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Democrats Eye New Governor in Renewed Push to Change Colorado Union Law
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DENVER7, Approved, State

Democrats Eye New Governor in Renewed Push to Change Colorado Union Law

By Colette Bordelon | Denver7 After Gov. Jared Polis vetoed similar bills twice, those behind the proposal to change how workers unionize in Colorado believe they will have better luck in 2027 with a new governor. LOUISVILLE — Democratic Colorado lawmakers are confident that their plan to change the way workers unionize in the state will be successful next year, hoping that a new governor leads to a different outcome for the legislation. Dubbed the Worker Protection Act by advocates, two iterations of the concept to eliminate the second vote needed to form a union in Colorado have passed out of the state Legislature and were then vetoed by Gov. Jared Polis in 2025 and 2026. Maggie Roesink, who works as a server and bartender at the Hotel Boulderado, attended t...
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Colorado Road Funding Deal Could Pull Initiative 175 From November Ballot
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CBS Colorado, Approved, State

Colorado Road Funding Deal Could Pull Initiative 175 From November Ballot

By Shaun Boyd | CBS Colorado A deal could keep Colorado voters from deciding on a major road funding measure this November. Backers of Initiative 175, known as the Restore Our Roads measure, have agreed to pull it from the ballot under a tentative agreement with state lawmakers, CBS Colorado's Your Political Reporter, Shaun Boyd, has learned. The deal would call for the state legislature to set aside more money for roads in the short and long term.  The ballot measure came about because the Restore Our Roads group and lawmakers failed to compromise. Colorado Attorney General and Democratic gubernatorial nominee Phil Weiser helped push the negotiations toward a deal, according to a source familiar with the talks. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT CBS COLORADO
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Colorado Voters To Decide Whether To Cap State Income Tax At 4.4%
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Voters To Decide Whether To Cap State Income Tax At 4.4%

By Thelma Grimes | Colorado Politics Election officials on Thursday confirmed that the proposal to cap the state’s income tax at the current rate submitted signatures and voters will consequently decide its fate this November. The fight over tax rates is part of the tug and pull in Colorado between opposing political forces feuding over state revenue. One side of that fight argues that Colorado isn’t generating enough revenue to spend on state priorities, such as education. The competing side counters that the state already collects enough — but policymakers’ spending priorities are misplaced. The Secretary of State’s Office on Thursday cleared Initiative No. 232 after Advance Colorado, the group behind it, submitted more than 184,000 signatures to get it on the b...
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New Federal Rule Ends Medicaid Funding for Some Youth Gender Treatments in Colorado
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

New Federal Rule Ends Medicaid Funding for Some Youth Gender Treatments in Colorado

By John Ingold | The Colorado Sun The new rule blocks federal dollars from being spent on the care. The change will affect hundreds of transgender youth in Colorado. Colorado will suspend Medicaid coverage for hormone therapy and other gender-affirming care for transgender youth due to a new federal rule, the state agency that oversees the program said. The rule, finalized earlier this month, blocks federal funds from being used to pay for the care for youth. Specifically, the rule applies to coverage for people under 18 who are covered by Medicaid and people under 19 who are covered by a companion program called CHIP, which in Colorado is known as CHP+. The rule affects coverage for hormone therapy and puberty blockers, as well as other procedures. It do...
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Colorado Graduated Tax Initiative Draws Major Support From Democratic Lawmaker’s Nonprofit
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Complete Colorado, Approved, State

Colorado Graduated Tax Initiative Draws Major Support From Democratic Lawmaker’s Nonprofit

By Sherrie Peif | Complete Colorado DENVER – State Rep. Lorena Garcia, a Westminster Democrat, has been working overtime to ensure a progressive state income tax initiative makes it in front of Colorado voters this November, including donating big bucks via a tax-funded nonprofit to the issue committee charged with getting the measure on the ballot. If passed, Initiative 195 would raise the current flat tax rate of 4.4 percent to 7.4 percent for those earning more than $500,000, and increasing as incomes rise to a top rate of 8.4 percent for those earning more than $1 million. A majority of Colorado taxpayers might see a slight income tax reduction, with many eventually getting caught up in the graduated brackets, as they are not indexed for inflation. ...
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Colorado’s July Laws Reshape Firearm Sales and Wildfire Insurance Rules
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kdvr.com, Approved, State

