Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Governor Jared Polis

Hardin: Why the NRA-ILA legislative roundups matter more than ever
Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, State, Top Stories

Hardin: Why the NRA-ILA legislative roundups matter more than ever

By Amanda Hardin | Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Last week, Rocky Mountain Voice partnered with the NRA-Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) to host two critical Second Amendment Legislative Roundups—first in Lakewood, then in Fort Morgan. These events weren’t just a chance to hand out bumper stickers and shake hands; they were about mobilization. Colorado’s gun owners are facing unprecedented legislative attacks, and what we saw in those rooms was the beginning of a serious response. The first event took place on June 10 at Bristlecone Shooting, Training & Retail Center in Lakewood. Over 45 citizens gathered to review the flurry of anti-gun bills that crossed the governor’s desk this year, including the newly signed Senate Bill 25-003. Attendees walked away not only wit...
With 12 new laws, Colorado Democrats treat gun ownership like a public threat
Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

With 12 new laws, Colorado Democrats treat gun ownership like a public threat

By Jesse Paul | Colorado Sun From limiting who can purchase most semiautomatic rifles on the market today to raising the minimum age to buy ammunition, Democrats in the legislature were busy this year imposing new gun regulations Democrats in the Colorado legislature this year passed a dozen bills imposing new gun regulations, all of which were signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis. They included measures limiting who can purchase most semiautomatic rifles on the market today, raising the minimum age to buy ammunition and aiming to improve Colorado’s response to mass shootings. While some don’t go into effect until next year, and a few are sure to draw legal challenges from gun rights groups, they represent some of the most wide-reaching changes to Colorado’s firearms laws ever a...
Critics warn Polis’ immigration law oversteps Constitution, ignores federal authority
Approved, completecolorado.com, State

Critics warn Polis’ immigration law oversteps Constitution, ignores federal authority

By Savana Kascak | Complete Colorado DENVER—Despite repeated claims that Colorado is not a “sanctuary state” for illegal immigration, Gov. Jared Polis on May 23 signed a bill into law that both reinforces and expands Colorado’s existing protections for immigrants living in the country illegally. Senate Bill 25-276, Protect Civil Rights Immigration Status was a top priority for majority Democrats in the state legislature as they continue their attempt at isolating Colorado from the Trump administration’s deportation policies, with the bill picking up a remarkable 46 prime and co-sponsors on its way to passage. Expanded protections Colorado state law already limits interaction and information sharing between local and federal officers. However, SB 276 extends this measure to proh...
Polis defends ICE data release as criminal investigation matter, but documents raise doubts
Approved, Axios, State

Polis defends ICE data release as criminal investigation matter, but documents raise doubts

By Alayna Alvarez, John Frank | Axios Legal pressure is mounting against Democratic Gov. Jared Polis after revelations that he ordered state officials to comply with an ICE subpoena and hand over personal data of undocumented children in Colorado to federal immigration agents. The latest: Colorado WINS — the union representing more than 27,000 state workers — civil rights group Towards Justice and labor organization Colorado AFL-CIO announced Monday they're joining as plaintiffs on a whistleblower lawsuit filed last week by Scott Moss, a senior labor official in Polis' administration. The groups accuse the governor of "colluding" with ICE agents and violating multiple state laws that restrict cooperation with federal immigration enforcement...
Gazette editorial board: Time to repeal the delivery fee feeding Colorado’s bloated government
Approved, Commentary, denvergazette.com, State

Gazette editorial board: Time to repeal the delivery fee feeding Colorado’s bloated government

The Gazette editorial board | Commentary, Denver Gazette Do you use DoorDash for lunch or maybe Uber Eats for dinner? How about Amazon, FedEx or any of the other delivery services — for just about everything else? Probably. Have you ever noticed a 29-cent “retail delivery fee” on your tab once your order was fulfilled? Probably not. After all, it’s only a fraction of the price you paid for whatever was delivered, so even if you did see it, you likely shrugged it off as just another one of the taxes assessed on your order. Which, in reality, it is. But technically, it’s not a tax; it’s a “fee” that was slapped on deliveries by the Legislature in 2021. And because it was designated as a fee in statute, it didn’t require statewide voter approval as a tax would under our state c...
Federal judge upholds Colorado’s 21+ gun law, Rocky Mountain Gun Owners vow to appeal
Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

