Rocky Mountain Voice

Menu

Tag: Independence Institute

Colorado Faces Growing Concerns Over Grid Reliability and Energy Costs
No Comments
Complete Colorado, Approved, State

Colorado Faces Growing Concerns Over Grid Reliability and Energy Costs

By Mike Krause | Complete Colorado In a recent episode of Independence Institute’s* PowerGab energy podcast, hosts Amy Cooke and Jake Fogleman look at the mounting consequences of Colorado’s forced energy transition to renewables, focusing on recent warning from Xcel Energy before the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) that the state could face a significant power generation shortfall beginning next summer, increasing the risk of rolling blackouts. Cooke and Fogleman contend that regulators have prioritized emissions reductions while giving short shrift to the costs and reliability challenges of replacing dispatchable generation with renewable energy and battery storage. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT COMPLETE COLORADO
Read More
Medicaid Commission Begins Review as Colorado Spending Continues to Climb
No Comments
Complete Colorado, Approved, State

Medicaid Commission Begins Review as Colorado Spending Continues to Climb

By: Nash Herman | Complete Colorado Colorado’s interim Commission on Medicaid has begun meeting to address the explosive growth of the state’s health care spending.  Related concerns are also on the table, such as the management of the Department of Healthcare Policy and Financing (HCPF) and fraud, waste, and abuse.  Are legislators attacking these problems from the correct angles? Let’s find out.  Faulty premises The most recent Commission meeting raised questions about the government’s priorities in addressing Medicaid and the state budget.  A recurring theme of discussion —nothing new, yet one that actually exacerbates the very problem the Commission is attempting to address — is the idea that the health care fun...
Read More
New Colorado Firearm Licensing Requirements Draw Constitutional Questions
No Comments
Complete Colorado, Approved, State

New Colorado Firearm Licensing Requirements Draw Constitutional Questions

By: Mike Krause | Complete Colorado In a recent episode of  Independence Institute’s public affairs tv show, Devil’s Advocate, host Jon Calda sits down with Ray Elliott, president of the Colorado State Shooting Association (CSSA), to look at sweeping new Colorado gun rights restrictions taking effect August 1. The two zero in on Senate Bill 25-003, which slaps heavy new burdens on purchasing many commonly owned firearms, including the popular AR-platform rifle. Elliott lays out the new licensing scheme: prospective buyers of certain firearms must first obtain approval from their county sheriff, pay multiple fees, complete a state-approved firearms training course, and navigate what he describes as an increasingly burdensome financial and logistical barriers for...
Read More
What Would Colorado’s Declaration Of Independence Say Today?
No Comments
Complete Colorado, Approved, Commentary, State

What Would Colorado’s Declaration Of Independence Say Today?

By: Jon Caldara | Commentary, Complete Colorado Happy 250th Birthday, America! You look fabulous. As all the cool countries are saying, “250 is the new 230.” The Declaration of Independence wasn’t merely an announcement of war against a tyrant. It was the most revolutionary political document ever written. The Declaration was a landmark in human development, perhaps the landmark of all human history. For the first time government was no longer affirmed sovereign. The individual was. That simple idea changed the world. You rule yourself. Your life belongs to you. Your liberty belongs to you. Your happiness is yours to pursue as you define it. Your property belongs to you. Government exists not to rule over you, but to secure your&n...
Read More
Colorado Third Grade Reading Scores Continue to Lag Despite Millions in Spending
No Comments
Complete Colorado, Approved, State

Colorado Third Grade Reading Scores Continue to Lag Despite Millions in Spending

By: Mike Krause | Complete Colorado In a recent episode of Independence Institute’s Learning Curve education podcast, Erin Brantley and Ross Izard look at Mississippi’s dramatic improvement in public school reading achievement and whether Colorado can apply similar strategies to boost literacy outcomes through the state’s READ Act. Mississippi shot from 49th nationally in fourth-grade reading proficiency in 2013 to ninth in 2024. The hosts credit much of that success to the state’s Literacy-Based Promotion Act, combining science-based reading instruction, early identification of struggling readers, targeted interventions, and, when necessary, requiring students who fall short of  reading benchmarks to repeat third grade before advancing. READ THE FULL AR...
Read More
NERC Report Raises New Questions About Colorado Energy Reliability
No Comments
Complete Colorado, Approved, State

