Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Jared Polis

Denver’s Spending Grew 60% in a Decade, But Revenues and Population Lagged Far Behind
Rocky Mountain Voice, Local, Top Stories

Denver’s Spending Grew 60% in a Decade, But Revenues and Population Lagged Far Behind

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Denver’s budget has grown sharply over the past ten years, far faster than its population and its ability to bring in tax dollars. A new analysis from the Common Sense Institute shows inflation-adjusted spending per resident rose about 60 percent since 2015. During that period, revenues grew more slowly, at about 40 percent, while the city’s population increased by less than 7 percent. The mismatch is why Denver now faces a projected $250 million gap over the next two years, even as officials push a $950 million bond proposal for housing, roads, and other projects. Spending Priorities Have Shifted Where the money goes has changed dramatically. Construction and infrastructure costs have ballooned, climbing more than elev...
Summer school session: Lawmakers flunk budget basics—less tax revenue and more deficits to come
denvergazette.com, Approved, Commentary, State

Summer school session: Lawmakers flunk budget basics—less tax revenue and more deficits to come

By Gazette editorial board | Commentary, Denver Gazette Like slacker students who flunked a course and had to make it up in summer school, Colorado state lawmakers who were summoned back to the Capitol last month — to patch a gaping hole in the current state budget — knew they had gathered under a stigma. Convened by Gov. Jared Polis, they sullenly filed into the building with their heads down. It was nothing to be proud of. And when they had wrapped up the session days later, there was little to celebrate. They knew they were doing makeup work, atoning for their behavior during the regular session — and the session before that, and the one before that. And while they tried to blame Colorado’s fiscal straits on some of the other kids in class — the president and the Republican Con...
Colorado’s Housing Crunch Shows Signs of Easing but Costs Still Bite
The Denver Gazette, Approved, Commentary, State

Colorado’s Housing Crunch Shows Signs of Easing but Costs Still Bite

By The Gazette Editorial Board | Commentary, The Denver Gazette The cost of housing has soared in our state in recent years, outpacing income growth and making it especially challenging for lower-wage earners and younger, entry-level workers to afford rent. Buying a place of their own is an even taller task for many. It all has led to much public debate and, inevitably, hyperventilation by politicians pledging to solve what they have dubbed an affordable-housing “crisis.” The panic also has led to a lot of misfires by policymakers.  Among those are proposals that would put the squeeze on providers of rental housing, presuming them to have bottomless pockets. Rent control is an example. There also have been various policy prescriptions making it harder to evict tenants. Some o...
How Special Was That Session?
Christian Home Educators of Colorado, Approved, Commentary, State

How Special Was That Session?

By Colleen Enos | Commentary, Christian Home Educators of Colorado (CHEC) Last Wednesday, on September 10th, we witnessed a political assassination. A young, courageous conservative was murdered in cold blood on the campus of Utah Valley University. Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, was engaging students in conversation and debate when he was violently gunned down.  College campuses are supposed to be places of intellectual curiosity where ideas are explored, and students make up their own minds. This concept of free speech was something our country was founded on, but it seems that the Colorado legislative majority party does not want to hear differing thoughts. The message of the Kirk assassination was that if you don’t agree with progressive ideology, you should jus...
State Leaders Put Criminal Rights Ahead of Public Safety
The Gazette, Approved, Commentary, State

State Leaders Put Criminal Rights Ahead of Public Safety

By The Gazette Editorial Board | Commentary, The Gazette Only days ago, The Gazette editorial board weighed in on how easy it is for dangerous criminal suspects with lengthy records in Colorado to walk free — and never come back — as they supposedly await trial or other court proceedings. That includes when they are deemed “incompetent” to understand the charges against them — usually, due to presumed mental illness — and at times are released pending psychiatric assessment and treatment to restore their competency. Even under those circumstances, suspects can wind up going free for good, either because they fail to follow through on outpatient psychiatric care and disappear onto the streets, or, incredibly, they have been found permanently incompetent — and by state law, the char...
GOP Lawmakers Push for Emergency Session on Colorado Crime Wave
kdvr.com, Approved, State