Colorado’s July Laws Reshape Firearm Sales and Wildfire Insurance Rules

By Maddie Rhodes | KDVR DENVER (KDVR) — Several Colorado laws are set to go into effect starting in July. While Colorado laws get passed all the time, the effective date is sometimes delayed to make sure people have time to comply with the law before there are penalties. Usually, several laws go into effect in January at the start of the year and in July, just past the halfway point of the year. In January, laws surrounding gun show requirements and deceptive pricing practices went into effect. Now, laws including the sale of firearm ammunition and property insurance policies are going into effect on July 1. Colorado laws going into effect Here are some of the laws going into effect: New requirements for sale of firearm ammunition House...
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Colorado killed its only data center water bills. Cities are filling the gap themselves.
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Colorado killed its only data center water bills. Cities are filling the gap themselves.

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Colorado spent a year trying to answer a basic question: should companies building massive AI data centers be required to disclose how much water they use? The answer, as of May 11, was no. Senate Bill 26-102 would have required operators of new large data centers to report annual water use to state health officials. A companion measure, House Bill 26-1030, sought to attract data centers through voluntary tax incentives tied to water efficiency standards. HB26-1030 died in committee on May 7. SB26-102 followed four days later. 238 lobbyists registered positions on one or both bills on behalf of 221 clients, according to Secretary of State records. Five days after the legislature adjourned, Denver City Council unanim...
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Southwest Colorado’s voice has gone unheard in Denver. Naomi Riess is running to change it.
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Local, Top Stories

Southwest Colorado’s voice has gone unheard in Denver. Naomi Riess is running to change it.

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice The men's room door was locked. The man inside wasn't responding. Naomi Riess's daughter-in-law — who works for the sheriff at the jail — had already recognized him when he walked in. She'd been watching. She called 911 and tried to find the key. Nobody knew where it was. When police arrived, they broke the door down and found him ODing on the floor inside a fentanyl cloud. The first two officers through both had to be Narcanned — one passed out immediately. Her daughter-in-law was third in line. She didn't need Narcan but went to the hospital for a full body detox of her clothing and her body. She had no voice for four days. The man was taken to the hospital and released. It was the weekend and police couldn't reach a...
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Interim Committees On The Chopping Block As Colorado Faces Lean Budget Year
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Interim Committees On The Chopping Block As Colorado Faces Lean Budget Year

By: Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics In a tight-budget year, the work of interim committees — those off-session groups that look at transportation, agriculture, water, healthcare, wildfires, pensions, and anything else lawmakers want to look at — is on the chopping block. And this year, no committee is considered sacrosanct. A bill introduced Thursday by the legislative leadership from both parties and both chambers wipes out just about all interim committees this year, including some year-round groups. It’s expected to save about $396,000 in the 2026-27 budget, according to legislative council staff. It would prohibit meetings, field trips, and legislative recommendations and reports from the year-round Capital Development Committee, which play...
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From 51 defeated bills to $8M in revenue: How Cobalt reshaped Colorado abortion policy
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

From 51 defeated bills to $8M in revenue: How Cobalt reshaped Colorado abortion policy

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice A Colorado abortion advocacy organization is celebrating a decade of legislative defeats—51 abortion-restriction bills blocked since 2010—while reporting record spending and a surge in out-of-state demand. On its website, Cobalt says it has “testified against and helped defeat 51 anti-abortion bills at the Colorado General Assembly since 2010.”  Webpage from Cobalt Advocates referencing its 51-bill claim. Viewed Feb. 19, 2026. A February data report shows more than $2.4 million spent in 2025 on abortion procedures and practical support, including travel and lodging. Those numbers, drawn from Cobalt’s own reports and IRS filings, reflect more than annual fundraising success. They trace a broader shift in Colo...
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