Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commissioners Jessica Beaulieu and Jack Murphy were sued by Safari Club and the Sportsmen’s Alliance for violating open meetings laws. The state of Colorado has now reached a settlement with the groups after Beaulieu and Murphy penned an opinion piece supporting a ballot measure to ban “trophy hunting” of mountain lions, bobcat and lynx. The problem wasn’t their opposition to hunting, the factual errors the piece contained, or even their identification of themselves as commissioners in an effort to sway voters, but the communication that must have taken place between the two, which violates open meeting laws.

In an apology or sorts, both denied any wrongdoing, claiming. “There was no collusion. We simply signed off on a letter. We did not talk about it at all. Not one single word was written by either one of us.” That’s even less comforting.

The words, confirmed by the Colorado Sun, were written by Julie Marshall, the public relations director for Animal Wellness Action, the proponents of Proposition 127. According to Marshall, former CPW commissioner James Pribyl offered “expert and wise” editing and was the third signature on the letter. Pribyl certainly ought to know better. For shame, as my mother would say.

Pribyl was at the center of an open meetings violation dust up in 2012 that also resulted in a lawsuit brought against the commission by a coalition of off-road vehicle groups. The groups claimed Pribyl emailed other commissioners about commission business, called and emailed other commissioners, and participated in a roundtable meeting that was closed to the public.

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Pribyl, in his expert editing, should have also corrected the letter’s inaccuracies. Drones are not allowed during hunting per the commission’s own rules, lion hunts do not guarantee a 100% success rate but rather about 20%, and wild cats most certainly are involved in human conflict.

According to reporting by Colorado Politics’ Marianne Goodland, commissioners were warned just a week prior to the letter’s publication in the Durango Herald, against speaking publicly about commission business. The commission, at the time, was hard at work on the Eastern Slope Mountain Lion Management Plan.

This is not the first time Beaulieu has been at the center of unwanted attention. Her appointment was sent by the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee to the full Senate without a favorable recommendation. Sen. Dylan Roberts, D-Summit County, is the chair of the committee and represents the Senate district most adversely affected by the wolf depredations, voted against Beaulieu.

Roberts told The Fence Post, “The people of Colorado should be able to trust that state agencies like CPW are being guided by science and fact-based decision making, and that their leadership is not influenced by politics or activism. While I respect everyone’s first amendment rights, I’m disappointed to see some CPW commissioners put their personal ideologies over their oaths as commissioners.”

Beaulieu admitted she hadn’t visited any state parks outside the Front Range prior to her appointment as a state parks representative, nor had she ever purchased a state parks pass. In response to her admitting she asked Department of Natural Resources leadership which stakeholders she ought to introduce herself to, Roberts said having knowledge of the stakeholders a commissioner is tasked with representing is a prerequisite to nomination. Roberts is particularly skilled at understanding what many are thinking and making it suitable for all viewing audiences.

CPW spokesman Travis Duncan said no violation of open meetings laws occurred.

Part of the settlement reached requires CPW Commissioners to complete training on requirements and best practices in communication and current open meetings laws as well as training on current Colorado law governing the take of mountain lion, bobcat, and lynx.

In any other administration, this might serve as a reminder commissioners and appointed members of boards are there to serve their constituents, with whom an appointee ought to be familiar. They’re not there to serve the special interests of an un-elected activist type and they’re not there to beat the drum for, for example, a pet project like a mid-level veterinary practitioner on the state veterinary board. If appointees have lost their way, it’s all the more important that stakeholders hold them accountable.

Senators, too, ought to be held accountable when confirmations come before them. The Senate Agriculture Committee sent three confirmations to the full Senate for Chair Dallas May, Commissioner Jay Tutchton, Commissioner Tai Jacober and Commissioner Murphy Robinson. Jacober, Robinson and May carried favorable recommendations with them and were passed by the Senate by unanimous vote, save for Jacober who drew one nay vote. Tutchton, who drew fire for his “whining and pandering politicians” comment at the March CPW Commission meeting. He was also questioned about influence from the governor’s office and his apparent disdain for agriculture and hunting and seemed to leave committee members less than convinced. Tutchton was also faced with concerns about a conflict of interest as he manages the Southern Plains Land Trust, of which CPW is a funder and which also receives significant amounts of funding from the GoCo Board. Tutchton was confirmed on a 21-13 vote with two Democrats voting against him.

Rachel Gabel writes about agriculture and rural issues. She is assistant editor of The Fence Post Magazine, the region’s preeminent agriculture publication. Gabel is a daughter of the state’s oil and gas industry and a member of one of the state’s 12,000 cattle-raising families, and she has authored children’s books used in hundreds of classrooms to teach students about agriculture.