GOP Lawmakers Push for Emergency Session on Colorado Crime Wave

By Jacob Factor | KDVR FOX31 DENVER (KDVR) — Several Republican members of Colorado’s congressional delegation are renewing calls for Colorado state lawmakers to address crime and criminal competency laws through a special legislative session. Reps. Gabe Evans, Lauren Boebert and Jeff Crank on Tuesday issued a joint letter demanding Colorado Gov. Jared Polis work with state legislators to “repeal soft-on-crime laws fueling Colorado’s rising crime.” The representatives pointed to several instances in which they say Colorado’s laws Polis himself signed “undermine law enforcement’s ability to keep communities safe.” The lawmakers’ call also echoes previous calls ahead of August’s special legislative session to address crime laws. That special session did not cover crime or crimina...
Lawsuit and liberty on the line as Shots for Freedom launches in Colorado Springs
Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Lawsuit and liberty on the line as Shots for Freedom launches in Colorado Springs

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice With just days to go, Colorado gun owners are gearing up for Shots for Freedom — a two-day range weekend and banquet in Colorado Springs that organizers say is about more than rifles, raffles or fellowship. Hosted by the Colorado State Shooting Association, the September 20–21 event is tied directly to the fight against Governor Jared Polis’ new gun law. Tickets are still available through the event signup page, with proceeds funding the group’s lawsuit against Governor Jared Polis’ recently signed permit-to-purchase law, Senate Bill 25-003. Linking a celebration to a lawsuit Organizers say the strategy is to combine culture and community with legal action. “Every round fired and every seat filled helps fund the lawsuit that will decid...
Elon Musk Slams “Soft-on-Crime” Policies in Clash With Governor Polis
The Western Journal, Approved, State

Elon Musk Slams “Soft-on-Crime” Policies in Clash With Governor Polis

By: Michael Austin | The Western Journal Elon Musk confronted Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis over a violent criminal released back on the streets, prompting a response from the official that failed to acknowledge how he signed a law allowing such circumstances to arise. The exchange came after Weld County Sheriff Steve Reams revealed to residents that under Colorado law, he was forced to release Debisa Ephraim, who was deemed incompetent to stand trial, into the public on Monday. Ephraim was arrested on second-degree murder and assault charges after he allegedly attacked residents in an unprovoked manner, per a report from CBS News. Reams remarked in a video that Ephraim has had several encounters with police. “It is a very violent crime, and how rapidly this person ha...
Colorado Political and Civic Leaders Denounce Assassination of Charlie Kirk
State, Approved, The Gazette

Colorado Political and Civic Leaders Denounce Assassination of Charlie Kirk

By Ernest Luning | The Gazette Colorado elected officials and political groups expressed grief, outrage and resolve against political violence in reaction to the fatal shooting of conservative organizer and nonprofit leader Charlie Kirk on Wednesday at Utah Valley University. “Today is a really hard day,” said U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, a Windsor Republican who described Kirk as her friend in a speech on the floor of the House of Representatives in Washington. “I do not believe that Charlie’s life being stolen in this manner is in vain. Charlie is a pioneer,” Boebert said, adding that the word carries a weighty meaning for Christians. Kirk “personified this word,” she said. “It is one who pioneers a way, who makes a way for others to follow — maybe not the originator of the thin...
Public safety or politics? Mesa County sues Polis over sanctuary crackdown
The Daily Caller, Approved, State

Public safety or politics? Mesa County sues Polis over sanctuary crackdown

By Jason Hopkins | Daily Caller One of Colorado’s biggest counties is taking on the state’s “unconstitutional” sanctuary law after it was used to crack down on a sheriff’s deputy who helped federal immigration authorities. The Board of Mesa County Commissioners is moving forward with its lawsuit against a Democrat-led sanctuary law that prohibits local law enforcement in Colorado from sharing personal information about a foreign national with federal immigration authorities, the Daily Caller News Foundation confirmed. The lawsuit was filed after state officials sued a Mesa County sheriff’s deputy for helping Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and effectively forced him out of the job. “The Constitution makes clear that immigration is a federal responsibility, not something ...

FD863768-0ACF-495E-9D21-2EF784DFFA6B[1]

Join us at RMV's Freedom Festival

Click Here for Tickets!

This will close in 0 seconds