Today is June 17, 2024, and here’s what you need to know:

Colorado governor, attorney general vow to revise recently-enacted AI law

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis on Thursday vowed to revise a new law on artificial intelligence amid worries by businesses that, contrary to its goals, the legislation would stifle innovation without resolving the problems it sought to remedy.

In a letter to businesses, Polis, along with Attorney General Phil Weiser and Senate Majority Leader Robert Rodriguez, acknowledged the points raised against the legislation and conceded that a “state by state patchwork of regulation” on AI poses “challenges to the cultivation of a strong technology sector.”

The latter point refers to the oft-repeated argument that a federal framework should govern issues, such as AI, that cross state lines and implicate the country’s ability to compete internationally.

As Colorado Supreme Court weighs life without parole for felony murder, ex-lawmaker casts doubt on state's argument

As the Colorado Supreme Court sits down on Monday to decide whether defendants convicted of felony murder prior to 2021 should receive new sentences less severe than life without the possibility of parole, a key legislative change will play a prominent role in the legal analysis.

However, according to the lawmaker who led the effort to abolish life without parole for felony murder defendants going forward, the government’s opposition to extending relief to those already incarcerated rests on a flawed understanding of what the legislature did three years ago.

Felony murder does not require a person to kill the victim themselves. Instead, a defendant can be guilty of felony murder when they participate in certain serious crimes, such as robbery or sexual assault, and someone dies as a result. Prior to 2021, felony murder was the highest classification of felony, punishable by life in prison without parole.

Colorado Senate ethics committee begins probe into alcoholism complaint against Sen. Faith Winter

A state Senate ethics panel on Tuesday began its probe into the ethics complaint requested by the Northglenn City Council and lodged against Sen. Faith Winter, D-Westminster, over allegations of alcoholism.

Winter could face a reprimand, censure, or expulsion, if the committee determines she violated Senate ethics as denoted in Senate rule 43. The reprimand or censure would require a simple majority vote of the Senate. Expulsion, which is highly unlikely, would require a two-thirds vote, meaning 24 of her colleagues would have to kick her out of the chamber.

While an April 3 incident prompted the probe, the ethic panel’s discussion also briefly delved into Winter’s history of alcohol addiction and, notably, whether there is some culpability on the part of lawmakers for not intervening sooner.

Colorado River coalition gains funding to purchase of 1 million acre-feet of Shoshone water rights

The flow of the Colorado River past Xcel’s Shoshone power plant just east of Glenwood Springs is running at around 12,000 cubic feet per second this week. If that sounds like a lot, it is.

It’s more than double the flow from just two weeks ago, and fast enough to shut down commercial rafting for the time being, along with cutting off the Glenwood Canyon bike path since parts are now flooded.

And there’s gold in all that water. But it’s not the mineral. The gold is the water itself.

A deal reached between Xcel Energy and the Colorado River Water Conservation District late last year means the river district will take ownership of a million acre feet of water every year — in perpetuity. It won’t add water to the Colorado River, but it will ensure that river flows remain healthy for decades to come. That’s more water than is stored in Blue Mesa Reservoir, the state’s largest.

Not a narco-state, but definitely an enabler | SONDERMANN

In his latest, columnist Eric Sondermann writes about “America’s codependent linkage to our southern neighbor.”

Wikipedia defines a narco-state as “a political and economic term applied to countries where all legitimate institutions become penetrated by the power and wealth of the illegal drug trade.”

Sadly but accurately, that describes Mexico in this hour. It is also apt terminology for too many other Latin American and Central American countries for which Mexico, by virtue of geography, serves as the corridor to the ultimate destination of the drug traffic.