Legislature
New year ushers in new consequences for hit-and-run drivers in Colorado
DENVER – The new year will usher in new consequences for drivers who leave the scene of crashes involving injuries or death in Colorado.
The new rules come as a result of a law passed by the Legislature this past session aimed at clamping down on hit-and-run drivers. Continue reading
Judge allows testing to resume immediately on issue-plagued RTD G-Line
DENVER – The Regional Transportation District’s Gold Line will be able to start some limited testing on the G-Line immediately after a judge on Tuesday granted RTD’s motion to resume tests.
Testing has been on hold since July after the last round of testing as RTD worked to fix technology issues that have plagued the system for the line’s crossing arms along both the G-Line and A-Line.
An administrative judge for the Public Utilities Commission said Tuesday though that RTD can immediately start testing again, though only along the lines of the plan it filed in March. Continue reading
Colorado children’s health insurance program gets funding extension through February
DENVER – Colorado’s children health insurance program will be funded through at least February, as the state budget committee approved emergency funding that will temporarily stop cancellation notices from being sent out next week.
The Joint Budget Committee on Thursday approved Gov. John Hickenlooper’s request for $9.6 million to continue covering the Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+), which provides health insurance coverage for around 75,000 children and about 800 expectant mothers in Colorado who don’t qualify for Medicaid. Continue reading
Hickenlooper and bipartisan panel of governors call for immediate CHIP reauthorization
DENVER – Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper continued to press Congress to restore the Children’s Health Insurance Program before states’ funding dries up, sending a letter Tuesday to congressional leaders signed by him and 11 other governors from both parties.
“Since its creation, CHIP has enjoyed strong bipartisan support. We encourage you to work across the aisle to find common ground that will allow this important program to continue and give the families who rely on CHIP the peace of mind of knowing that their children will be able to get the health care they need in the new year,” the letter said, which was written by Hickenlooper and Republican Gov. John Kasich, among 10 others. Continue reading
Special prosecutor appointed in Rep. Lori Saine gun investigation
DENVER – The 20th Judicial District Attorney’s Office will handle any possible charges, if any, police decide to pursue in the gun case involving state Rep. Lori Saine, it was announced Monday.
Denver District Attorney Beth McCann asked the office, based in Boulder County, to take the case as special prosecutors because she had previously worked with Saine, a Weld County Republican, when both were state lawmakers. Continue reading
Police: Colorado State Rep. Lori Saine caught at Denver airport TSA checkpoint with handgun
DENVER – Colorado State Rep. Lori Saine, R-Firestone, carried a loaded gun through security in one of her bags, which was caught by a TSA agent at Denver International Airport Tuesday afternoon, according to a probable cause statement released Wednesday.
The probable cause statement says Saine’s arrest happened shortly after 1:45 p.m. The statement says a TSA agent spotted “what appeared to be a loaded firearm” in Saine’s bag.
The statement says she “knowingly brought the handgun into the North Screening Check point.” Continue reading
Colorado State Rep. Lori Saine arrested, accused of having gun at Denver International Airport
DENVER – Colorado State Rep. Lori Saine, R-Dacono, was arrested Tuesday at Denver International Airport for allegedly carrying a weapon in a public transportation facility.
Court records and the Denver Police Department confirm Saine’s arrest, and DPD said the case will be forwarded to the district attorney’s office to determine if she will face charges. Denver jail records show Saine was booked into the Downtown Detention Center Tuesday afternoon. Continue reading
Colorado starting to decide which kids, mothers at ‘greatest risk’ should CHIP funding expire
DENVER – Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper said Tuesday the state was in the process of creating a list of children and pregnant mothers who are at the “greatest risk” should Congress not fund the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) before Colorado’s funding runs out at the end of January.
“This is probably one of the very few issues the majority of Republicans and Democrats all agree should be a priority for funding in this country,” the governor said Tuesday. Continue reading
Study: Colorado family planning program greatly reduced pregnancies, abortions among young women
DENVER – A state family planning program has significantly reduced the state’s teen birth rate and abortion rate among teens and young women, according to analysis from the University of Colorado.
The study found Colorado’s Title X Family Planning Program helped provide IUDs or birth control implants to nearly 44,000 people between 2009 and 2016.
It also found that for women aged 15 to 19, the state’s birth rate fell by 54 percent over the same time period. The birth rate fell by 30 percent for women aged 20 to 24, the study found. Over that time period, the average age of a woman’s first birth in Colorado increased by more than a year among all women. Continue reading
Rep. Steve Lebsock says he won’t resign over harassment allegations despite pressure
DENVER – Colorado state Rep. Steve Lebsock, an Adams County Democrat, said Tuesday he’s received more pressure to resign but says he won’t after he was formally accused by a fellow lawmaker of sexual harassment.
Lebsock, whom Rep. Faith Winter formally accused of making unwanted sexual advances toward her at a 2016 legislative party and who was formally accused by another woman as well, said that no “fact finders” from the outside party conducting the investigation into his conduct had met with him yet as of Tuesday. Continue reading