vic vela
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Officials rip stopgap road bills at launch of U.S. 36 milestone
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An Obama transportation department official urged Congress to pass a long-term highway funding bill during a visit to Broomfield this week. Deputy Transportation Secretary Victor Mendez was in town on Monday to take part in a ceremony marking a milestone in the massive, ongoing U.S. 36 construction project. Speaking outside Broomfield’s First Bank Center, Mendez…
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Colorado conundrum: Growing economy could mean looming state budget shortfall
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Colorado’s economy is performing so well, the state’s upcoming budget is expected to suffer. Wait, what? That’s according to budget forecasters who told state lawmakers last week that Colorado could end up with a $180 million budget shortfall at the end of 2016 fiscal year, in spite of the state experiencing its seventh consecutive year…
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Colorado conundrum: Growing economy could mean looming state budget shortfall
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Colorado’s economy is performing so well, the state’s upcoming budget is expected to suffer. Wait, what? That’s according to budget forecasters who told state lawmakers last week that Colorado could end up with a $180 million budget shortfall at the end of 2016 fiscal year, in spite of the state experiencing its seventh consecutive year…
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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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State Board of Ed. members talk ‘dysfunction,’ passion in wake of exodus
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For the Colorado Board of Education, one member’s zeal is another’s dysfunction. One week after board Chairwoman Marcia Neal blasted the board’s “destructive behavior” in a strongly-worded resignation letter, board members say they are trying to move forward to do good work for the state’s children. But can they really?“I’m not a doomsday type,” said…
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Johnston letter responds to A.M.E. massacre
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A state lawmaker this week wrote a powerful letter in response to the recent massacre that took place at a black South Carolina church — one he feels “every white person” should also write. After news broke on Wednesday night that a white gunman had walked into a historic black church in Charleston, state Sen.…
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Hickenlooper says taxi bill ‘falls short,’ lets it become law without signature
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A law set to take effect this summer will ease marketplace restrictions for new taxi companies in hopes of creating more ride options for a Denver metro area that is booming in population. But some feel the measure doesn’t go far enough, while others worry it will lead to greater congestion on city streets.Gov. John…
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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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Hick cites fiscal concerns with pair of no-sign laws
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Gov. John Hickenlooper’s cautious response last week to two new laws foreshadows the budget constraints lawmakers will be dealing with next year. Last week, the governor declined to sign one bill aimed at boosting college preparedness for under-served youths and another that increases penalties in assault cases involving emergency care providers. Instead of signing or…
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Hickenlooper declares first steps in ‘Colorado Beautiful’ initiative
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Gov. John Hickenlooper this week outlined the first steps in a conservation and outdoors recreation initiative that ultimately aims to enable every Coloradan to live within a 10-minute walk of a “vibrant, green space.” “Our goal would be to get the majority of Coloradans to, on a regular basis, appreciate that space,” Hickenlooper told reporters.…