Senate Majority Leader Robert Rodriguez on Tuesday announced new committee assignments for Senate Democrats, and at least two of the changes raised eyebrows. 

The Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee lost its current vice-chair, Sen. Nick Hinrichsen of Pueblo, who was replaced by Sen. Jessie Danielson of Wheat Ridge. The committee remained a 4-3 Democratic majority, putting to rest rumors that its size would also change. 

Several sources told Colorado Politics that neither rural Colorado nor agricultural interests do not see Danielson’s appointment as a positive. She has sponsored several bills in the last few years that have drawn outrage from rural parts of the state, especially agriculture producers.

Such proposals included the farmworker’s bill of rights in 2021. One source called it the most anti-agriculture bill at the state Capitol in decades.

Another bill viewed as not friendly to rural Colorado required public schools to remove their Indian mascots, which cost dozens of schools, most of them in rural areas, more than $1 million.

The other major change removed Sen. Dylan Roberts of Eagle from the Senate Local Government and Housing Committee.

Roberts was the swing vote on a number of major proposals in the 2023 session, but none bigger than Senate Bill 213, Gov. Jared Polis’ land use proposal. Roberts won key concessions that applied to mountain communities when the measure went through the local government committee. 

The committee, with Roberts as the deciding vote, also rejected a measure on rent control and another on transparency around conflicts of interest for metro district directors.

Rodriguez, a Democrat from Denver, sponsored both bills.

Replacing Roberts on the local government committee is Assistant Sen. Majority Leader Faith Winter of Westminster. 

The committee shakeups have been anticipated ever since Rodriguez was elected majority leader in late September. Rodriguez, in talking to reporters after his election, denied he made a deal with Winter for her vote, potentially in exchange for allowing her to make committee changes. 

Rodriguez acknowledged there would be committee changes coming but said those changes would address new membership. Sen. Dafna Michaelson Jenet of Aurora succeeded Sen. Dominick Moreno of Commerce City, who resigned to join the administration of Denver Mayor Mike Johnston. 

Meanwhile, the Senate Appropriations Committee grew by two – from a seven-member (4-3) to a nine-member (6-3) panel. Rodriguez removed President Pro Tem James Coleman of Denver, and added Majority Whip Julie Gonzales of Denver and Sen. Kevin Priola of Henderson. 

The Senate Business, Labor & Technology shrunk from a nine-member (6-3) committee to a seven-member (5-2) panel. That means Republicans will have to decide who to remove from their side of the aisle. Rodriquez had been the committee’s chair but he took himself off and put Danielson in as chair.

Priola and Winter will come off the Senate Finance Committee, which retains its 4-3 composition. They will be replaced by Sen. Chris Hansen of Denver and Majority Caucus Chair Sen. Janet Buckner of Aurora.

Buckner is being replaced on the nine-member Senate Health & Human Services Committee by Michaelson Jenet. She also is joining the Senate Judiciary Committee, replacing Rodriguez.

Gonzales is coming off the Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee – to be replaced by Hansen.

Hinrichsen will join the Senate Transportation & Energy Committee, replacing Sen. Sonja Jaquez Lewis of Longmont.

Sen. Byron Pelton, R-Sterling, who sits on the ag and local government committees, said he appreciates those committees retaining their same membership size. But removing Hinrichsen didn’t sit well with him, he said, noting that Hinrichsen’s district includes rural Pueblo County and that Danielson’s district has no rural component. 

“Most people need to be represented with respect, and with the new ag committee, I don’t know if it will be that way,” Pelton said. “The members who were there [in 2023] all respected ag, but this will be viewed as a little less respectful.”

Rodriguez did not return a call for comment.