagree about nearly everything are still supposed to recognize one another as equals under the same authority. That is why a flagpole on Capitol grounds is never “just symbolic.” It is government speech, rendered in cloth and wind. Governor Jared Polis’ decision to hoist Canada’s flag over the Colorado State Capitol for the second-annual “Colorado-Canada Friendship Day” was therefore not appropriate, even if Canada is a friendly neighbor and a major trading partner. The problem is not Canada. The problem is the office. In March of last year, the Governor’s office framed t...
Read More
Free to Choose Life
No Comments
Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, State, Top Stories

Free to Choose Life

By Rep. Scott Slaugh | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Upon arriving at the Colorado State Capitol in September to be sworn in as the new State Representative for District 64, I was eager to join the state lawmaking enterprise and already had a few ideas for new legislation. Soon I was advised by veteran lawmakers to reconsider my goals.  As one of only twenty-two Republicans facing a Majority Caucus of forty-three Democrats, it would be smart to tailor at least a couple of my early bills to topics where I might find agreement with members from the Majority Caucus.  That sounded reasonable enough; what could go wrong?  I have nothing but respect for the commonsense goal of “building bridges” where possible. Because I stand firmly in support...
Read More
How Colorado laws are really made: What Rep. Matt Soper says voters rarely see
No Comments
Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

How Colorado laws are really made: What Rep. Matt Soper says voters rarely see

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice The Colorado legislature is about to gavel in for another 120-day sprint, and with it comes a flood of bills most Coloradans will never see until the consequences land.  What many don’t see is how quickly ideas move, who pushes them forward—and why outcomes can feel disconnected from public input. Few lawmakers are positioned to explain that gap as clearly as Matt Soper, now the longest-serving Republican in the House and widely regarded inside the building as the caucus “dean.” With term limits constantly churning the legislature, Soper has watched the same policy ideas cycle through multiple sessions, often repackaged and moving faster each time. “There’s the textbook version of how a bill becomes a law that everyone...
Read More
Ballot initiative filed to give priority to roads over transit funding in Colorado
No Comments
Fox31, Approved, State

Ballot initiative filed to give priority to roads over transit funding in Colorado

By: Gabrielle Franklin | FOX31 Denver DENVER (KDVR) — The 2026 midterm elections are still over a year away, but people are already preparing for them. Several ballot Initiatives have been filed in hopes of bringing them to voters next year. Some big business groups in the state say it’s high time for Colorado to do something about its raggedy roads. They are looking into a proposal that would dedicate more money to solving the problem. “We did support Senate Bill 260 back in 2021 because it was the best deal available; that we could get some money into our highway system. We would be in worse shape today had we not passed Senate Bill 260 back in 2021, but looking over the last three of four years, it has not been enough,” said Tony Milo, CEO of the Colorado Contractors ...
Read More
Colorado e-bike tax credits will be reduced by 50 percent in 2026
No Comments
kdvr.com, Approved, State

Colorado e-bike tax credits will be reduced by 50 percent in 2026

By: Gabrielle Franklin | KDVR DENVER (KDVR) — Challenging economic times have hit many this year, including the state of Colorado. A popular program that helped more Coloradans get outside will have you paying more out of pocket next year. Tax credits for Colorado e-bikes are set to be reduced next year. That action, combined with other economic pressures, has small business owners concerned. Dan “DJ” Johnson of Cycle Erie said his business has been doing well this year.“It’s been a strong year for us. Not quite as strong as we hoped but it’s been good,” Johnson said about the year his business has had in 2025. He worries that uncertainty handed down from both the state and federal government could get in the way of the shop’s success next year. A $450 tax credit for ...
Read More
Wolf Reintroduction Sparks Debate at Upcoming Colorado Town Hall
No Comments
State, Approved, The Gazette

Wolf Reintroduction Sparks Debate at Upcoming Colorado Town Hall

By The Gazette Staff | The Gazette Agriculture and outdoor recreation are considered two of Colorado’s most important industries. The outdoor recreation industry contributes over $65.8 billion and 511,000 jobs to Colorado’s economy, while the agriculture industry generates $47 billion and 195,000 jobs annually, according to the most recent data. Yet as Colorado Politics’ recent Rural Reckoning series indicated, these two powerhouses don’t always get the attention that industries do in the halls of the Capitol. A town hall on Tuesday, Sept. 9, sponsored by The Gazette and The Common Sense Institute, will dive more deeply into the importance of these industries to Colorado’s economic success, and the policies necessary to ensure they thrive. The Common Sense Institute is a non...
Read More
Labor Day Protest At Capitol Draws Small Crowd Targeting Trump and Billionaires
No Comments
DENVER7, Approved, State

Labor Day Protest At Capitol Draws Small Crowd Targeting Trump and Billionaires

By Danielle Kreutter | Denver7 The event was organized by the group 50501, which also organized the No Kings Day protest back in June. DENVER — Hundreds of demonstrators spent their Labor Day rallying for workers' rights at the Colorado Capitol. The event was organized by the group 50501, which also organized the No Kings Day protest back in June. The group held two marches: one through downtown Denver, where people held signs criticizing the Trump administration's affiliations with billionaires and other policies, and another to the Governor's Mansion, where people dropped off letters of various personal concerns. The focus of the event was to support labor rights, but 50501 also collaborated with several community groups — some political, some not. Booths were set up to co...
Read More
Gaines: Colorado’s add-back taxes are a backdoor tax on overtime
No Comments
Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Gaines: Colorado’s add-back taxes are a backdoor tax on overtime

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project The Great Colorado Add Back? My state senator (B Pelton) alerted me to something you'll almost certainly see in the coming state special session: add back taxes. I thought it would be good to give some resources on that so you'll better understand it and (I hope) be a better advocate on the issue. This is something I will follow up on as the special session gets going; Sen Pelton is running a bill to make such taxes conform to TABOR limits. I have asked for a copy of that bill and will share if and when I get it. There are many different kinds of tax add backs, but I'll stick to the topic of state income tax add backs because I can use the link below as a reference. The State of Colorado weblink at bottom gives ...
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