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Tag: Rick Taggart

Colorado Lawmakers Grapple With Strict Rules for $200 Million Rural Health Program
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Lawmakers Grapple With Strict Rules for $200 Million Rural Health Program

By: Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics Members of the Colorado legislature’s new Commission on Medicaid raised concerns Wednesday about the federal Rural Health Transformation Program created under H.R. 1. The bipartisan, bicameral commission, created in the last legislative session to guide implementation of Medicaid changes under H.R. 1, met Wednesday to begin shaping its recommendations. Cristen Bates, deputy Medicaid director at the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, told members that Colorado is slated to receive $200 million in federal funding each year for the next five years to support rural health care initiatives. CMS requires states to apply for the Rural Health Transformation Program by November, with awards expected by year’s...
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Colorado must stop pushing unfunded laws on local governments, lawmakers say
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The Daily Sentinel, Approved, Commentary, State

Colorado must stop pushing unfunded laws on local governments, lawmakers say

By Rick Taggart, Janice Rich and Matt Soper | Commentary, The Daily Sentinel When lawmakers pass a new bill, there’s one question we should all ask before we vote: Who’s going to pay for it? Too often, that question goes unanswered. Across Colorado, local governments are being asked to carry out new state laws — on everything from wildfire codes to building standards — without the funding to make them possible. These are called unfunded mandates, and they’ve quietly become one of the biggest threats to local budgets and the essential services people depend on. In Mesa County alone, these mandates now cost nearly $10 million each year. Statewide, the total is estimated at more than $360 million — money that could otherwise fund deputies, road repairs, or mental health programs. Ins...
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Bauer: Power House Panel of Western Slope Legislators in Delta
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Approved, Commentary, Local, Top Stories

Bauer: Power House Panel of Western Slope Legislators in Delta

By Shirley Bauer | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Hard math: 4 of 70 Republican bills became law. On July 23, five of our state’s most prominent legislators representing the Western Slope met for a legislative update at Daveto’s to a sold-out crowd. The legislative update was sponsored by Delta County GOP, and the MC was Chairwoman Leslie Parker. The legislators present represented Delta County along with other counties on the Western Slope: • Senator Janice Rich from Senate District 7, Senate Minority Whip and winner of the “Legislator of the Year” award in 2023, represents the Cedaredge area in Delta County and all of Mesa County (she resides in Grand Junction). • Senator Marc Catlin, who resides in Montrose, is from Senate District 5. He represents most of Delta Coun...
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