2018 Colorado Legislature Kicks Off!

2018 Colorado Legislature Kicks Off!

Join Western Colorado Congress in our efforts at the State Capitol!

“I find WCC’s legislative work exciting because it enhances our ability to affect the issues we care about. By engaging in the legislative process, we guarantee that our voices will be heard. Working with legislators and allies, we create the possibility for good bills to become law and bad bills to fail.”

~Gretchen Nicholoff, WCC Legislative Committee Chair

The 2018 session kicks off today, and we’re likely to see bills promoting rural broadband, protecting our schools from neighboring oil & gas development, and elevating energy conservation – just to name a few key issues. Each year, from January to May, WCC organizes grassroots voices to participate in the Colorado State Legislature.

  • WCC organizes a free, two-day People’s Lobby Trip each year, where we train members as citizen lobbyists to meet with legislators at the Capitol about our priority issues. The trip usually occurs in early March; contact WCC Organizer Jeriel Brammeier if you’re interested in participating!
  • We have a Legislative Committee that tracks proposed legislation that might impact the Western Slope for good or ill. The committee checks in weekly via conference call. All members are welcome to get involved; again, contact WCC Organizer Jeriel Brammeier if you’re interested in participating!
  • If you can’t make weekly committee calls, consider joining our Legislative Action Team. We’re building up this team to take actions such as write letters to the editor and call legislators about key bills. Join today!
     

For WCC members, the 2018 session will focus on a variety of topics most likely to have direct impacts in Western Colorado. We will prioritize support for bills that help spur economic development in our rural communities, protect residents from harmful impacts of continued encroachment of oil and gas development, and ensure Colorado remains a leader in the development of clean and renewable energy.

We’ll keep you updated on all of these topics through-out the session, so stay tuned! And please get in touch if you want more information or to get involved!

About the author

Jeriel joined the Western Colorado Alliance staff in February 2017 (back when we were still Western Colorado Congress), but you may remember her as our Canvass Director for the successful Minimum Wage ballot initiative in 2016! In her young career, Jeriel has worked with engaged citizens across Colorado on issues ranging from veterans' affairs, healthcare and women’s rights. Jeriel has called Grand Junction and the Western Slope home for 16 years, and enjoys running, hiking, biking and crafting with her daughter Emma.