Colorado
As Colorado legislative session winds down, property tax reform is still in the air, but progress on other fronts
For the second year in a row, the sounds of Cinco de Mayo echoed into the Capitol as lawmakers toiled on a Saturday to find common ground on proposed reforms to state land use and property tax policy.
The 120-day legislative session ends Wednesday, and lawmakers are still wrestling with some of the marquee proposals of the session, though with some breakthroughs on issues that had threatened to chew up valuable time — while other potential hot spots emerged.
The Senate passed Saturday a significantly narrowed ban on minimum parking requirements, one of the proposed land use reforms that emerged from the failure of last year’s omnibus proposal. The original bill had aimed to ban parking minimums throughout many of Colorado’s cities and suburbs. To tone down opposition, sponsor Sen. Nick Hinrichsen, a Pueblo Democrat, limited the ban just to areas along transit corridors. (Senators also ribbed Hinrichsen by offering an amendment that would remove his parking spot at the Capitol.)
“It will save a lot of money for builders, and they’ll be able to offer more product in the form of affordable housing, to actually build housing, as opposed to building parking and housing for folks that don’t necessarily want any parking,” Sen. Kevin Priola, a Henderson Democrat and bill sponsor, said.
The proposal, House Bill 1304, will now need to return to the House for reconsideration. Meanwhile, two other major land use proposals — one to boost the number of accessory dwelling units through the state and another to increase density along transit corridors — still need to formally pass the Senate after passing the House. Some senators have raised concerns about both as possibly stepping on local control.
Meanwhile, lawmakers negotiating a proposed long-term reform to property taxes continued to run around the Capitol to find a deal in the waning days. It needs to be introduced on Monday at the latest to have enough time to clear the building before the end of the regular session — and stave off another potential special session on property tax.
In addition to filling a gap in tax policy left by the repeal of the Gallagher Amendment and giving property owners a break on rising property taxes, they’re trying to head off ballot initiatives that would severely cap property tax collections. Backers of the initiatives argue it’s about keeping the government from growing faster than paychecks and keeping homeowners solvent. But state officials, including some elected Republicans, warn it would lead to draconian cuts to state and local government services.
Parties on all sides of the negotiation say they’re closing in on a deal, but it is still being tuned — and not guaranteed.
“We’re pushing really hard,” said Dave Davia, president of Colorado Concern, a business group backing some of the initiatives, adding that they’re hoping for a legislative solution.
Other priority bills for Democratic leadership continued apace Saturday.
The Senate formally passed a pair of bills to reduce emissions from oil and gas production and levy a per-barrel fee to pay for transit and wildlife habitat. The bills were introduced this week to ease simmering tensions between environmental groups, legislators and the industry and end dueling legislation and ballot initiatives affecting the industry. They will now go to the House for consideration.
Another bill, to put a 6.5% excise tax on guns and ammo in Colorado, also cleared a key Senate committee after concerns about its movement through the chamber boiled over into the public. The tax would raise an estimated $39 million a year and go to victim services and behavioral health programs.
The Democratic Women’s Caucus of Colorado publicly accused Sen. Kyle Mullica, a Thornton Democrat, of holding up the bill and threatening to kill it. He called the letter full of “falsehoods” and said the bill was merely going through standard amendment negotiations. He praised advocates and bill sponsors before voting yes on the bill in committee.
Meanwhile, the amended bill raised the hackles of Sen. Kevin Van Winkle, a Highlands Ranch Republican, because it removed school security as a possible use for the excise tax. He promised “vigorous” debate on the Senate floor if it isn’t replaced — a potent threat as lawmakers race against the Constitutionally required end of the session.
Voters will also have the chance to remove defunct language in the Colorado Constitution defining marriage as between a man and woman, after the House approved a referred measure Saturday. It already cleared the Senate. Referred measures to amend the state Constitution need at least two-thirds support in each chamber to pass. It passed with bipartisan support in the Senate, but near party lines in the House, where Democrats hold a supermajority.
The proposed amendment would remove a ban approved by voters in 2006. It has been unenforceable since 2015, when the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide with its ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges. A majority of voters will need to approve the proposal this November for it to take effect.
Stay up-to-date with Colorado Politics by signing up for our weekly newsletter, The Spot.
Colorado
Colorado man heads to Washington, D.C., to gain support for Marshall Fire survivors
Four years after the fire, recovery is still incomplete for some Marshall Fire victims. A Colorado man is joining wildfire survivors from across the country to push lawmakers to make changes and provide support for survivors still rebuilding.
Recently, a historic $640 million settlement was reached with Xcel Energy, but the Coloradans who lost everything in the Marshall Fire might not be receiving all the money that they’re owed. Some settlements could be taxed, while others were paid in full.
