Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Public Service

Inside the Assessor’s Office: Why Greg Ketcham Is Running for Jefferson County Assessor
Rocky Mountain Voice, Local, Top Stories

Inside the Assessor’s Office: Why Greg Ketcham Is Running for Jefferson County Assessor

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice For most Jefferson County residents, the assessor’s office only becomes visible when a valuation notice arrives in the mail. For Greg Ketcham, the office has been his professional home for more than eight years — and it’s the reason he decided to run for Jefferson County Assessor. Ketcham currently works in the county assessor’s office and has experience in both residential and commercial appraisal. He also previously worked at Jefferson County Open Space, helping build park infrastructure throughout the county. He describes his career path not as political, but practical — rooted in county service and hands-on work. “I really liked it because you get to interact with everybody in our county,” Ketcham said of h...
Ben Nighthorse Campbell Longtime Colorado Lawmaker Dies at 92
CBS News, Approved, State

Ben Nighthorse Campbell Longtime Colorado Lawmaker Dies at 92

By Jesse Sarles | CBS News Former Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell, a Northern Cheyenne tribal chief who became a prominent American politician, has died. He was 92. His daughter Shanan Campbell confirmed to CBS News that her father died Tuesday at his home on a ranch in southwestern Colorado surrounded by family members.   Campbell served in Colorado's congressional delegation across three different decades. He started out as a member of the Democratic Party and was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in the 1980s. In the mid-1990s, three years after his election to the U.S. Senate, he decided to leave the Democrats and switch to the Republican Party. He served two terms as senator and then retired in the 2000s because of what he said were concerns...
Colorado’s Political Culture Is Driving Out Its Best Leaders
Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, State, Top Stories

Colorado’s Political Culture Is Driving Out Its Best Leaders

By C. J. Garbo | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Colorado is experiencing a political decline that follows the core patterns described in political ponerology. The system rewards the wrong traits, punishes integrity, and produces outcomes that push capable people away from public service - fast and hard. You can see this in the culture that governs candidate recruitment, party operations, legislative priorities, and internal accountability.  The signals are not abstract. They are practical warning signs that explain why Colorado has a shrinking supply of competent, serious, and ethical leaders. Political ponerology teaches that a system becomes unhealthy when individuals with destructive traits gain influence. Once inside, they shape expectations, incentives, and norms...
Budget cuts and bots: Denver shortens 311 hours and expands AI usage in city services
kdvr.com, Approved, Local

Budget cuts and bots: Denver shortens 311 hours and expands AI usage in city services

By: Jacob Factor | Fox31 DENVER (KDVR) — Facing major budget shortfalls, Denver is cutting back hours and staff for its call center that assists residents with city services and looking to leverage an artificial intelligence chatbot to pick up the slack. Denver in Mayor Mike Johnston’s proposed 2026 budget is looking to cut more than $1 million from the 311 City Services budget, most of which comes from cutting vacant call center agents positions in the Technology-Services-Department-run office. One employed call center agent was also among the cuts. The city and county’s X page on Monday announced the new hours for the 311 phone line: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday. This is a reduction of two hours each day, as it was previously open until 7 p.m. ...
The Courage of a Calling
Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, National, Top Stories

The Courage of a Calling

By Bobbie Daniel | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Twelve years ago, I made my first trip to Washington, D.C. I was expecting my third child at the time, and as I walked through the memorials, the words carved in stone seemed to speak directly to me. At the Jefferson Memorial, I knew I wasn’t alone. At the Lincoln Memorial, I sensed the weight of a calling I couldn’t yet name.  Their words reached across centuries with clarity and conviction, and I remember thinking: people don’t talk like this anymore. Yet something in my soul stirred. God was preparing me, though I didn’t yet know for what. In scripture, the callings of ordinary people are always marked by courage. Moses had to confront Pharaoh with only a staff in his hand. Esther risked her life to plead for her pe...
Colorado Workers Face Strain As Polis Freezes State Hiring
State, Approved, The Colorado Sun

Colorado Workers Face Strain As Polis Freezes State Hiring

By Lucas Brady Woods | The Colorado Sun The freeze takes effect Aug. 27 and will last until the end of the year. It’s estimated to save the state as much at $7 million. State employees who say they are already overworked due to high vacancy rates are concerned they’re going to be stretched even further after Gov. Jared Polis implemented an administration-wide hiring freeze that begins at the end of this month. Polis announced the freeze at the same time he called a special session of the Colorado legislature — and for the same reason: impacts on the state budget from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the federal tax and spending measure passed by congressional Republicans earlier this summer and signed into law by President Donald Trump. “Our hope is that these proactive measures...

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