Today is June 21, 2024, and here’s what you need to know:

From upsets to pepper spray, Colorado has seen its share of primary election stunners | TRAIL MIX

Given this year’s topsy-turvy primary campaigns and Colorado’s panoply of precedents, it’d almost be more of a surprise if there weren’t a few more in store, writes reporter Ernest Luning, who looked back at a half dozen recent primary election stunners — unforeseen developments that spun heads and left jaws dropped.

Here’s one:

Already a minor celebrity in some circles as the owner of a gun-themed restaurant in Rifle, Boebert burst on the political scene in 2020, parlaying a confrontation over the Second Amendment with a Democratic presidential candidate into a feisty primary challenge that took five-term U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton by surprise. Claiming the mantle of Trump — who had already endorsed Tipton — Boebert accomplished what no Colorado politician had done in nearly five decades when she defeated an incumbent in a congressional primary.

Colorado Senate candidate owed child support, faced tax liens, registered to vote in 2 states at the same time

A Republican candidate who is running the Colorado state Senate faced tax liens and owed $40,000 in child support.

Timothy Arvidson, who is running to represent the Douglas County-based Senate District 2, earlier admitted he made mistakes in his past.

New information revealed that Arvidson has had five DUIs. He pleaded guilty to driving while impaired on two cases, including for an arrest in Arapahoe County in March 2002, which was adjudicated the following August.

Appeals court splits with itself on statewide noise limits, sets up Supreme Court intervention

Colorado’s second-highest court on Thursday set the stage for Supreme Court intervention by finding local governments cannot authorize concerts on private, for-profit land to exceed noise limits under state law — three months after another set of appellate judges reached the opposite conclusion.

A three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals concluded the state’s Noise Abatement Act envisioned that Colorado, local governments and nonprofits could allow for excess decibel levels during cultural events, but only for property they own or use.

Consequently, a privately owned and used venue in Chaffee County would not qualify for an exception to noise limits.

Colorado ethics panel finds probable cause to investigate lawmaker accused of intoxication

A Senate panel on Thursday decided to investigate the actions of a legislator accused of showing up intoxicated at a city council meeting in her district. 

The panel unanimously agreed that a probable cause exists to look into an ethics complaint filed by the Northglenn City Council against Sen. Faith Winter, D-Westminster, for her behavior during the April meeting. 

Northglenn’s councilmembers alleged that Winter failed to uphold her duties as a senator when she appeared to be intoxicated on April 3, in which the city council and residents discussed a proposal to locate a behavioral center in Northglenn.

Meeting attendees noted Winter “appeared to have glassy eyes, slurred speech, and some individuals smelled alcohol on her breath,” and that she seemed to be “disinterested, annoyed, and combative” during the meeting. 

Federal judge blocks Colorado's new cap on interest rates for out-of-state banks

A federal judge on Tuesday concluded Colorado may not subject out-of-state banks to Colorado’s interest rate caps when they lend to Colorado residents, as envisioned under a new consumer protection law set to take effect on July 1.

U.S. District Court Judge Daniel D. Domenico issued a preliminary injunction applying to members of three banking industry groups, which argued Colorado exceeded its authority by “exporting” its own limits on interest rates to banks chartered in other states. Domenico noted he was tasked with interpreting federal law in a novel context, and he repeatedly criticized Congress for using unclear language.

Nonetheless, he believed Colorado’s ability to regulate excessive interest rates on loans “made in” the state was evident enough: the bank is the one that makes the loan, so Colorado’s authority extends only to its own state-chartered banks.