“I was the fourth responding fire engine to the Marshall Fire. By the end of the night, I was triaging homes in the neighborhood that I grew up in,” said former firefighter Benjamin Carter. “I’ve seen how much the community’s hurting, and I just wanted to do whatever I could to help.”
Carter is now fighting for those who lost their homes, including his mother. He’s working with an organization called After the Fire, joining up with wildfire survivors in Oregon, Hawaii and California. This week, Carter flew to Washington, D.C., to speak with lawmakers about how they can help survivors rebuild.
In 2024, lawmakers passed the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act, which exempted wildfire survivors from taxes on related settlements, among other tax relief. But the bill expired last week, shortly after Xcel agreed to settle over the Marshall Fire.
“If the people don’t have to pay taxes on the damages, then it helps them rebuild,” Carter explained. “Some of the smaller attorneys still haven’t received payment, so all those people will be subject to those taxes; all the attorney fees, and what the actual settlements end up being. And, of what they’re actually getting at the end of the day, that’s been a huge challenge.”
Congress has already proposed extension options. But Carter hopes that by sharing their stories, legislators will act before survivors lose anything else.
“With a lot going on in Washington and everything, the representatives don’t always know about all the issues. And so, we want to educate them on this issue and hopefully gain their support,” Carter said.
Colorado
Boebert takes on Trump over Colorado water
Colorado
Colorado attorney general expands lawsuit to challenge Trump ‘revenge campaign’ against state
Attorney General Phil Weiser on Thursday expanded a lawsuit filed to keep U.S. Space Command in Colorado to now encapsulate a broader “revenge campaign” that he said the Trump administration was waging against Colorado.
Weiser named a litany of moves the Trump administration had made in recent weeks — from moving to shut down the National Center for Atmospheric Research to putting food assistance in limbo to denying disaster declarations — in his updated lawsuit.
He said during a news conference that he hoped both to reverse the individual cuts and freezes and to win a general declaration from a judge that the moves were part of an unconstitutional pattern of coercion.
“I recognize this is a novel request, and that’s because this is an unprecedented administration,” Weiser, a Democrat, said. “We’ve never seen an administration act in a way that is so flatly violating the Constitution and disrespecting state sovereign authority. We have to protect our authority (and) defend the principles we believe in.”
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Denver, began in October as an effort to force the administration to keep U.S. Space Command in Colorado Springs. President Donald Trump, a Republican, announced in September that he was moving the command’s headquarters to Alabama, and he cited Colorado’s mail-in voting system as one of the reasons.
Trump has also repeatedly lashed out over the state’s incarceration of Tina Peters, the former county clerk convicted of state felonies related to her attempts to prove discredited election conspiracies shared by the president. Trump issued a pardon of Peters in December — a power he does not have for state crimes — and then “instituted a weeklong series of punishments and threats targeted against Colorado,” according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit cites the administration’s termination of $109 million in transportation grants, cancellation of $615 million in Department of Energy funds for Colorado, announcement of plans to dismantle NCAR in Boulder, demand that the state recertify food assistance eligibility for more than 100,000 households, and denial of disaster relief assistance for last year’s Elk and Lee fires.
In that time, Trump also vetoed a pipeline project for southeastern Colorado — a move the House failed to override Thursday — and repeatedly took to social media to attack state officials.
The Trump administration also announced Tuesday that he would suspend potentially hundreds of millions of dollars of low-income assistance to Colorado over unspecified allegations of fraud. Those actions were not covered by Weiser’s lawsuit, though he told reporters to “stay tuned” for a response.
Weiser, who is running for governor in this year’s election, characterized the attacks as Trump trying to leverage the power of the executive branch to exercise unconstitutional authority over how individual states conduct elections and oversee their criminal justice systems.
In a statement, a White House official pushed back on Weiser’s characterization.
“President Trump is using his lawful and discretionary authority to ensure federal dollars are being spent in a way that (aligns) with the agenda endorsed by the American people when they resoundingly reelected the President,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said.
Stay up-to-date with Colorado Politics by signing up for our weekly newsletter, The Spot.
-
Detroit, MI6 days ago2 hospitalized after shooting on Lodge Freeway in Detroit
-
Technology3 days agoPower bank feature creep is out of control
-
Dallas, TX5 days agoDefensive coordinator candidates who could improve Cowboys’ brutal secondary in 2026
-
Health5 days agoViral New Year reset routine is helping people adopt healthier habits
-
Iowa3 days agoPat McAfee praises Audi Crooks, plays hype song for Iowa State star
-
Nebraska3 days agoOregon State LB transfer Dexter Foster commits to Nebraska
-
Nebraska3 days agoNebraska-based pizza chain Godfather’s Pizza is set to open a new location in Queen Creek
-
Missouri3 days agoDamon Wilson II, Missouri DE in legal dispute with Georgia, to re-enter transfer portal: Source
