- An Alliance For Community Action
- (970) 256-7650
- info@WesternColoradoAlliance.org
Protect Colorado’s Initiative Process
Protect Colorado’s Initiative Process
House Bill 15-1057 is an obvious scheme to weaken the power of everyday citizens to put initiatives on the ballot. Since 1910, the people of Colorado have reserved “to themselves the power to propose laws and amendments to the constitution and to enact or reject the same at the polls independent of the General Assembly.”
– Colorado Constitution, Article V, Section I
TAKE ACTION TODAY!
Call your Representative today and urge them to VOTE NO on HB-1057.
Rep. Yeulin Willett, (303) 866-2583
Mesa (outlying areas), Delta County (far west)
Rep. Dan Thurlow, (303) 866-4884
Mesa (greater Grand Junction area)
Rep. Diane Mitsch Bush, (303) 866-2923
Routt, Eagle
Rep. Bob Rankin, (303) 866-2949
Moffat, Rio Blanco, Garfield
Rep. Don Coram, (303) 866-2955
Montrose, San Miguel, Dolores, Montezuma
Rep. J. Paul Brown, (303) 866-2914
Ouray, Hinsdale, Gunnison (southern), San Juan, La Plata, Archuleta
Rep. Millie Hamner, (303) 866-2952
Delta (eastern), Gunnison (northern), Pitkin, Lake, Summit
Don’t see your legislator? Look them up by clicking here!
Cottage Foods
#GotPickles? Our Cottage Foods Expansion bill (HB15-1102) is scheduled for a hearing before the Senate Businesss Affairs Committee this Tuesday, April 28.
WCC members Monica Wiitanen and Rein van West will travel to Denver to testify for the bill along with allies from the Front Range. Next stop will be Senate Appropriations, then back to the Senate Floor for second reading. The bill is expected to move fast as the session winds down. Stay tuned for updates and opportunities to take action!
Keep It Public
This year we have seen a series of bills that threaten our public lands by seeking to transfer management of federal lands to state control. We know from past experience that these “transfers” are thinly veiled attempts to increase development or to pave the way to auction these lands to the highest bidder.
SB15-039 calls for “concurrent jurisdiction” over federally managed public lands. Even with amendments offered in the Senate, this bill is still bad news and threatens to take a step toward eroding federal jurisdiction over our public lands. The bill passed out the the Senate last week and
heads to the House Ag Committee this Wednesday, April 29.
SB15-232 calls for Colorado taxpayers to foot the bill for an expensive “Public Lands Transfer Study,” similar to what Utah produced last year. The Utah study will cost taxpayers $2.5 million to study an action that is unconstitutional. Eighty percent of Colorado taxpayers believe that our public lands belong to all Americans. This bill passed out of the Senate Ag Committee on a party-line vote, and heads to second reading in the Senate on Monday, April 27.
Energy
One of our energy-efficiency bills (House Bill 15-1132) is moving forward. Sponsored by West Slope legislators in the House (Rep. Don Coram) and the Senate (Sen. Ray Scott), this bipartisan bill incentivizes residential energy-efficiency upgrades by establishing a tax credit. The measure sailed through the House and is now making its way through the Senate. It’s scheduled before the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, April 28.
With only 8 days left in the 2015 Legislative Session, things will be moving fast! For all the latest information on the bills WCC is tracking, including our positions and where they are in the process, see our bill tracker.
To join WCC’s weekly legislative calls with our legislative liaison, please contact Rachel at the WCC office at (970) 256-7650.
After working for our Alliance for 32 years, Brenda retired in 2018 and took a two-year hiatus before rejoining the fold as a board member. She is a treasure trove of little known facts about the organization after managing everything from the membership database to our communications. Her other interests include dabbling in a number of artforms, hiking, botany (her college major), t'ai chi and chi gung, and swing dancing. With roots in western Washington state, she has lived in Montrose with her husband Kevin since 1984.