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Employers say they need more skilled talent, but there’s a disconnect between workers and employers
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State, The Sum & Substance

Employers say they need more skilled talent, but there’s a disconnect between workers and employers

By Ed Sealover | The Sum & Substance In less than three weeks, Colorado employers and educators will begin what many feel is a long-overdue process of identifying the greatest shortages in skills for in-demand jobs and working in partnership to create career pathways to fill those gaps. As simple as that collaboration may sound on paper, it is an idea that too many business leaders, as well as many K-12 and college officials, say has not germinated due to a lack of communication between the institutions that train the workforce and those who employ it. And the disconnect between those wanting to work and those wanting to hire workers has never been clearer. Colorado had 134,000 job openings late last year — the highest total of any state, according to the Bureau of Labor Stati...
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Freshman U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd chairs his first subcommittee meeting on Indian affairs
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Freshman U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd chairs his first subcommittee meeting on Indian affairs

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice If it takes years of tenure in Washington, D.C., to even earn subcommittee chairmanships, no one told U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd, R-Grand Junction. The freshman congressman from Colorado's 3rd District on the Western Slope chaired his first subcommittee meeting Wednesday, the U.S. House Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs under the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources. "I'm honored to serve as the new chairman of the subcommittee, and look forward to working with our American Indian, Alaska Native and Insular partners," Hurd began the subcommittee hearing. The subcommittee was previously chaired by Rep. Harriet Hageman of Wyoming. https://twitter.com/RepJeffHurd/status/1887182581998788904 The subcommittee oversees matters conf...
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Rep. Evans will join House Oversight Committee questioning Denver mayor on sanctuary policies
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Rep. Evans will join House Oversight Committee questioning Denver mayor on sanctuary policies

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice When Mike Johnston arrives in March to offer his testimony to the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, the Denver mayor might recognize a member of the panel questioning him. U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans, a Weld County resident, has been authorized, presumably by Chairman James Comer, to waive onto the committee to question Johnston, and potentially the mayors of Boston, Chicago and New York City. Rep. Comer, in his capacity as chairman of the committee, announced Wednesday that Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and New York City Mayor Eric Adams would join Johnston on the March 5 panel investigating the policies of sanctuary cities and their impact on public safety and federal immigration enforcement. He has...
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GOP more represents working class, addresses top concerns, Colorado voters say in poll
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The Center Square, State

GOP more represents working class, addresses top concerns, Colorado voters say in poll

By Elyse Apel | The Center Square Colorado voters are waning in their support for the Democrat Party, a new poll finds, as immigration and the economy continue to be top concerns. The Colorado Issues Poll, conducted by One Main Street Colorado, reported that 30% of those surveyed considered the economy and cost of living to have been their most important Election Day issue, while 24% said inflation. Republicans drove those numbers, with 51% of supporters of President Donald listing the economy and 53% immigration. In contrast, only 12% of supporters of former Vice President Kamala listed the economy and 4% listed immigration. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE CENTER SQUARE
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Rep. Weinberg’s constitutional carry bill would give Coloradans rights that 29 other states already have
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Rep. Weinberg’s constitutional carry bill would give Coloradans rights that 29 other states already have

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice When the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, written by James Madison, was ratified on Dec. 15, 1791, along with the other Bill of Rights, Americans believed the Founders had provided a right that "shall not be infringed" to own and possess firearms, wherever they may be and however they may wish. A bill introduced this week in the Colorado House would mostly and finally provide that unrestricted right. House Bill 25-1164, by Republican Rep. Ron Weinberg, would add Colorado to the growing majority of states with constitutional carry. It is a more long-awaited bill for gun owners than the repeal of the high-capacity magazine law. Constitutional carry is as it sounds, a right, as intended in the constitution, where anyone who can legally...
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Senate Dems’ whip says ‘I am a no’ to SB 3, the semi-auto gun ban bill, absent of significant changes
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Senate Dems’ whip says ‘I am a no’ to SB 3, the semi-auto gun ban bill, absent of significant changes

