TABOR bill sponsor responds to constituents and bows out; says he will vote...
DENVER – One of three Republican sponsors on a bill that would change the way revenue is capped under the Taxpayers Bill of Rights (TABOR) has had a change of heart. Despite the fact supporting TABOR...
View ArticleCharter school funding bill gaining bipartisan support; Dems get support on...
Denver — Second reading of a bill that would equalize local mill levy funding for charter schools was postponed for the second time this week after senators spent nearly two hours debating several...
View ArticleWeld County government under Internal Revenue Service audit after...
Greeley — Weld County government was informed today that it is under an Internal Revenue Service audit for tax year 2015. The audit stems from the county’s practice to reimburse mileage to...
View ArticleBill that would change online sales tax collections clears committee
DENVER — In an unusual twist, Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee voted against their usual privacy protection platform. Sen. Andy Kerr, (D-Jefferson) and Sen Lois Court (D-Denver) on Tuesday...
View ArticleSenate Bill 267: Saving rural Colorado with even more debt and taxes
Senate Bill 17-267 would make Colorado’s state budget less transparent, reduce legislative and taxpayer control over state spending, create two new slush funds outside of legislative control, increase...
View ArticleBills funding transportation, schools and hospitals appear dead; stalled in...
DENVER — With just 14 days to go to the end of the 2017 Colorado legislative session, hundreds of bills remain in the que, but some are being ignored in the House, leaving senate lawmakers scratching...
View ArticleState representative Leonard responds to story on transportation bills
(Editor’s note: This is a response in its entirety from Rep.Tim Leonard, (R-Evergreen) to the story: “Bills funding transportation, schools and hospitals appear dead; stalled in the House” that...
View ArticleSenators Cooke and Neville take a stab at transportation fix
DENVER — With just 10 days left in the 2017 Colorado legislative session, there is at least one more transportation bill on the horizon. Senators John Cooke, (R-Greeley) and Tim Neville (R-Littleton)...
View ArticleRural hospitals and roads bill off life support; still driving wedge between...
DENVER — A bill that divided Republicans and looked to be on its last breath, has received a jolt of energy, but may be dividing the party more than initially thought. SB17- 267, sponsored by...
View ArticlePERA deserves an earful on its listening tour
When word came last December that Colorado’s two largest public pension funds – the State Fund and the School Fund – were slipping into trouble, the Public Employee Retirement Association (PERA) vowed...
View ArticleSeventy-two page amendment to Sustaining Rural Colorado bill gets the job...
DENVER — An eleventh-hour save for a controversial bill sponsored by Republican Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg looks primed to get through the House before the 71st General Assembly shuts down on Wednesday....
View ArticleRural Colorado hospital, schools and roads bill one step away from becoming law
DENVER — With just two days remaining in the 2017 legislative session, a last-minute hail Mary was thrown and caught. Senate Bill 17-267 passed on third reading in the Senate and then out of House...
View ArticleColorado’s “Damn Roads” one step closer to getting fixed after challenge...
DENVER — Coming soon to a petition near you: Fix Our Damn Roads. With last Friday’s deadline to file a lawsuit against proposed citizen’s initiatives now passed, the possibility of voters getting a say...
View ArticleSenate Bill 267 and the ‘Grand Betrayal’ by Colorado Republicans
In 2005, the political fight over Referendums C and D was an epic battle, one for the Colorado history books. Sold as a “five-year timeout” of our Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, Ref C was narrowly approved...
View ArticleGuest editorial: Provider fee bait and switch evades TABOR
Little ole Colorado, you’ve done well for yourself. You were a collection of cow towns when I first moved here in 1988. It was said that yogurt was the only culture in Colorado, and cowboys don’t eat...
View ArticleRTD faces big cuts following Senate Bill 267 drafting error; special...
DENVER – A drafting error in Senate Bill 17-267 will cost several special taxing districts millions of dollars in revenue including the Regional Transportation District (RTD), which projects a...
View ArticleProgressive commissioner group seeks to “untangle TABOR”& redirect Senate...
DENVER – Transportation funding in Senate Bill 17-267, that was billed as the “Sustainability of Rural Colorado” Act, may in fact filter to more-populated areas if a newly-formed association made up of...
View ArticleColorado Union of Taxpayers rates legislators; Senate President makes “Wall...
LYONS — The Colorado Union of Taxpayers (CUT) has released its annual report on state lawmakers, including its first ever, “Wall of Shame.” According to its website, the CUT is an advocacy group for...
View ArticleWestminster’s corporate favoritism gone wild
At a July 10 meeting, the city council in Westminster, Colorado doled out $700,000 worth of “fee and tax rebates” to a private company to build an Alamo Draft House Theater. You might reasonably think...
View ArticleGuest column: Why we’re running the Protect Arvada Taxpayers charter amendment
Nine acres of publicly-owned, prime real estate in metro Denver’s hot market to be ‘sold’ for $30, and the sales and property tax revenue until 2034 rebated to the developer as well. All for the...
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