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Young people in Colorado are drowning in student debt
Debt is a major problem affecting young people in Colorado. My generation is drowning in student loans: over $25,000 of debt on average. To make matters worse, college tuition has increased by 500% in...
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Good and bad news for taxpayers in Colorado Supreme Court’s PERA decision
The Colorado Supreme Court granted some good news to the state’s troubled public pensions in October by upholding a key part of an important 2010 reform law. In the process, though, the court may have...
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Blake: What to do with an empty state prison?
Legislators recently learned that the Colorado Department of Transportation plans to spend $150 million on construction of what it calls its headquarters “campus” in Denver and two regional “campuses.”...
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Guest editorial: No on Denver 2C
Denver citizens should Vote “NO” on Referred Question 2C authorizing the permanent extensions of 1.75 percent portions of the city’s lodging and car-rental taxes. This is simply corporate welfare. The...
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New Jeffco school board appears on track to make swift changes
Some policies that took the previous Jefferson County Public Schools Board of Education two years to put in place will likely unravel before the end of this school year if the new board’s statements on...
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Littleton school superintendent kicks off state-wide campaign to fight TABOR
Although the election may have ended a month ago, at least one Colorado school district superintendent hasn’t stopped campaigning. Littleton Public Schools (LPS) Superintendent Brian Ewert sent out a...
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Jeffco Board of Education passes COPs; nixes $5 million in raises
At least one member of the Jefferson County Public Schools Board of Education appeared to be on the defense Thursday evening while debating whether or not to issue certificates of participation (COPs)...
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Hickenlooper: Polling shows people would reject move of hospital tax
Image: Colorado State Archives *Exclusive* – Must credit Complete Colorado. On January 6, Governor John Hickenlooper spoke to the well heeled and highly influential political organization ‘Colorado...
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Hillman: Embracing ObamaCare caused Colorado budget crunch
Photo credit: Todd Shepherd The newest dubious justification for weakening Colorado’s limits on government spending is “our aging population.” The spending lobby seeks to frighten senior citizens by...
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Expanding use of tax-increment financing wrong for Colorado
Colorado municipalities have been abusing tax-increment financing (TIF) for decades, diverting tax dollars from schools, public safety, and other programs to subsidize economic development. The main...
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PERA’s low returns call for changes to the system
Photo credit: Todd Shepherd The leaders of Colorado’s Public Employee Retirement Association (PERA) assure us that if we have patience, long-term investment returns of 7.5% will fully fund the...
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How Weld County fully funded its pension plan while staying debt free
Beginning with financial reporting for the fiscal year ending in 2015, governmental employers who sponsor a pension plan must report pension liabilities and costs as part of their overall financial...
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Littleton City Council moves to abolish its urban renewal authority
(Editors note: This is an updated version of an article originally published June 29, 2016) Municipalities have been overtly abusing the broad authority given them under Colorado’s urban renewal law...
View ArticleTax, debt and spending bills clear first hurdle with a little help from some...
DENVER — Two highly controversial bills that some would normally tag as “tax and spend” measures by Democrats have made it out of their initial committees in the Senate — thanks to a little help from a...
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Bills funding transportation, schools and hospitals appear dead; stalled in...
DENVER — With just 14 days to go to the end of the 2017 Colorado legislative session, hundreds of bills remain in the que, but some are being ignored in the House, leaving senate lawmakers scratching...
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Senators Cooke and Neville take a stab at transportation fix
DENVER — With just 10 days left in the 2017 Colorado legislative session, there is at least one more transportation bill on the horizon. Senators John Cooke, (R-Greeley) and Tim Neville (R-Littleton)...
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PERA deserves an earful on its listening tour
When word came last December that Colorado’s two largest public pension funds – the State Fund and the School Fund – were slipping into trouble, the Public Employee Retirement Association (PERA) vowed...
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Seventy-two page amendment to Sustaining Rural Colorado bill gets the job...
DENVER — An eleventh-hour save for a controversial bill sponsored by Republican Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg looks primed to get through the House before the 71st General Assembly shuts down on Wednesday....
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Rural Colorado hospital, schools and roads bill one step away from becoming law
DENVER — With just two days remaining in the 2017 legislative session, a last-minute hail Mary was thrown and caught. Senate Bill 17-267 passed on third reading in the Senate and then out of House...
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Senate Bill 267 and the ‘Grand Betrayal’ by Colorado Republicans
In 2005, the political fight over Referendums C and D was an epic battle, one for the Colorado history books. Sold as a “five-year timeout” of our Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, Ref C was narrowly approved...
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