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Colorado House Republicans pick Ty Winter as assistant leader
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coloradopolitics.com, Local, Southern Colorado, State

Colorado House Republicans pick Ty Winter as assistant leader

By Marissa Ventrelli, Colorado Politics House Republicans on Friday picked Rep. Ty Winter of Trinidad as the new assistant minority leader. His election was uncontested. The caucus picked Winter to replace Rep. Rose Pugliese of Colorado Springs, who was promoted to serve as the House minority leader earlier this week. Pugliese was elected via secret ballot after days of chaos within the House GOP following the decision by Rep. Mike Lynch to resign from the position. READ FULL ARTICLE ON COLORADOPOLITICS.COM
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How Colorado became the focal point of 14th Amendment efforts to disqualify Trump from the ballot
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coloradopolitics.com, National, State

How Colorado became the focal point of 14th Amendment efforts to disqualify Trump from the ballot

By Jenny Deam | SOURCE: COLORADO POLITICS The extraordinary Colorado election case now headed for the U.S. Supreme Court to decide if former President Donald Trump is disqualified from the ballot had its humble beginnings three years ago in the Maryland basement office of a self-proclaimed legal nerd. It was around New Year’s Day 2021. Constitutional scholar and University of Maryland law school professor Mark Graber was putting the finishing touches on a chapter delving into the then mostly forgotten Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. Just the kind of thing Graber, a historian at heart, loved. The rarely used section had been crafted more than 150 years ago to disqualify former Confederate leaders from holding office because they had engaged in an insurrection. It read...
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A bill to designate nuclear energy as clean energy dies in committee
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coloradopolitics.com, State

A bill to designate nuclear energy as clean energy dies in committee

By Marissa Ventrelli  | SOURCE: COLORADO POLITICS A Senate bill that would have defined nuclear energy as clean energy died along party lines in committee Thursday. Introduced by Sen. Larry Liston, R-Colorado Springs, SB24-039 would have included nuclear energy in the statutory definition of clean energy sources, thus rendering it eligible for clean energy project funding. During discussion, opponents said such a designation would have a negative impact on the environment, while proponents listed the benefits of using nuclear energy. After length discussion, the Senate Committee of Transportation and Energy voted 4-3 to kill the measure. “It is our responsibility to lay the groundwork for the development of reliable and renewable energy for future generations to ...
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Polis, governors to Congress, White House: Make immigration deal
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coloradopolitics.com, National, State

Polis, governors to Congress, White House: Make immigration deal

By Nicole C. Brambila | SOURCE: DENVER GAZETTE A cadre of Democratic governors — including Gov. Jared Polis — called on Congress and the Biden administration to reach a border security deal that includes funding to support states, such as Colorado, that are struggling to respond to the humanitarian crisis caused by an influx of immigrants crossing the border illegally. “We need Congress to take action to secure our border and pass comprehensive immigration reform,” Polis said in a news release. “States can’t do this alone. It’s time to put politics aside and deliver the real solutions and support that states like Colorado, and many others, need.” The group of nine governors urged Congress to quickly negotiate a legislative package that addresses border security and modernizes the ...
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Colorado GOP chair Dave Williams helped push House Republican Leader Mike Lynch to resign
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coloradopolitics.com, State

Colorado GOP chair Dave Williams helped push House Republican Leader Mike Lynch to resign

By Marianne Goodland | SOURCE: COLORADO POLITICS The chairman of the Colorado Republican Party helped in ousting House Minority Leader Mike Lynch, who announced on Wednesday that he is stepping down from his leadership post in the wake of mounting pressure after a DUI arrest in 2022 became public. Lynch did not disclose the arrest, which happened before he assumed the mantle of House Minority Leader, to his caucus, a sore point for his colleagues when the story broke last week. How big of a role Dave Williams played in Lynch's ouster is unclear. But the Republican Party official showed up at the state House on Tuesday and spoke with two members pushing for Lynch's resignation from leadership. Williams did not hide his animus toward Lynch in a text message on Wednesday to Colora...
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Colorado, 8 other states, push IRS for clarification on taxability of FAMLI benefits
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coloradopolitics.com, State

