Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: State government

Convention of States has a Colorado bill ready for 2027. It still has no sponsor.
Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Convention of States has a Colorado bill ready for 2027. It still has no sponsor.

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Convention of States Action (COSA) says more than 62,000 Coloradans have signed its petitions calling for a constitutional convention to impose fiscal restraints on the federal government, limit its power, and set term limits for Congress.  The organization has a draft bill ready for the 2027 legislative session.  Its representatives have met with senior policy staff in the Governor's Office.  According to Michael Forbis, a 20-year Army veteran and Colorado Springs resident who volunteers on COSA Colorado's Legislative Liaison Team, House Republican staff distributed an earlier version of the proposal to the caucus's 22 members. What it does not have is a single Colorado legislator willing to spons...
Polis Celebrates Education Gains But Healthcare Access, Crime And Budget Challenges Remain
The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Polis Celebrates Education Gains But Healthcare Access, Crime And Budget Challenges Remain

By Marianne Goodland | The Denver Gazette Colorado officials said they have something to celebrate this week, in addition to the state’s sesquicentennial birthday on Saturday. U.S. News & World Report on Tuesday gave Colorado its top ranking for education efforts from pre-K to postsecondary, though it didn’t fare well in other areas, such as health access and crime. Gov. Jared Polis celebrated the announcement with a trip to the Farrell B. Howell ECE-8 School in east Denver.  U.S. News & World Report issued its annual best states rankings on Tuesday. Colorado earned its first place in education based on “increases in associate degree completion and attainment rates, as well as substantial growth in preschool enrollment enabled by the Colorado...
Former GOP Congressman Greg Lopez Secures Spot on Colorado Governor Ballot as Independent
Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Former GOP Congressman Greg Lopez Secures Spot on Colorado Governor Ballot as Independent

By: Ernest Luning | Colorado Politics Unaffiliated gubernatorial candidate Greg Lopez, a former Republican congressman from Elizabeth who left the GOP to run as an independent, has qualified for the ballot by submitting enough petition signatures, the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office said Tuesday. He’ll face Democratic nominee Phil Weiser, the state’s two-term attorney general, and Republican Victor Marx, a first-time candidate who runs a Christian ministry in Colorado Springs, as well as several candidates who belong to minor political parties. Lopez and his pick for lieutenant governor, Taralyn Romero, a Jefferson County property rights activist and health care worker, needed to turn in 1,000 valid signatures from registered voters in each of the state’s eight co...
Colorado Election Officials Allege Victor Marx Campaign Repeatedly Exceeded Donation Limits
CBS Colorado, Approved, State

Colorado Election Officials Allege Victor Marx Campaign Repeatedly Exceeded Donation Limits

By Shaun Boyd | CBS Colorado The Colorado Secretary of State's Office says the Republican gubernatorial nominee Victor Marx's campaign received nearly 200 illegal campaign contributions during the primary election. Campaign finance law caps individual donations at $1,450 to reduce the outsized influence of wealthy donors and prevent quid pro quo corruption. Colorado Secretary of State The Election Division received complaints alleging the Marx Campaign had repeatedly violated the law. It launched an investigation and found the campaign accepted 197 illegal contributions totaling more than $78,000 over the limit. It says he also accepted another $1,000 in illegal cash donations. Darcy Schoening filed the complaints against the campaign. She says Marx m...
Colorado’s homeschool freedoms were hard won. The fight isn’t over.
Christian Home Educators of Colorado, Approved, Commentary, State

Colorado’s homeschool freedoms were hard won. The fight isn’t over.

By Colleen Enos | Commentary, Christian Home Educators of Colorado (CHEC) Colorado homeschool families fought for liberty and their rights in the 1980s and won. We continue to fight for your homeschool freedom all year long. Homeschool families of today have a dizzying array of curriculum choices. So many, in fact, that it can be overwhelming. However, it was not always this way. In 1980, Colorado homeschool families had three options.     Use a state-approved curriculum.     Get permission from your local school district to use the curriculum you have chosen.     Be a certified teacher to choose your own curriculum. Independent-minded families were not okay with that. They knew that God had called them to disciple and homeschool their children. They rightly be...
Colorado Faces Growing Concerns Over Grid Reliability and Energy Costs
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
Colorado’s New Semiautomatic Firearm Law Takes Effect Aug. 1
The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Colorado’s New Semiautomatic Firearm Law Takes Effect Aug. 1

By Marissa Ventrelli | The Denver Gazette A Colorado law passed in 2025 established new requirements for individuals planning to purchase semiautomatic weapons. Here’s what residents should know before Senate Bill 003 goes into effect on Aug. 1. From a ban to a training course For decades, advocates have been pushing for a ban on semiautomatic weapons with detachable magazines, which they have described as “assault weapons,” though efforts escalated following the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. After the 2012 movie theater shooting in Aurora, the Colorado legislature passed House Bill 1224, which prohibited the sale, transfer and possession of ammunition magazines capable of holding more than 15 rounds. However, some advocates wanted mor...
Colorado Air Commission Advances Gas-Powered Lawn Equipment Restrictions
The Sum & Substance, Approved, State

Colorado Air Commission Advances Gas-Powered Lawn Equipment Restrictions

By Ed Sealover | The Sum & Substance Hoping to ween commercial landscapers off emissions-producing gas-powered equipment, Colorado regulators will consider rules later this year to limit the percentage of companies’ mowers and blowers that are revved by fossil fuels. The Colorado Air Quality Control Commission on Thursday voted to schedule a November rulemaking that is a successor of sorts to a 2023 rule that banned the summertime use of the same equipment by the state and local governments over the past two years. AQCC members declined to impose the same regulations on commercial operators back in 2023, saying at the time that they worried a quick shift away from traditional equipment would cost too much for companies and lead to job losses. Three years ...
Colorado Wildlife Commission Sets New Limits on Fur Bearer Harvest While Rejecting Fur Sale Ban
The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Colorado Wildlife Commission Sets New Limits on Fur Bearer Harvest While Rejecting Fur Sale Ban

By Tracy Ross | The Colorado Sun The commission voted 6-5 to set daily bag limits to two animals per person for 17 species. Colorado trappers can no longer kill unlimited numbers of fur-bearing animals including mink, bobcat and coyote after the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission voted to limit them to two animals per species per day at its monthly meeting in Ignacio on Thursday.   The vote came after months of fighting between animal advocacy and pro-hunting groups, and the decision went against a recommendation by CPW staff and Director Laura Clellan, who had recommended a daily limit of four to 15 animals depending on species.  The new limit will affect a small number of hunters or trappers, as the vast majority of trappers take...
Colorado Falls to Lowest Ever CNBC Business Ranking
The Sum & Substance, Approved, State

Colorado Falls to Lowest Ever CNBC Business Ranking

By Ed Sealover | The Sum & Substance As business leaders warn of an eroding atmosphere, Colorado has plummeted to its lowest spot in the 20-year history of CNBC’s Top States for Business rankings, placing the one-time national model now firmly in the middle of the pack among states. The financial-news network, whose rankings are widely cited by business and economic-development leaders, dropped Colorado this year from No. 11 to No. 25 on its list and noted that it’s now the second-most expensive state for living, behind only California. Though it improved its rankings in technology and innovation versus 2025, the Centennial State fell or remained even in every other category, now ranking in the bottom half of states in areas like business friendliness and infras...