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice The house of cards on Colorado Senate Bill 25-003 appears to be collapsing in the wee hours before it is set for a vote. Sen. Nick Hinrichsen, a Pueblo County Democrat and the majority party's whip, has declared his opposition to the bill "prohibiting the manufacture, distribution, transfer, sale, and purchase of specified semiautomatic firearms" that some have said would make Colorado the most anti-gun state in the country. https://twitter.com/NickForCO/status/1886526899926786130 SB 3, sponsored by Democrat Sens. Tom Sullivan and Julie Gonzales and by Democrat Reps. Andrew Boesenecker and Meg Froelich, is slated for a second reading postponed from Jan. 31 at 9 a.m. Friday, when a vote could be taken. "I believe that, broadly, semi-au...
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Report finds 63% of age 25-plus Coloradans have education beyond high school, leading the nation
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Chalkbeat Colorado, State

Report finds 63% of age 25-plus Coloradans have education beyond high school, leading the nation

By Jason Gonzales | Chalkbeat Colorado Colorado residents are still the most educated in the nation, but Massachusetts now shares the top spot, according to a report released last week. This year’s Stronger Nation Report found that 63% of Colorado residents aged 25 and older had an educational credential beyond a high school diploma in 2023, matching Massachusetts. That’s above the national average of 54.9% of residents who have earned college degrees or certificates or an industry certification. The figure is mostly unchanged from 2022, when about 62.9% of Colorado’s residents held a college credential. However, the percentage of Native American Colorado residents with college degrees or credentials has fallen, a troubling sign after years of steady increases. READ THE FULL ST...
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Why lawmakers are afraid 24k Coloradans may disappear in the next budget year, and with them $77M
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State, The Colorado Sun

Why lawmakers are afraid 24k Coloradans may disappear in the next budget year, and with them $77M

By Brian Eason | The Colorado Sun Nearly 24,000 Coloradans are set to disappear from the state’s population this year — at least as far as the state budget is concerned. It’s no mere illusion. The vanishing act will have real consequences for public services, to the tune of $77 million in required cuts, if lawmakers don’t take action to prevent it. The issue dates all the way back to when the legislature first implemented the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights in 1993, the year after voters added it to the state constitution. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE COLORADO SUN
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Senate confirms Coloradan Chris Wright to lead Energy Department
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Fox21, State

Senate confirms Coloradan Chris Wright to lead Energy Department

By Rachel Frazin | KXRM-TV Fox 21 News, via The Hill The Senate on Monday confirmed Chris Wright, the CEO of fracking company Liberty Energy, to lead the Energy Department.  The vote was 59-38. Democrat Sens. Michael Bennet (Colo.), Ruben Gallego (Ariz.), Maggie Hassan (N.H.), Martin Heinrich (N.M.), John Hickenlooper (Colo.), Ben Ray Luján (N.M.) and Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.) as well as independent Sen. Angus King (Maine) voted with Republicans to confirm him. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle indicated support for his nomination during his confirmation hearing, and he sailed out of committee on a 15-5 vote.  READ THE FULL STORY AT KXRM-TV FOX 21 NEWS
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House Bill 1133 aims to raise state’s minimum age to buy firearm ammunition to 21
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State, The Colorado Sun

House Bill 1133 aims to raise state’s minimum age to buy firearm ammunition to 21

By Jesse Paul | The Colorado Sun Colorado is poised to raise the minimum age to buy firearm ammunition to 21 and require that retailers keep bullets in an enclosed display or behind a counter where customers could not access them without assistance.  The changes would be made through House Bill 1133, which was introduced last week by Democrats in the Colorado legislature. The measure is promoted as a way to align the rules for ammunition sales in Colorado with the state’s new law prohibiting anyone younger than 21 from purchasing any gun. Right now, someone can purchase rifle and shotgun ammunition at 18 and handgun ammunition at 21. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE COLORADO SUN
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