NERC Report Raises New Questions About Colorado Energy Reliability

By: Sarah Montalbano | Complete Colorado The North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s (NERC) 2026 State of Reliability report contains lessons for Colorado’s electricity sector. While the grid as a whole “continues to deliver reliable electric service,” challenges are mounting thanks in part to the “declining availability of aging combustion generation.”  NERC’s report finds that power plants failed more in 2025, with the fleet-wide forced outage rate climbing to 9.2 percent against “historical norms rarely exceeding” 8 percent. Coal-fired plants saw their forced outage rate rise from 11.2% in 2024 to 14.1% in 2025. NERC surveyed owners of generators that s...
Read More
Citizen Movements Across Colorado Gain Ground at City Hall
No Comments
Complete Colorado, Approved, Local

Citizen Movements Across Colorado Gain Ground at City Hall

By: Mike Krause | Complete Colorado In a recent episode of  Independence Institute’s public affairs tv show, Devil’s Advocate, host Jon Caldara sits down with Brandon Wark, creator of Free State Colorado, to look a the the rise of citizen activism, and how ordinary Coloradans can influence local government. The two dive deep into the idea idea that meaningful political change often begins not under Colorado’s gold dome, but at city councils, school boards, and local ballot boxes. You can see the entire episode on YouTube. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT COMPLETE COLORADO
Read More
PowerGab Examines the Cost of Energy Mandates as Xcel Seeks Massive Rate Hike
No Comments
Complete Colorado, Approved, State

PowerGab Examines the Cost of Energy Mandates as Xcel Seeks Massive Rate Hike

By: Mike Krause | Complete Colorado In a recent episode of Independence Institute’s* PowerGab energy podcast, hosts Amy Cooke and Jake Fogleman look at Xcel Energy’s request for a massive electricity price hike in Colorado (originally $355 million, now pared down to roughly $245 million). The duo zero in on why utility bills keep rising, and how decisions made years ago are now hitting ratepayers hard. Cooke argues that rate hikes are “lagging indicators,” the result of layers of policy choices, regulatory approvals, and energy mandates dating back more than a decade. She points specifically to the Colorado Energy Plan and the decision to accelerate retirement of coal-fired power plants, with the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) prioritizing emissions red...
Read More
Colorado’s New Gun Licensing Scheme Faces Growing Legal Pushback
No Comments
Complete Colorado, Approved, State

Colorado’s New Gun Licensing Scheme Faces Growing Legal Pushback

By Savana Kascak | Complete Colorado DENVER– In the run-up to Colorado’s  semi-automatic gun licensing scheme, going into effect on August 1, the Colorado Department of Revenue released guidelines which includes approximately 900 firearm makes and models that will be heavily regulated by the looming new law, many of which have gun-rights advocates calling foul.    As previously reported by Complete Colorado, the Democrat-backed Senate Bill 003, passed during the 2025 legislative session, heaps a long list a list of new burdens on potential gun buyers prior to purchasing a semiautomatic firearm.  Among other things, the law requires Coloradans complete a 12 hour, in person, firearms course through their local sheriff’s office, after a backg...
Read More
Colorado Voters To Decide Future Of TABOR Refunds In November
No Comments
Complete Colorado, Approved, State

Colorado Voters To Decide Future Of TABOR Refunds In November

By Sherrie Peif | Complete Colorado DENVER — For years, Democrats have been chipping away at Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) refunds while looking for ways to permanently disable the more than 30-year-old constitutional amendment that, among other things, limits growth of a portion of the state budge to a formula of population growth plus inflation.  Revenue collected over that limit must be refunded to taxpayers unless voters consent to forgoing refunds at the ballot box. This year, however, they may have found the way. The late session introduction and passage of Senate Bill 135 sends a question to the voters in November essentially ending TABOR rebates.  Proponents are using using school children and teachers to tug at the heart strings of Coloradans ...
Read More