frances koncilja

Kato Crews confirmed by Senate to Colorado’s federal trial court

Jan 10, 2024

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Michael Karlik

The U.S. Senate confirmed S. Kato Crews to a judgeship on Colorado’s U.S. District Court on Wednesday by a vote of 51-48, restoring the trial court to its full roster of seven active judges. With Crews’ confirmation, President Joe Biden has now appointed five of the court’s members, marking an unusually high level of turnover during…
Q&A with Frances Koncilja | Longtime player in judicial nominations speaks about selection process

Dec 18, 2023

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Michael Karlik

Over the past three years, Colorado’s federal trial court has seen extensive turnover, with President Joe Biden appointing four members of the seven-judge district court and a fifth nominee awaiting confirmation in the U.S. Senate. By tradition, senators wield enormous power over district judge appointments in their states. Early in Biden’s presidency, U.S. Sens. Michael…
House committee wants “cooling off” before utility reps could serve on PUC

Apr 5, 2018

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JOEY BUNCH

DENVER – Pueblo officials are so mad about high electricity rates that they want to clamp down on how soon industry officials can serve on the state Public Utilities Commission in the future. House Bill 1281 would establish a four-year “cooling-off period” before anyone who has been an officer or director for a regulated utility could…
Tit for tat at the PUC: Now, former utility attorney Moser is in the hot seat

Mar 21, 2017

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DAN NJEGOMIR Colorado Politics

Few things get as superheated in Pueblo these days as the city’s ongoing grudge match with its principal power supplier, Black Hills Energy. For years, local government and other critics have railed against the Rapid City, S.D.-based utility over a succession of electricity rate hikes, and they have chided the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC), as well, for…
PUC commissioner fights off recusal demand by Black Hills Energy

Mar 1, 2017

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Peter Marcus

Tensions between the three members of the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) bubbled to the surface on Wednesday as the panel weighed allegations of bias. The hearing revolved around Commissioner Frances Koncilja and her dealings with Black Hills Energy, a southern Colorado utility that largely serves the Pueblo area. Black Hills asked that Koncilja be recused…
PUC confirmation hearing reopens partisan battles with accusations of bias

Feb 10, 2017

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Peter Marcus

A Senate committee hearing Thursday on the confirmation of two Public Utilities Commission (PUC) appointees opened up old partisan wounds. Republicans and Democrats thoroughly questioned the appointees – one a Republican, the other a Democrat – over spiking electric rates, federal carbon pollution standards and the potential for bias. The Senate Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Energy Committee…
Enviromentalists urge PUC members to go green on utilities

Jan 5, 2017

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JOEY BUNCH

Jeff Ackermann and Wendy Moser are Gov. John Hickenlooper’s news appointees to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission. The three-member panel regulates utilities and tries to maintain reasonable prices, as well as overseeing taxis and ride-sharing companies such as Uber and Lyft. That sounded like good news to Pete Maysmith, executive director of Conservation Colorado, the…
YESTERYEAR: Owens takes steps to fix transportation budget shortfall, Amendment 41 derails three legislators

Dec 8, 2016

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Rachael Wright

Fifteen Years Ago this week in the Colorado Statesman … The Colorado Children’s Chorale performance at the White House was proclaimed a riveting success. Thirty-two Colorado children performed at the private event, an experience the now-adults have surely not forgotten. “The Holiday Open House” event was for White House staff, members of Congress, the Secret…
Hanfling: Denver Rustlers boasts unmatched longevity

Sep 8, 2016

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Jared Wright

Success in Denver is defined more by how much you give back than by the amount you earn. Our community is brimming with individuals and organizations committed to making our city, state and the world a better place. Throughout the decades, in the face of economic ebbs and flows, few events have stood the test…
Koncilja PUC appointment seen as a win for Pueblo, rural Colorado

Feb 10, 2016

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Kara Mason

Frances Koncilja, candidate for the state’s Public Utilities Commission, received a strong thumbs-up from the Senate Business, Labor and Technology Committee Monday. Koncilja, a Denver-area attorney with ties to Pueblo, was appointed by Gov. John Hickenlooper and won confirmation from six of the seven members of the Business Committee. Both chambers of the Legislature will…