Colorado, 8 other states, push IRS for clarification on taxability of FAMLI benefits

By Marissa Ventrelli | SOURCE: COLORADO POLITICS Gov. Jared Polis joined governors from eight other states in urging IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel to provide guidance on the taxability of Family and Medical Leave Insurance, or FAMLI, benefits to avoid double taxation. “As states operating these programs, we urge the Internal Revenue Service to provide clarifying guidance in this area, specifically regarding the taxability of these benefits and premiums, and to prevent the risk of double taxation," said a Jan. 18 letter signed by the state leaders. “The current absence of guidance from the IRS on the tax treatment of these programs creates a substantial risk of an unexpected and large tax liability for those who rely on these programs to take family leave, deal with a personal i...
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Appeals court clarifies criteria for extending juvenile speedy trial deadline
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coloradopolitics.com, State

Appeals court clarifies criteria for extending juvenile speedy trial deadline

The Court of Appeals applied the factors for extending an adult's speedy trial deadline to juveniles facing criminal charges By Michael Karlik | SOURCE: COLORADO POLITICS Colorado's second-highest court clarified for the first time earlier this month that the same criteria used to extend an adult criminal defendant's speedy trial deadline also apply to juveniles. The federal and state constitutions guarantee the right to a speedy trial. In Colorado, that means the government generally must bring defendants to trial within six months of a not guilty plea. Judges may grant an extension over the defendant's objection if the prosecution's evidence is unavailable by the trial date or the state faces unusual hurdles in preparing more serious cases. For accused juveniles, ho...
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Lawmakers want Colorado employers to display suicide prevention posters at workplaces
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coloradopolitics.com, State

Lawmakers want Colorado employers to display suicide prevention posters at workplaces

By Marissa Ventrelli | SOURCE: COLORADO POLITICS Colorado is currently ranked sixth in the nation for suicides, a figure that two state lawmakers are looking to decrease through a bill that would require companies to post prevention education posters at workplaces starting next year. The proposal from State Rep. Stephanie Vigil, D-Colorado Springs, and Sen. Dafna Michaelson Jenet, D- Commerce City, would also require businesses to include suicide prevention information in company handbooks. Under House Bill 1015, posters created by the Division of Labor Standards and Statistics would include an overview of available suicide prevention training programs, educational materials on reducing access to means of self-harm, such as firearms, information on the 988 Suicide Crisis...
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Chaos erupts as some Republicans try anew to oust leader Mike Lynch
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coloradopolitics.com, State

Chaos erupts as some Republicans try anew to oust leader Mike Lynch

Republican leader survives attempt to oust him By Marianne Goodland | SOURCE: COLORADO POLITICS Another attempt to oust Rep. Mike Lynch as minority leader devolved into chaos on Tuesday morning, when his critics within the caucus failed to muster a quorum to hold a vote on his leadership.    Some of Lynch's colleagues sought to oust him from his post as House Minority Leader on Monday, when the GOP caucus deadlocked on the question of whether to retain him, which meant Lynch kept his post.     It was the second day of the drama that erupted within the House Republican caucus resulting from the news that Lynch was arrested for drunk driving in 2022. Today's saga began with Rep. Scott Bottoms calling for a caucus meeting. But  Rep. Mary Bradf...
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Colorado lawmakers put pressure on wildlife officials to help ranchers protect livestock from wolves
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coloradopolitics.com, Local, Western Slope

Colorado lawmakers put pressure on wildlife officials to help ranchers protect livestock from wolves

By Marianne Goodland | SOURCE: COLORADO POLITICS After losing more than a dozen livestock and four cattle dogs to wolf attacks, Jackson County rancher Don Gittleson is getting help from lawmakers, who asked wildlife officials to immediately reconsider their decision denying a request to remove the depredating animals from the area.  Gittleson said repeated pleas to Colorado Parks and Wildlife to deal with these wolves have been ignored, other telling him to employ "non-lethal" methods to scare the wolves off. These methods have not worked, Gittleson said. Now, state lawmakers are stepping into the fray. State Sen. Dylan Roberts, D-Frisco, and House Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon, penned a letter to CPW Director Jeff Davis on Monday, chastising the agency for failing to ...
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