rachel zenzinger
-
Senate panel advances bill to strip school-choice language from foster-kids measure
—
by
The Colorado state Senate’s Education Committee on Thursday gave a party-line OK to a bill removing school-choice language from a 2018 measure on foster children that was the subject of a court challenge. The action followed a Denver District Court ruling last month that declared a portion of the 2018 bill unconstitutional. On a 3-2…
-
Dems change their tune a day after Polis presents budget proposal
—
by
Colorado Money Dollar Budget(Photo illustration by bubaone, iStock) What a difference 24 hours makes. Two Senate Democrats who sounded skeptical Tuesday when Gov. Jared Polis first shared his proposal for amending the 2019-20 governor’s budget request were singing a different tune a day later. On Tuesday, Polis gave reporters a sneak peek at his budget…
-
Transportation measures’ backers park petitions at secretary of state’s office
—
by
Supporters of two transportation measures proposed for Colorado’s November ballot jockeyed for first position at the Secretary of State’s Office when it opened at 7 a.m. Monday to turn in petitions. One measure, Initiative 153, would raise the state sales tax by about 6 cents on a $10 purchase, effective Jan. 1, to finance bonds for…
-
Senate sends transportation funding bill to the governor
—
by
None of the Republicans in the state House of Representatives supported it earlier in the day, but Senate Republicans collected a unanimous vote Tuesday night to send a bill to the governor that will eventually put almost $3 billion into the state’s beleaguered transportation system. Senate Bill 1 puts $495 million into roads, bridges and…
-
DFER: Why Colo. Democrats threw it out of their state assembly
—
by
On April 14, in what was the most dramatic moment in the Democratic Party’s state assembly, party activists won delegates’ assembly approval for a demand that the Colorado chapter of Democrats for Education Reform (DFER) stop using the word “Democrat” in its name. The move exposed a deepening schism in the party over school choice…
-
Church and state divide GOP, Democratic Colorado lawmakers
—
by
Democrats and Republicans argued over two bills that mixed church and state last week at the Colorado Capitol. Senate Bill 201 would extend an three-hour exemption from childcare licensing requirement for churches to six hours during church activities. The bill is set for another recorded vote on the Senate floor next Thursday. The legislation is…
-
Colorado Concern has a radio message for lawmakers: Fix roads
—
by
DENVER – The business alliance Colorado Concern has a message for state lawmakers coming to a car radio (and traffic jam) near you: Make a deal to fund transportation. The organization is spending $25,000 to run that message during morning and afternoon drive-times on far-reaching Denver AM radio stations 850 KOA and 630 KHOW, including…
-
NOONAN: Gun violence in schools mixes up education politics, unions and the 2nd amendment
—
by
My family has lived in the Columbine High School neighborhood since 1983. Like House Minority Leader Patrick Neville, everyone in my family, my next door neighbors, and my block felt the horror of so much tragedy and heartbreak so close to home. In that bloody 1999 year, over 20 murders occurred within a one mile…
-
Bipartisan bill with momentum would speed college transfers’ pace to graduation
—
by
A significant bill with bipartisan momentum could make it easier for college students to transfer to other state schools. Senate Bill 69 passed the upper chamber Friday on a 33-0 vote, so it bounces to the House to start the process there. It’s sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Chris Holbert of Parker and Sen. Rachel…