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Tag: Housing Policy

New Colorado Laws Take Effect Jan. 1 With Sweeping Changes for Health Care Housing and Gun Shows
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

New Colorado Laws Take Effect Jan. 1 With Sweeping Changes for Health Care Housing and Gun Shows

By Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics A new year means new laws in Colorado, covering everything from health insurance and gun shows to “junk fees” and protections for wild bison. Here’s a list of laws passed during the 2025 legislative session that will go into effect on Jan. 1. House Bill 1002: Medical necessity determination insurance coverage This law codifies and clarifies mental health parity requirements for insurers, ensuring that individuals receive the same coverage for mental health and behavioral services as they do for physical care. House Bill 1030: Accessibility standards in building codes This law requires new local building codes to meet or exceed international accessibility standards. It prohibits them from providing less protection than ...
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Why Mamdanism Will Not Win Colorado
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, State, Top Stories

Why Mamdanism Will Not Win Colorado

By Booker Lightman | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Zohran Mamdani’s upset victory in the New York City mayoral election has sparked excitement on the far left and dread on the right. Will Mamdani herald a new age of far-Left ascendancy? Fortunately for Republicans, his victory was contingent on factors specific to New York City that are not present in the rest of the country. Mamdani’s voters were not scattered randomly throughout New York City. They were heavily concentrated in what political analyst Michael Lange calls the “commie corridor,” an area of Northern Brooklyn and Western Queens populated by a peculiar demographic - young, non-black, college-educated, middle-income, often without children, and often employed in the nonprofit sector.  These wer...
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Trump Unveils $1,776 Warrior Dividend for Servicemembers in National Address
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Washington Examiner, Approved, National

Trump Unveils $1,776 Warrior Dividend for Servicemembers in National Address

By Christian Datoc | Washington Examiner President Donald Trump delivered an end-of-year address to the nation on Wednesday night, the vast majority of which consisted of him repeating attacks on his predecessor, former President Joe Biden, as he sought to once again tie him to affordability concerns among voters. Eleven months after re-entering office with virtually the highest approval rating of his political career, the president finds himself having lost significant support from voters, specifically regarding his stewardship of financial matters, as the president’s tariffs maintain inflationary pressure on consumer markets. A poll published Tuesday by Reuters found that just 33% of respondents gave Trump’s economic policies a passing grade, down 10 poi...
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Aurora Pushes Back on Polis’ Power Play Over Local Housing
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Commentary, Local

Aurora Pushes Back on Polis’ Power Play Over Local Housing

By: Michael A. Hancock | Commentary, The Denver Gazette Aurora has experienced rapid growth in recent decades. With new neighborhoods, transit corridors and shifting demographics come tough land-use choices: where to build housing, protect open space, manage traffic, and preserve neighborhood character. We understand our communities better than distant state bureaucrats ever could. That’s what home rule is meant to guarantee. But today, Gov. Jared Polis and the Colorado legislature are challenging that guarantee – not with persuasion, but with edicts and threats of financial punishment. Aurora can’t stand silent. Colorado’s Constitution enshrines home rule in Article XX, Section 6, which grants municipalities the right to govern “matters of local concern,” including planning, zoni...
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Colorado’s Local Control Eroded by State’s Energy and Housing Overreach
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Commentary, State

Colorado’s Local Control Eroded by State’s Energy and Housing Overreach

By: The Gazette Editorial Board | Commentary, The Denver Gazette What’s the common thread between Gov. Jared Polis’ roadmap to green energy and his agenda for affordable housing?  That is, aside from the fact each will backfire on the state’s economy in one or more ways.  The answer is that both steamroll local laws that are more in tune with the needs of their communities — in pursuit of pipe dreams.  One aims to eliminate all greenhouse gas emissions — when in fact Colorado has virtually no impact on global climate in the first place. The other seeks to create more affordable housing on a wing and a prayer, oblivious to how the housing market really works. A Gazette report last week on Polis’ mad dash to 100% renewable power generation and “net zero” carbon ...
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Trump Layoffs Hit Left-Leaning HUD Office Accused of Obama-Era Social Engineering
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Daily Wire, Approved, National

