sen. leroy garcia

Marijuana tracking concept earns kudos and complaints in Colorado

Jan 16, 2018

—

by

Marianne Goodl

Gov. John Hickenlooper Tuesday expressed support for an idea being floated by a bipartisan group of state senators to add tracking measures to marijuana plants. But the tracking idea isn’t exactly winning support from some in the marijuana industry, according to The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. The Sentinel reported Tuesday that the CEO of Grand…
A view of Colorado’s opioid-abuse crisis from the frontline in Pueblo

Jul 5, 2017

—

by

DAN NJEGOMIR Colorado Politics

ColoradoPolitics.com and other news media have reported extensively on efforts by the 2017 legislature to tackle the rampant abuse of opioids across Colorado; notably, a pilot program authored by two Democratic state lawmakers from Pueblo was OK’d by their peers and signed into law by the governor. Senate Bill 74, sponsored by Sen. Leroy Garcia…
Lawmakers landed some blows in Colorado’s fight against opioid addiction

May 22, 2017

—

by

JOEY BUNCH

The legislative pushback on opioid abuse in Colorado got lost in the shuffle of winners and losers at the end of the session. Lawmakers and the Colorado Department of Human Services have a lot to show for the past few months. Their work is warranted. The abuse of hard drugs is being called crisis in…
What’s in it for Colorado’s Steel City? Pueblo’s Pulp asks Sen. Leroy Garcia

May 9, 2017

—

by

Dan Njegomir

For an alternative take on the General Assembly — one that’s as authentically Colorado as metro Denver’s, yet entirely different — look no further than Pueblo-based Pulp Newsmagazine’s debrief with Pueblo Democratic state Sen. Leroy Garcia. Garcia, who is assistant Democratic leader in the GOP-run upper chamber, sat recently with Pulp News Editor Kara Mason and reviewed legislative business…
State Senate embraces greater transparency for utility bills

Feb 24, 2017

—

by

DAN NJEGOMIR Colorado Politics

Ratepayers steamed at their local public utilities likely will cheer an effort that advanced at the Capitol Thursday requiring greater accountability on monthly power bills. Senate Bill 105, which easily passed the state Senate 26-9 with bipartisan backing, requires investor-owned, state-regulated public utilities like Xcel Energy serving the Denver area and Black Hills Energy in Pueblo to provide their…
Garcia’s proposal to battle ‘opioid epidemic’ moves forward in Senate

Feb 9, 2017

—

by

DAN NJEGOMIR Colorado Politics

A state Senate committee gave all thumbs up Wednesday to a proposal to combat abuse of opioids like heroin, oxycodone and assorted other drugs, especially among youth. Senate Bill 74 – introduced in the upper chamber by first-term Sen. Leroy Garcia, a Pueblo Democrat – would create a two-year pilot program under the auspices of the University of Colorado’s College of Nursing to expand access…
A southern Colorado lawmaker aims to fight ‘epidemic of opioid addiction’

Jan 25, 2017

—

by

DAN NJEGOMIR Colorado Politics

Pueblo state Sen. Leroy Garcia says his southern Colorado community is among those besieged by abuse of opioids like heroin, oxycodone and assorted other drugs. It’s especially problematic among young people. So, the first-term Democrat is proposing a regional pilot program that, according to a press release his office distributed Tuesday, would “provide grants to medical…
Koncilja PUC appointment seen as a win for Pueblo, rural Colorado

Feb 10, 2016

—

by

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…