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Gaines: Why the Rodney King-era law fits Colorado’s gun fight
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Gaines: Why the Rodney King-era law fits Colorado’s gun fight

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project The DOJ using the Civil Rights Division to sue Colorado and Denver over its magazine ban.  The Rocky Mountain Voice article at bottom details how the Department of Justice is using its Civil Rights Division, along with a novel use of a civil rights law passed back during the Rodney King Era to sue Colorado and Denver over their magazine ban and “assault weapons” ban, respectively. A quote from the piece fleshes this out some:“The law driving both lawsuits came out of the aftermath of Rodney King. Congress passed §12601 in 1994 after Los Angeles erupted in riots, giving the federal government authority to intervene when police departments repeatedly violated constitutional rights. DOJ has used the law fewer than ...
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Initiative 362 Would Require Added Identity Check on Colorado Mail Ballots
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Initiative 362 Would Require Added Identity Check on Colorado Mail Ballots

By Jesse Paul | The Colorado Sun The Colorado Secretary of State’s Office said Wednesday that the supporters of Initiative 362 turned in a sufficient number of voter signatures to get the question on this year’s ballot, Colorado voters will be asked in November whether to amend the state constitution to require that people verify their identity when submitting mail ballots by including the last four digits of their Social Security number or their full driver’s license or state ID number.  The Colorado Secretary of State’s Office said Wednesday that the supporters of Initiative 362 turned in a sufficient number of voter signatures to get the question on this year’s ballot. Under the measure, local election judges would be forced to dismiss ballots wit...
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Colorado Counties Push Back as CPW Rules Could Silence Local Voices
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Counties Push Back as CPW Rules Could Silence Local Voices

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics The September meeting of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission will feature newly revised public‑comment rules — changes introduced by chair Jay Tutchton of Bent County, who announced them without first discussing the revisions publicly with the rest of the commission. Tutchton set forth the new rules as follows: The general public comment agenda item will be set at 60 minutes.  Virtual and in-person commenters will be called at random, replacing the previous first-come, first-served system of signing up and prioritizing in-person first opportunities.  The Commission will hear commenters in a two-thirds split, allowing only a third of the speakers to come from the online platform. Priority, in terms of receiving a...
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The Denver school tax question says $44 million. The measure says something larger.
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Local, Top Stories

The Denver school tax question says $44 million. The measure says something larger.

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice The question Denver voters will mark this November asks whether to raise Denver Public Schools taxes "up to $44 million." That is the number on the ballot, the number in the district's public materials, and the figure repeated in news coverage of the measure. The $44 million is not a fixed cap on what the tax could raise in the years after. Read the board's resolution, adopted Aug. 13, along with the ballot question it certified, and the $44 million turns out to be an estimate for the first year.  What voters would also authorize is a permanent change to the ceiling on how much the district can collect through its operational overrides — a ceiling written as a share of the district's total program funding, not ...
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Douglas County School Board To Put $54 Million Tax Request Before Voters in November
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Douglas County School Board To Put $54 Million Tax Request Before Voters in November

By Nicholas Fogleman | The Denver Gazette The Douglas County School District board unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday to place a $54 million mill levy override on the November ballot, sending the funding request to voters after months of discussion about the district’s financial challenges. The proposed override comes as school districts across the Denver metro area grapple with budget pressures. Jefferson County Public Schools recently approved a $133 million mill levy override request for voters, citing similar concerns about funding and rising operational costs. The largest portion of Douglas County’s proposed measure, $21.4 million, would be dedicated to increasing compensation for teachers and staff by 4%. Throughout recent discussions, Superintenden...
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Colorado Joins Lawsuit Challenging New Federal Mail Ballot Safeguards Ahead of Midterms
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Joins Lawsuit Challenging New Federal Mail Ballot Safeguards Ahead of Midterms

By Thelma Grimes | Colorado Politics Colorado, along with 25 other states, filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Postal Service to challenge a new rule that seeks to restrict the mailing of ballots to American citizens in an eligible voters list. Colorado relies heavily on the mail-in ballot system. As do several states. The U.S. Postal Service recently laid out how it would implement the order, but time is running short to impose major changes with some states beginning to send mail ballots to voters in just a few weeks. A few days ago, the conservative majority of the Supreme Court had cleared the way for President Donald Trump’s executive order, which mandates the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to create those lists — to be give...
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Lawsuit Accuses Colorado House Democrats of Retaliation and Politicized Workplace Oversight
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Lawsuit Accuses Colorado House Democrats of Retaliation and Politicized Workplace Oversight

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics A former legislative aide has filed a lawsuit alleging she was mistreated, illegally directed to perform campaign work and harmed by a House leadership structure she charged was fragmented, politicized and ineffective at protecting employees. The lawsuit, filed by Jennifer Chick, names Littleton Democratic Rep. Sheila Lieder, House Speaker Julie McCluskie of Dillon and House Majority Leader Monica Duran of Wheat Ridge as co-defendants. The lawsuit alleged that Lieder was “emboldened in her misconduct by the gratuitously complex and simultaneously ineffectual employee management system that Defendants McCluskie and Duran operated during the relevant time periods.” The time period was from December 2022 to Aug. 13, 2024, wh...
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Colorado Gets $615 Million in Meta Child Safety Settlement, but Polis Says Parents Remain Essential
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Colorado Gets $615 Million in Meta Child Safety Settlement, but Polis Says Parents Remain Essential

By Thelma Grimes | The Denver Gazette The parent company of Facebook and Instagram will pay hundreds of millions of dollars to Colorado, part of an $18 billion multistate deal, in which the company also agreed to adopt extensive child-safety changes to its operations. The settlement ended a trial over teen social media addiction and settled claims filed by nearly every state. It resolved a pivotal case years in the making that sought to hold the tech giant accountable for the role its platforms played in allegedly undermining children’s mental health. The effort targeted features designed to hook young people’s attention. If approved by the court, the deal will stop an avalanche of litigation by states against Meta, although the company still faces lawsuits from indivi...
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Antisemitism Concerns Follow Kiros Into Colorado Congressional Race
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Axios Denver, Approved, State

Antisemitism Concerns Follow Kiros Into Colorado Congressional Race

By Esteban L. Hernandez | Axios Denver Some Jewish leaders in Colorado are calling for more engagement from congressional candidate Melat Kiros as she goes from political newcomer to frontrunner in the 1st District race. Why it matters: The tensions arrive amid heightened concern over antisemitic hate crimes locally and nationwide, as well as broader debate over where criticism of Israel ends and antisemitism begins. State of play: Brandon Rattiner, senior director at the Jewish Community Relations Council, says he wants Kiros to "have the political courage" to address concerns among Jewish constituents. Rattiner says Kiros should more directly acknowledge Jewish Coloradans who say they feel targeted by antisemitism and should make...
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