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Here are some of the stories we are following this week. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for up-to-the-minute news.
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In the past, Governor Jared Polis has repeatedly bragged about saving people money on healthcare. The core component of this ruse was foisting people’s healthcare costs onto taxpayers. Now, Colorado Medicaid spending has reached catastrophic levels and is wrecking the state budget. Watch them use this as leverage for the coming push to convince voters to approve Amendment 87, which would create a progressive income tax structure in place of the current flat tax. Do they deserve even more taxpayer money when they have done nothing but mismanage what they do get?
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One Arapahoe County voter is pursuing a court challenge to the validity of the petition signatures used to get Amendment 87 on the ballot. It appears that many of those who gathered petition signatures were paid. In Colorado, paid petition workers are legally required to register with the state as paid petition workers. The court complaint alleges this was not done. If this challenge is valid, it could force the removal of Amendment 87 from the ballot.
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Election Day is fast approaching, so various organizations are releasing voter guides. The Independence Institute, who are always fantastic at looking out for taxpayers, has released its voter guide. The equally fantastic Advance Colorado has passed on a voter guide from Brighter Colorado. As always, we will link to these in the weekly newsletter as we get them.
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Speaking of the November election, current Attorney General Phil Weiser is running to be Governor. Remember in 2022 when Weiser attended a luxury Hawaiian getaway and partied with representatives from organizations he was suing for huge amounts of money? We certainly remember. He will likely be Colorado’s next governor. Who do you think he will represent?
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Also in Phil Weiser news this week, he has sued President Trump for seeking commercial driver's license data from the state. Weiser cites privacy concerns in his lawsuit. However, Weiser has also done something similar, and less legally valid, when asking for membership information from members of the Colorado State Shooting Association. CSSA is suing to overturn Colorado Senate Bill 25-003, which creates an unconstitutional permit-to-purchase scheme for firearms in the state, so Weiser retaliated by demanding this personal information from CSSA members. Is Weiser fit to be governor?
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Also on the November ballot will be a potential tax for Governor Polis’ Front Range Rail boondoggle. Our friends at the Independence Institute have created a short video showing the history of passenger rail promises in Colorado. In short, the tax is taken from taxpayers, and the promised rail service is never delivered. Expect the same from the Polis CoCo boondoggle. It turns out, CoCo is cuckoo.
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Proposition 137 will also appear on your ballot. The stated intention of this proposition is to use sales tax revenue collected from the sale of sporting goods for “conservation.” This is, of course, a lie. What will actually happen is the further funding of unelected bureaucrats in Colorado government, and further erosion of your TABOR protections. They seek to conserve themselves and expand their power over you.
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Should those who traffic minors for sex in Colorado be sent to prison for life with no parole? Proposition 133, appearing on your ballot this year, would mandate a life prison sentence for trafficking children for sex. Currently, those who traffic children for sex in Colorado are parole-eligible.
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Propositions 134 and 135 are also aimed at protecting children from predation in Colorado. Proposition 134 would ban boys who pretend to be girls from girls’ sports. Proposition 135 would forbid surgeons from altering the biological sex characteristics of children.
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The Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition has some great suggestions for how to update and modernize Colorado open meetings laws.
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One Democratic Socialist of America candidate for Denver Mayor stated that her criminal history of stealing food stamps is an outstanding qualification for being Mayor of Denver. No, we aren’t making this up. Yes, her argument is valid for a mayoral race in Toilet City.
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Aurora has decided that retail theft isn’t a big deal anymore, so they will eliminate mandatory jail sentences for those convicted of retail theft. Decline is a choice, and time and again it’s a choice that is being made for us by people in government who favor criminals over taxpaying citizens.
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Taxpayer dollars were awarded all across the United States for rural broadband. One company working in Colorado took millions, and now cannot account for it. They’ve since gone bankrupt, which is convenient. Are all government spending programs just mediums for theft now?
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If you missed last week’s Congressional District 5 debate, here is a replay for you to watch. Jeff Crank and Jessica Killin are competing for the Colorado District 5 U.S. House seat.
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Unelected and unaccountable air quality regulators continue to destroy oil and gas production in Colorado. Any oil and gas producers remaining in the state will now have to adhere to the most restrictive methane emission rules in the entire nation, thanks to these bureaucrats, who are hand-picked by Jared Polis. Decline is a choice that is being made for you by your rulers.
