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By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics A Colorado House bill could change the kind of liquor consumers can buy from some of the state's large grocery and drug stores, mostly along the Front Range, if enacted into law. Slated to be discussed by the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee on Thursday, House Bill 1373 would convert liquor licenses for about 30 mostly large chain grocery stores that allow them to sell beer, wine and spirits to being able to sell just beer and wine. The licenses, known as liquor-licensed drugstore licenses, are mostly held by large retail liquor stores that are run by large retail grocery stores. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics Senate Republicans on Tuesday charged that legislation seeking to effectively ban lawmakers from bringing firearms into the state Capitol is unconstitutional. Senate Bill 131, as introduced, would have banned firearms, including concealed weapons, from 19 identified "sensitive spaces," including schools, colleges, parks, recreation centers, protests and rallies, and local government buildings. The bill's Democratic sponsors, Sens. Sonja Jaquez Lewis of Longmont and Chris Kolker of Centennial, narrowed its scope in a Senate Judiciary Committee last week. The panel not only changed the bill's title — a fairly unusual move — but also added the state Capitol to the list of "sensitive spaces," while removing more than a dozen others. READ THE...

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics The Colorado House on Monday approved the state's $40.6 billion budget for the next fiscal year on a more or less party-line vote.  The 48-16 vote reflected just one "yes" from Republicans — from the GOP caucus' Joint Budget Committee member, Rep. Rick Taggart of Grand Junction. Taggart helped to draft the next spending plan contained in House Bill 1430.   Another Republican representative was absent.  Taggart joined the Joint Budget Committee this year, replacing Rep. Rod Bockenfeld of Watkins, who is undergoing cancer treatment. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics Colorado lawmakers substantially modified a proposal that originally listed nearly 20 places where a person would be prohibited to carry a firearm — even with a concealed weapons permit — to only a handful of areas, notably including higher education institutions. In narrowing down that list, the legislators added a new place where guns would be banned — the state Capitol. And, under the modified bill, that ban would apply to legislators.   The amendments allowed Senate Bill 131 to secure the support of Sen. Dylan Roberts, D-Summit County, and ultimately the approval from the Senate Judiciary Committee on a 3-2 party-line vote.  READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS

By Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics As she spread her son David's ashes in Utah, Crystina Page was struck by the extraordinary beauty of the landscape. She was also struck by the memory of being there before — having done the same thing. The ashes she spread last time, however, belonged to a stranger, whom she sardonically calls "grandma Fido" — because she's not completely sure whether they belong to a human or an animal. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS