Briefs
Sen. Bennet supports eliminating filibuster, spokesperson confirms
Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet supports eliminating the Senate filibuster, his office confirmed Wednesday. Bennet, a Democrat and Colorado’s senior senator, had repeatedly criticized Republican “abuse” of the filibuster and signaled an openness to reforming it in recent months, but his remarks had not been widely interpreted as explicitly calling for the filibuster’s elimination. As of […]
Sen. Hickenlooper says ‘time to change the filibuster’ to protect voting rights
Sen. John Hickenlooper of Colorado on Wednesday announced his support for “changes” to the filibuster, as Senate Democrats move to take up voting rights legislation in the final weeks of the year. “We’ve been here almost a year, and we’ve seen enough: It’s time to change the filibuster to protect voting rights,” Hickenlooper said in […]
Colorado oil and gas regulators release updated bonding proposal ahead of January hearing
Colorado regulators have released their latest proposal for a new set of rules governing the financial assurance payments that oil and gas companies must provide to cover potential cleanup costs, with hearings on the proposed rules scheduled to begin in January. The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, the state agency that oversees drilling, was […]
Hickenlooper, Bennet introduce legislation to increase number of district judges in Colorado
Democratic Sens. John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet introduced legislation last week to increase the number of district judges in Colorado. The Colorado Judgeship Act would add three district judges to Colorado’s district court and would be the first increase in judges in Colorado’s district court since 1984. “Our courts are integral to a fair and […]
State Rep. Dave Williams begins GOP primary challenge to U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn
Republican state Rep. Dave Williams announced his bid Tuesday to unseat longtime Rep. Doug Lamborn in next year’s primary election. “Our new district deserves a new Congressman with a proven conservative record of always fighting for regular workers and families and never selling out to corrupt DC power brokers the way Doug Lamborn already has […]
Colorado Democrats urge EPA to place new transparency, risk management rules on chemical plants
Colorado Democrats want the Environmental Protection Agency to update its safety measures at chemical plants to increase safety and transparency to people who live nearby. In a letter sent Monday to EPA Administrator Michael Regan, the six Democrats in the state’s congressional delegation urged the agency to put in new rules that would require chemical […]
CDC: Increasing number of states report omicron strain of COVID-19, but delta remains biggest threat
WASHINGTON — Twenty-five states, including Colorado, had identified cases of the new omicron variant of COVID-19, federal public health officials said Friday as they released new data on the first 43 U.S. cases. Of those initial, confirmed cases, more than half were among people between the ages of 18 and 39, according to Dr. Rochelle Walensky, […]
Haaland promises governors federal help for fires, drought
U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland pledged federal resources and cooperation with governors from 19 Western states to tackle wildfire resilience, drought management, oil and gas cleanup efforts and other issues made more difficult by climate change. Speaking at the Western Governors Association meeting outside San Diego on Thursday, Haaland touted funding for Interior priorities in […]
State Sen. Don Coram considering run against Lauren Boebert for CD3
State Sen. Don Coram said he is doing his “due diligence” in deciding whether to run for Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District seat next year. The Montrose Republican could mount a challenge to incumbent Rep. Lauren Boebert in next year’s GOP primary, as first reported by The Colorado Sun. “I could go into the thousands of […]
Rep. Perlmutter co-sponsors legislation to protect local journalism
Rep. Ed Perlmutter, of Colorado’s 7th Congressional District, recently introduced legislation aimed at protecting and honoring local journalism’s role in supporting democracy. Perlmutter joined Reps. Mark DeSaulnier of California, Jamie Raskin of Maryland, and David Cicilline of Rhode Island, in co-sponsoring the local news resolution, which asks Congress to work with news outlets to help […]
Infrastructure law fixes Amtrak funding woes, House panel hears
WASHINGTON — The leader of Amtrak told a U.S. House panel Thursday that the recently enacted infrastructure law made great strides to solving the passenger rail system’s financial woes and placed it on equal footing with other modes of transportation. Democrats on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s rail subcommittee and Amtrak Executive Director Stephen […]
‘Dark money’ group behind conservative ballot measures ordered to pay fine, disclose donors
The Colorado secretary of state’s office has ordered a conservative nonprofit that bankrolled several recent statewide ballot measures to pay a $40,000 fine and disclose the sources of its contributions. The order, issued on Dec. 8 by the secretary of state’s Elections Division, found that the conservative group Unite for Colorado violated state campaign finance […]