Today is Aug. 26, 2024, and here’s what you need to know:

What to expect from Colorado's special session on property taxes

A deal to further reduce property taxes sits on a razor’s edge as lawmakers prepare to convene into a special session and pass the compromise aimed at heading off two initiatives from the November general election.

Some legislators are likely to push for more than a dozen bills — in draft form as of Thursday — that aren’t part of the compromise. If they advanced, it could result in the compromise going down in flames.

And political pressures are mounting. On the one hand, some residents argue the people should decide and the two initiatives should, thereby, appear on the ballot. On the other hand, some policymakers are unhappy they were not included in the negotiations.

The second special session of the 74th General Assembly that convenes next Monday will bring lawmakers for the second time in less than a year to deal with the issue of property taxes.

Colorado to release more wolves in northern zone against wishes of ranchers

Ranchers from Grand and Jackson who have lost dozens of sheep and cattle to wolves greeted with dismay the news on Friday that the Colorado Parks and Wildlife intends to release the next batch of the apex predators in the exact zone where they are depredating.

In just over four months, the death toll to livestock from wolf depredation in the area now stood in the dozens.

That’s from roughly nine out of the 10 wolves released in Grand and Summit counties last December, although most of the livestock were likely killed by just two wolves, a mating pair that has now produced at least three pups.

Reid DeWalt, assistant director for Aquatic, Terrestrial, and Natural Resources at the wildlife agency told the commission on Friday they would consider the northern zone for the next release.

Colorado Republicans vote to oust Dave Williams as state party chair, but he rejects meeting as 'illegal'

A group of Colorado Republicans voted Saturday to remove Dave Williams as chairman of the state party at a meeting denounced by Williams and his allies as “fraudulent” and “illegal.”

Republicans cheered when results were announced at a church in Brighton, where Williams’ opponents gathered in defiance of state GOP warnings that the proceedings lacked authority and would be ignored.

About 88% of the 182.16 central committee members in attendance voted to oust Williams, easily clearing the 60% required under state party bylaws to remove an officer. (Some members hold fractional votes.)

Williams did not attend the meeting.

Democrat Yadira Caraveo reserves $3.7 million in TV time, hits airwaves in Colorado's toss-up 8th CD

Democratic U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo plans to go on the air next week in Colorado’s battleground 8th Congressional District with a TV ad highlighting the Thornton pediatrician’s community roots and willingness to work across the aisle, her campaign told Colorado Politics.

The 30-second spot, set to start airing on Aug. 27 on broadcast, cable and streaming platforms, is part of her campaign’s $3.7 million fall advertising reservation, a campaign spokesman said.

Carveo is facing Republican state Rep. Gabe Evans of Fort Lupton in her bid for a second term representing the closely divided district, which covers parts of Adams, Larimer and Weld counties north of the Denver metro area. In 2022, Caraveo defeated her Republican opponent by 1,632 votes in one of the closest congressional races in the country.

“My parents raised the four of us right here,” Caraveo says in the new TV ad, over a montage of family photos. “All we had was my dad’s pay as a construction worker. These days that would be impossible. That’s why I’ve always worked with both parties to help Coloradans deal with rising costs.”

Fact check: Gov. Jared Polis made inaccurate, misleading claims at Democratic National Convention

When it came his turn to speak at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday night, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis criticized “Project 2025,” a 900-plus document published by the Heritage Foundation, and made several claims that are inaccurate or misleading.

Polis brought a copy of the handbook on stage and pointed out sections that called for restrictions on contraceptives, abortions and family planning services.

He called it “Donald Trump’s roadmap to banning abortion in all 50 states.”