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Health department monitoring Colorado renewable energy plant for excessive fumes
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CBS Colorado, State

Health department monitoring Colorado renewable energy plant for excessive fumes

By Logan Smith | CBS Colorado State health officials have begun monitoring a facility that converts cow manure into natural gas after elevated levels of an unhealthy and flammable - but also naturally occurring - gas were recently detected. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment reported excessive amounts of hydrogen sulfide were discovered through instruments readings at Platte River Biogas near Lasalle. Hydrogen sulfide, informally referred to as "swamp gas" or "sewer gas," is known for its odor that is similar to rotten eggs. The gas occurs naturally in crude petroleum, natural gas, volcanic gases, and hot springs, according to the National Institute of Health. It is also produced by human and animal wastes and results from the bacterial breakdown of organic m...
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As state weighs budget cuts, CPW set to award up to $50k for initiatives that promote ‘Born to Be Wild’ license plate
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KKCO-TV Grand Junction, State

As state weighs budget cuts, CPW set to award up to $50k for initiatives that promote ‘Born to Be Wild’ license plate

By Wylee Mitchell | KKCO-TV CBS 11 Colorado Parks and Wildlife recently announced the ‘Born to be Wild License Plate Grant Program.’ The program will grant up to $50,000 in funding to initiatives that promote the license plate. According to the CPW, grant awards will be available annually to Colorado based non-profit organizations, educational institutions, or government agencies. Other entities will be considered on a case-by-case basis. The application deadline is December 15. The awardees will be announced in March. Colorado House Bill 23-1265 created a new special license plate, raising funding for nonlethal ways of mitigating conflict with gray wolves. The special license plate was approved by Governor Polis in May of 2023 and became effective in August of that year. RE...
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Colorado state government spending increases outpaced inflation, report says
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The Center Square, State

Colorado state government spending increases outpaced inflation, report says

By Tom Joyce | The Center Square Colorado has vastly grown its government spending over the past 20 years, according to a new report from Common Sense Institute. CSI's "Then and Now" report found that government spending in Colorado has vastly outpaced inflation over the last 20 years. Adjusted for inflation, the state government has increased spending by 35% in that stretch from $5,140 per Coloradoan to $6,924. Healthcare is a big reason for that spending increase over the last 20 years. The Department of Health Care Policy and Financing grew its budget by 429% from Fiscal Year 2005 to Fiscal Year 2025, from $3 billion to $15.9 billion; that department went from 22% of the budget to 37%. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE CENTER SQUARE
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Colorado’s fee-based enterprises skirt TABOR, increase revenue by 3,000%
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denvergazette.com, State

Colorado’s fee-based enterprises skirt TABOR, increase revenue by 3,000%

By Scott Weiser | Denver Gazette In 1992 voters enacted the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights to constrain the growth of government by requiring voter approval for tax increases. Since then, the state government has built a new structure to avoid that requirement. The creation of TABOR-exempt state-owned “enterprises” has allowed government to increase fees from 46% of total state spending in 1996 to 71% of state spending in 2023 without requiring approval from taxpayers, according to a new report released by the Common Sense Institute, a non-partisan research organization “dedicated to the protection and promotion of Colorado’s economy.” “Fees are a rapidly growing and significant cost for Coloradans,” said Kelly Caufield, Executive Director of the Common Sense Institute. “At the end of ...
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Firearms merchants, tax credit for college, water conservation, wolverines among new laws set to begin Aug. 7
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coloradopolitics.com, State

Firearms merchants, tax credit for college, water conservation, wolverines among new laws set to begin Aug. 7

By Deborah Grigsby  | Colorado Politics More than 200 new Colorado laws will take effect on Aug. 7.  Colorado Politics takes a quick rundown of some of the more interesting and significant pieces of legislation signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis and set to hit the books in just a few days HERE. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Hillman: ‘The Colorado Song’ recalls a better time and place
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Commentary, Mark Hillman, State

Hillman: ‘The Colorado Song’ recalls a better time and place

By Mark Hillman | Commentary, MarkHillman.com             On this Colorado Day, I remember the 1970s when our local radio station would open its morning show by playing The Colorado Song: “If I had a wagon, I would go to Colorado,” praising a state known for “Rocky Mountain peaks, climbing up to the sky” and inhabited by “folks who are rugged and bold!”             One verse describes what was quintessential Colorado: “A uniting spiring they will find at the great Continental Divide.”             It’s a fun song, and I’ve taught it to my kids.  But, I get a little choked up because it describes a Colorado whi...
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States scramble to close legal loopholes squatters use to take homes from owners
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National, The Washington Times

States scramble to close legal loopholes squatters use to take homes from owners

By Matt Delaney | The Washington Times Lawmakers in states across the country are belatedly moving to restore the property rights of owners who have been forced into lengthy and often costly court battles to reclaim their houses from squatters exploiting pandemic-era tenant protections to take over empty houses. Savvy scammers invoke squatter’s rights by entering unoccupied homes and falsifying residency documents. The process can suck rightful homeowners into a monthslong eviction battle while the squatters sell off appliances and turn houses into drug dens, leaving landlords with thousands of dollars in repairs and lost rent once all is said and done. The formula for stealing a house is so foolproof that one illegal immigrant became famous on social media by sharing his step-by-...
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Likely voters hold pessimistic view toward state’s future, government in poll entering election year
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Likely voters hold pessimistic view toward state’s future, government in poll entering election year

By BRIAN PORTER | The Rocky Mountain Voice A large swath of voters may be concerned with the direction of the state and with items ranging from tax burden to cost of living and education, painting a pessimistic picture in an election year, a poll conducted in late 2023 finds. The Colorado Polling Institute survey finds 43.1% of likely voters believe the state to be on the wrong track, with 67% of Republicans and 45% of unaffiliated voters holding that view. Half of those who have resided in the state for at least 20 years believe Colorado is on the wrong track. Only 50.4% of likely voters surveyed believe the state is on the right track. The poll was taken among 621 voters with a margin of error of 3.8%. About one-fourth of those surveyed believe state and local taxes are about...
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Under Prop. 123, Colorado has allocated millions in funds this year to governments and housing organizations
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State, The Colorado Sun

Under Prop. 123, Colorado has allocated millions in funds this year to governments and housing organizations

By Tatiana Flowers | Colorado Sun State leaders have already distributed millions of dollars this year to dozens of local governments and housing organizations that have pledged to build affordable units across Colorado in the coming years. The state departments of local affairs and economic development and the Colorado Housing Finance Authority, for example, have awarded nearly $80 million to local governments and housing organizations that plan to build affordable units using funds solely from Proposition 123. Voters approved the ballot measure in November 2022 and it requires participating local governments to plan to build at least 3% more affordable housing every year for the next three years.  READ THE FULL STORY AT THE COLORADO SUN
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