Dear members of the Colorado General Assembly:

Please, pump the breaks. Take a breath and do what we were all taught in elementary school and “just say no.” The onslaught of anti-business bills being run this year, many borne out of election-year politicking, is threatening the Colorado so many know and love.

During the recent committee hearing on HB-1275, the tax haven bill, Metro Denver EDC Chair Tom Clark testified that this bill would set us back as a state and put us at a competitive disadvantage. State Rep. Kevin Priola mentioned that this bill would work against the direct efforts of Gov. John Hickenlooper and Fiona Arnold, who heads the Office of Economic Development and International Trade.

Colorado was just listed as the No. 3 state for business by the Wall Street Journal. While there is a lot to be celebrated, there are certainly warning signs and areas of concern. Topping the list was Utah (again). Utah Gov. Gary Herbert has made it a personal mission to remove burdensome, outdated regulations off the books (excising 342 in one year), and the Olympics provided important infrastructure enhancements. Of significant note was the announcement on Feb. 26 highlighting the creation of the Utah Chapter of Aerospace States Association. The South Metro Denver Chamber just hosted an economic development meeting on our aerospace industry, and the Colorado Business Roundtable recently had Colorado’s aerospace champion Major Gen. Jay Lindell and Edgar Johansson from the Colorado Space Business Roundtable as guests on its Connect and Collaborate radio. The aerospace industry in Colorado is vibrant, growing and drives significant economic impact to the state. Is Colorado’s Legislature willing to put that at risk, knowing that Utah and other states would welcome any of our prime companies with open arms?

During its legislative reception prior to the start of the session, COBRT President Jeff Wasden challenged the business community to stop asking legislators what their five bills are for the year. Instead, the questions we should be asking are, “What priorities do you have for this session?” and, “How can you ensure the proper role of government to help Colorado families and businesses this year?” Instead, we get hit with the tax haven bill, equity pay bills, minimum wage bills, paid mandatory sick leave bills and others. Couple those with proposed ballot initiatives such as single-payer healthcare and statewide energy bans, and it is no wonder business always feel under attack and playing defense.

Colorado has evolved since the 1980s. The Metropolitan Revolution: How Cities and Metros are Fixing Our Broken Politics and Fragile Economy, by Bruce Katz and Jennifer Bradley, highlights significant milestones in the evolution of the Denver metro region and the center-city hub — aggressive annexations, the rise of Denver International Airport, the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District and FasTracks. Today, the Denver metro region is home to corporate headquarters of companies including DaVita, Ball Corporation, Arrow Electronics, CH2M, Western Union, Level 3, Newmont Mining and Dish Network. Our economy boasts a strong, diversified portfolio from bioscience, renewable energy, aerospace, financial services, health and wellness, engineering and creative industries. We have an educated workforce, favorable climate and amazing outdoors in which to recreate.

The state of California has long been one of our strongest recruiting tools, as overreaching policies have driven off company after company. We should all take note, because business is much more mobile, states are actively competing for companies and policies matter. Let’s focus on what is important for our ongoing economic prosperity and well being — finding conservative ways to fix our broken transportation funding, critical investments in infrastructure, ensuring all students have access to a quality education and working with business instead of against business.

Jeff Wasden is president of the Colorado Business Roundtable, and Robert Golden is president and CEO of the South Metro Denver Chamber.