Trump Layoffs Hit Left-Leaning HUD Office Accused of Obama-Era Social Engineering

By: Luke Rosiak | The Daily Wire When the government shutdown ends, some workers at left-wing government offices may not return. More than 400 employees at the Department of Housing and Urban Development were issued layoff notices on Friday, primarily targeting an office that pushed left-wing ideology, a department official told The Daily Wire. The federal government has been shut down for more than two weeks, with only “essential” workers reporting for duty, as Democrats refuse to grant a temporary funding extension unless Republicans add in new funding. The Trump administration said in a court filing that some 4,000 workers across seven agencies should be laid off instead. A HUD official said the largest office targeted by the 442 layoffs at that agency is the Fair ...
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Lakewood rezones neighborhoods, single-family homes lose protection
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Lakewood rezones neighborhoods, single-family homes lose protection

By Sage Kelley | Denver Gazette The controversial section of Lakewood’s new proposed planning document that aims to add more affordable housing to the city was approved Monday evening. The Lakewood City Council approved an amended version of Article 3 of the city’s 2026 zoning code proposal — a 400-page planning document covering residential, commercial and mixed-use site design standards, parking and historic preservation. The ordinance passed 9-2, with councilmembers David Rein and Paula Nystrom being the two “no” votes. The article drew ire throughout the community, and it ultimately erased the use of the term single-family zoning, allowing for multi-family homes — like duplexes and condos — to be built in residential areas citywide. The change is aimed at boosting affordabl...
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Garfield County uses $4.1 million in private activity bonds for affordable housing solutions
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Post Independent, Approved, Local

Garfield County uses $4.1 million in private activity bonds for affordable housing solutions

By Julianne O’Driscoll | Post Independent Garfield County commissioners voted unanimously Monday to allocate almost $4.1 million in private activity bonds to the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) to support local affordable housing projects. Private activity bonds are tax-exempt loans used to fund private development projects, according to the Colorado Division of Housing. Every year, the Internal Revenue Service assigns each state a private activity bond limit. Colorado then allocates the bonds to cities and counties based on area population. This year, Garfield County received a private activity bond cap of nearly $4.1 million based on a population count of 62,722.  Local governments decide how to use the bonds. Garfield County on Monday authorized the...
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Littleton proves citizen power still matters in Polis’ Colorado
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, Local

Littleton proves citizen power still matters in Polis’ Colorado

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project Littleton voters get a say because they wouldn't have it any other way. The City of Littleton tried to stuff a Polis-inspired density mandate down the throats of their residents late last year. Residents did exactly what they should have: they went to the city council meeting in numbers and told them their thoughts on the measure. The city council wisely decided to postpone the measure pending a group of residents putting gathering signatures and putting it up on the November ballot. There is more detail in the Complete article linked at bottom, but the part I want to focus on here is the Littleton voters and what their actions mean for you (and not just with regard to density). Pay attention to what your lo...
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Polis threatens to withhold $280M from cities defying housing laws in new executive order
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DENVER7, Approved, State

Polis threatens to withhold $280M from cities defying housing laws in new executive order

By Brandon Richard | Denver7 In a new executive order, Gov. Jared Polis identified more than 30 funding sources the state could withhold from cities. DENVER — Colorado Gov. Jared Polis is turning up the heat on cities that aren’t following new state housing laws. He issued a new executive order on Wednesday that identifies $280 million in funding that could be withheld from them. It’s the latest development in a dispute between the governor and leaders of several cities over state housing laws, including laws to increase housing density near transit and another to ban certain cities from enacting or enforcing minimum parking requirements. “I hope that communities across the state do more on housing, but there's got to be some state minimum that you can't actively be part of ...
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