Briefs
Colorado unemployment rate returns to pre-pandemic levels
The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment announced Monday that the state’s unemployment rate was 2.8% in January, returning for the first time to pre-pandemic levels. “With Colorado’s unemployment rate dropping below three percent, it is clear that Colorado is the best place to live, work and do business,” Gov. Jared Polis said in a […]
Rep. Neguse asks federal housing officials to protect Marshall Fire victims from foreclosure risk
U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse of Colorado is asking housing officials to update federal mortgage guidelines that are leaving Marshall Fire victims at risk of foreclosure. In a letter sent this week to Federal Housing Administration Commissioner Julia Gordon, Neguse, a Lafayette Democrat, requested that the agency change its Home Equity Conversion Mortgage occupancy requirements for victims […]
U.S. Senate moves toward repealing authority for military force against Iraq
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate took a broadly bipartisan vote Thursday to advance legislation that would end the 32-year-old and the 20-year-old Authorizations for Use of Military Force against Iraq. The 68-27 vote moves the measure past the chamber’s 60-vote legislative filibuster and towards a final passage vote as soon as next week. House Republican leaders, some […]
Colorado lawmakers hear final state economic forecast ahead of budget bill
Colorado’s economy is expected to continue its growth over the next few years, though it will be at a slower pace in the near term, economists told the Joint Budget Committee on Thursday. Nonpartisan representatives from the Legislative Council Staff and Governor’s Office of State Planning and Budget presented their quarterly economic report to lawmakers, […]
Gov. Polis orders Colorado regulators to crack down on air pollution from oil and gas industry
After decades of failure to meet health standards under the Clean Air Act, Colorado leaders on Thursday signaled their intent to take a more aggressive approach to cutting ozone pollution from the oil and gas industry as work begins on a new set of federally mandated regulatory plans. In a letter to agency heads, Gov. […]
Trio of abortion access protection bills clear Senate committees
Three Democrat-led bills to expand access to abortion care in Colorado passed through committee on Wednesday, as lawmakers seek to protect reproductive health care amid efforts by many other states try to limit or outright ban abortion. If passed by the Legislature and signed into law, the bills would shield patients and providers from interstate […]
U.S. Senate leader calls for safety audit into all major railroads after Ohio derailment
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called Wednesday for the federal authority responsible for determining the causes of transportation casualties to investigate the safety culture at all major North American freight railroads. Following the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern derailment that caused a toxic chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio, Schumer, a New York Democrat, said […]
South Dakota congressman advocates expansion of work requirements for federal food aid
WASHINGTON — Republican South Dakota Rep. Dusty Johnson introduced a bill Tuesday aimed at expanding work requirements for federal nutrition aid, reigniting a perennial conflict over how Congress navigates both the farm bill and federal spending. “Work is the best pathway out of poverty,” Johnson, who in his home state has talked about growing up […]
Colorado utilities defend investor-owned model amid scrutiny of higher gas, electricity bills
Executives from Colorado’s two privately owned utilities went before state lawmakers on Tuesday to defend their status as “regulated monopolies” amid scrutiny of soaring utility bills for their customers — and record-breaking profits for shareholders. Robert Kenney, president of Xcel Energy’s Colorado division, which serves over 1.5 million customers in the state with electricity and […]
States to receive $2.5B from feds for electric vehicle charging infrastructure
The federal government will send $2.5 billion over the next five years to states, local governments and tribes to build electric vehicle charging infrastructure, Biden administration officials said Tuesday. The new Charging and Fueling Infrastructure grant program, which was authorized by the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law, will spend $2.5 billion over five years to build […]
Bipartisan bills would bolster workforce for in-demand Colorado jobs like construction, fire fighting
Colorado lawmakers want to make it easier for young people to enter in-demand career pathways by reducing the costs — and in some cases making it free — to get trained in fields like construction, early childhood education and law enforcement. “We hear from businesses across the state, ‘We need people with the skills to […]
Pat Schroeder, women’s rights trailblazer, mourned by DeGette, Colorado leaders
Coloradans are mourning the loss of former U.S. Rep. Pat Schroeder, a Democrat who was a trailblazer for women’s rights throughout her life and career. Schroeder, who represented Denver in Congress for 24 years beginning in 1972, died Monday at 82 in Celebration, Florida. She is recognized for redefining women’s role in politics, regularly using […]