Federal judge upholds Colorado’s 21+ gun law, Rocky Mountain Gun Owners vow to appeal

By Taylor Dolven | Colorado Sun A gun rights group challenged the 2023 law in court. Thursday’s ruling by a U.S. District Judge is a win for gun-control advocates. Colorado’s law requiring people to be at least 21 years old to buy a gun can stand, a federal judge ruled Thursday. The ruling is a definitive win for gun control advocates and a blow to the group Rocky Mountain Gun Owners and two young people hoping to purchase guns, who sued Gov. Jared Polis to block the law in 2023. Chief U.S. District Judge Philip A. Brimmer sided with Polis and said in his ruling that the plaintiffs could not prove that the law violated their rights. “Plaintiffs cannot establish a violation of a right secured by the Constitution or that they have suffered an irreparable injury from such a violat...
State employee sues Governor Polis over ICE information sharing
Approved, denvergazette.com, State

State employee sues Governor Polis over ICE information sharing

By Marshall Zelinger | Denver Gazette The case highlights tensions between state privacy protections for immigrants and federal immigration enforcement efforts DENVER — A state employee has sued Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D), alleging that the governor has ordered state employees to illegally share personal information about sponsors of undocumented minors with federal immigration agents in violation of laws Polis, himself, has signed. Scott Moss, the Director of the Division of Labor Standards and Statistics in Colorado’s Department of Labor and Employment, filed the lawsuit in Denver District Court on Wednesday, seeking to block Polis from requiring disclosure of personal identifying information (PII) to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in response to an administr...
Enos: Colorado’s war on parental rights isn’t over—it’s escalating
Approved, Christian Home Educators of Colorado, Commentary, State

Enos: Colorado’s war on parental rights isn’t over—it’s escalating

By Colleen Enos | Commentary, Christian Home Educators of Colorado Colorado is on a roll. Violating religious liberty and compelling free speech are two issues that Colorado Courts have already been reprimanded for. Our Courts lost two civil rights lawsuits – Masterpiece Cake Shop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission and 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis – in addition to being overturned by the United States Supreme Court in the decision that was supposed to throw Donald Trump off the 2024 Colorado Presidential Election ballot. Now, we are doing it all over again. On Friday, May 16th, Governor Polis quietly signed HB25-1312, Legal Protections for Transgender Individuals, into law. There was no ceremony or statement from the Governor, just an administrative signature. When...
Restaurants win relief as Colorado bill leaves wage hikes to local control
Approved, Axios, State

Restaurants win relief as Colorado bill leaves wage hikes to local control

By John Frank | Axios Denver The nasty fight at the Colorado Capitol over how much to pay tipped restaurant workers ended in a standoff this week. The big picture: Gov. Jared Polis signed the Restaurant Relief Act into Colorado law on Tuesday, with backing from the Colorado Restaurant Association and other major industry organizations. Why it matters: The result is a victory for the opposition, which mounted an aggressive campaign against the legislation, though it gives cash-pinched restaurant owners another chance to make their case at the local level. Threat level: The state's restaurant industry faces a crisis, with as many as 200 closing statewide last year — a majority of which operated in Denver — partially prompting the legislative proposal...
COvid Chronicles May 24–31, 2020: When ‘peaceful protests’ overruled pandemic policy—and unleashed chaos
Approved, Commentary, National, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

COvid Chronicles May 24–31, 2020: When ‘peaceful protests’ overruled pandemic policy—and unleashed chaos

By Rocky Mountain Voice Editorial Board The sixth installment of RMV’s COvid Chronicles covers the week Colorado dropped the mask—just not in the way you’d hope. Restrictions vanished for rioters, but stayed in place for students and small businesses. It wasn’t science guiding policy. It was politics. No, it’s not short. Neither was the fallout. The sixth installment of RMV’s COvid Chronicles covers the week Colorado dropped the mask—just not in the way you’d hope. Restrictions vanished for rioters, but stayed in place for students and small businesses. It wasn’t science guiding policy. It was politics. No, it’s not short. Neither was the fallout. Looking back five years later, it’s hard not to feel for everyday, taxpaying Coloradans. As May 2020 ended, COVID cases dropped, testin...