Author: Vic Vela
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Sanders rocks Denver crowd, calls for ‘political revolution’
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Neil Young’s music was blasting inside the University of Denver on Saturday night – but he wasn’t the rock star the frenzied crowd had come to hear. Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders electrified supporters with a fiery, populist message that resonated with the thousands that packed DU’s Hamilton Gymnasium. Not long after stepping up to…
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Woods, Zenzinger already in 2016 campaign mode
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The race for one of Colorado’s most competitive state Senate seats is more than a year away, but the potential candidates are already in throw-down mode. Former Democratic state Sen. Rachel Zenzinger told The Colorado Statesman this week that she is “seriously considering” a rematch with incumbent Republican Sen. Laura Woods for the right to…
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Hickenlooper vetoes high-cost lending bill
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A bill that would have altered the interest rate structure on high risk personal loans died on Gov. John Hickenlooper’s desk on Thursday.The governor vetoed House Bill 1390 after consumer groups blasted the bill as being unfair to the poor and one that would have resulted in higher-cost loans. Supervised loans provide borrowing options for…
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New rules to save bird ruffles feathers
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New federal land use regulations to protect a threatened bird species were met with mixed reviews on Thursday, as environmentalists praised the new rules while the oil and gas industry expressed concerns about potential economic impacts from drilling restrictions. U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell announced new protections for the greater sage grouse, a spiky-feathered and…
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Hickenlooper gives strong defense of CDHS chief
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Gov. John Hickenlooper this week lauded Colorado Department of Human Services Director Reggie Bicha and his staff as being “among the best in the United States” after an overwhelming majority of lawmakers recently blasted Bicha’s job performance. And Bicha vowed to meet with all 84 legislators who signed a letter addressed to Hickenlooper that laid…
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Ballot measures impact bill signed into law
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A new law will allow Colorado voters to know the fiscal impact of a ballot measure before petitions are circulated – a heavily debated effort that seemed doomed in the final hours of the recent legislative session. The state had already been required to provide voters with cost-impact estimates of ballot measures, prior to an…
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New law helps fund massive National Western complex project
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A stroke of a pen this week pumped $250 million into renovations for the National Western Stock Show complex, an enormous project that supporters say will create the “Silicon Valley of agriculture” in northeast Denver. But officials admit there is still work left to do to secure the majority of the money needed to fund…
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Hickenlooper tees off on Jeffco super at bill signing
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Gov. John Hickenlooper this week accused the Jefferson County schools superintendent of playing politics over a perceived snub by the school district’s chief – a response that included a reference to a pop superstar’s visit to Jeffco a couple of years ago. The Democratic governor recently sought permission from Jeffco schools to hold an education…
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Education activists say testing changes not good enough
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State lawmakers may be patting themselves on the back for their recent bipartisan work to reduce testing in Colorado schools, but education activists aren’t popping any champagne corks in celebration of those efforts. “I don’t see much a change for next year,” said Cheri Kiesecker, a Fort Collins mother and an advocate for the overhaul…
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Consumer groups blast last-minute lending bill
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A late legislative session bill aimed at maintaining loan access for customers with bad credit is leaving consumer interest groups concerned that the measure will result in a higher cost of borrowing. Those same groups are calling on Gov. John Hickenlooper to veto the bill, which they see as a harmful piece of legislation that…