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In Fort Collins, enrollment in the Poudre School District continues to decline. District officials are blaming a lack of affordable housing, which is just a deflection. This also happens to be the same district that had an after-school “art club” that was really just a mask for grooming kids into believing they were born in the wrong body, and also teaching them to keep this grooming from their parents.
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The Waymo vehicles are now loose in Denver, and one has already broken containment. One of the self-driving vehicles drove into a farmers market on South Pearl Street last Sunday morning.
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Now for some good news. Starting October 1, the Colorado Springs Utilities Energy Wise rates will reduce to the winter rate schedule. This could save customers around 5% on their energy bills from October through May.
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Colorado Springs City Council last week decided to delay their decision on the Project Taurus data center appeals until after the 2027 municipal election. Now, why would the election be the most important component in this decision? The meeting last week was not without a little bit of action, however. Some unruly protesters were arrested inside the meeting. A day without a protest is like a day without sunshine.
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One Colorado Springs City Councilmember’s car was vandalized last week. Kimberley Gold had a rock thrown through the windshield of her Tesla. She thinks she may have been specifically targeted, but it could have simply been the random crime and vandalism we all experience now.
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Colorado Springs is a growing city. Despite this, water use has surprisingly remained steady. Some cite water rationing, and others cite changes in residential landscaping.
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The Colorado Springs Downtown Partnership likes big government because big government can steer big, taxpayer-funded projects their way. In that vein, they are encouraging voters to approve the Polis choo-choo train boondoggle. We reject their suggestion.
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More “affordable housing” is coming to Colorado Springs. A complex is being built near Jet Wing Drive and Chelton Road that will contain around 70 apartments. Everything is affordable when someone else pays.
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Sales tax revenue is up in Colorado Springs, so City Council will consider eliminating the furlough day for city employees that was scheduled for the day before Thanksgiving. Typically, this is a day off without pay. What do you think about this?
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Here are some upcoming meetings in the area. We hope you can attend one or more! If there are other public meetings you’d like to see announced here, please drop us a line. We are happy to include them in an upcoming newsletter. These might be government-related, candidate, or elected official meetings. Thanks!
Colorado Springs City Council Meetings
Monday, October 12, 9:00 a.m.
Colorado Springs City Council Work Session
107 N. Nevada, 3rd floor
Live stream link here
Agenda not yet posted
Tuesday, October 13, 9:00 a.m.
Colorado Springs City Council
107 N. Nevada, 3rd floor
Live stream link here
Agenda not yet posted
El Paso County Board of County Commissioners Meetings
Tuesday, September 29, 9:00 a.m.
El Paso County Board of County Commissioners
Centennial Hall
200 S. Cascade
Live stream link here
Agenda not yet posted
Tuesday, October 6, 9:00 a.m.
El Paso County Board of County Commissioners
Centennial Hall
200 S. Cascade
Live stream link here
Agenda not yet posted
Colorado Springs Utilities Board of Directors
Wednesday, October 21, 1:00 p.m.
Utilities Board of Directors
Blue River Board Room
Plaza of the Rockies, South Tower, 5th Floor
Live stream link here
Agenda not yet posted
Miscellaneous Meetings of Interest
Friday, October 23, 9:00 a.m.
Front Range Passenger Rail Board of Directors Meeting
Online Meeting - Registration Required
Information and Agenda
View the full Colorado Springs City Council meeting schedule here to see upcoming meetings.
View the full Board of El Paso County Commissioners meeting schedule here to see upcoming meetings.
View the full Colorado Springs Utilities Board meeting schedule here to see upcoming meetings. Please also follow CSU on social media at their Facebook Page and on Twitter.
Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Since most of the City and County board and commission meetings are not televised or recorded, we are trying to remedy that. We now have a camera and tripod for volunteers to check out for future meetings.
If you have a tip about a story in the Pikes Peak region that you aren’t seeing reported, let us know. We will see what we can find out.
How to Contact City and County Officials:
City Hall
107 N. Nevada Avenue
Colorado Springs, CO 80903
(719) 385-5986
Contact City Council
Mayor's Office
30 S Nevada Avenue, Suite 601
Colorado Springs, CO 80901
(719) 385-5900
Contact the Mayor's Office
County Commissioners
200 South Cascade Avenue, Suite 100
Colorado Springs, CO 80903-2202
Phone: (719) 520-7276
https://www.elpasoco.com/contact-us/
Thank you!
Rebecca
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