Just a few days into the 2020 Colorado legislative session, the Western Colorado Alliance Legislative Committee was already tracking over 30 bills that center around our mission.. 134 WE
Trang 1The 2020 Legislative Session
is off and running and it looks
to be a busy one Just a few
days into the 2020 Colorado
legislative session, the Western
Colorado Alliance Legislative
Committee was already tracking
over 30 bills that center around
our mission Now, more than
450 bills have been introduced
and some of the “big agenda”
ones are still yet to come
These include some hot topic
issues like public option
insurance, paid family medical
leave for employees, lowering the cost of higher education, and of course the continual need to fix and maintain Colorado roads
Whether or not lawmakers can overcome the deep partisan divides that marked the 2019 session to make progress on these critical issues remains to be seen
Amidst the partisan bickering and 2020 election theatrics impacting the Colorado Capitol, our Alliance is focusing on what makes a healthy, self-reliant, and livable future for everyone This session, we are prioritizing bills centered on clean energy and sustainable resource responsibility Our top
priorities include:
House Bill 20-1064 which would
enact a 2020 study through the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to take a close look at Community Choice Energy
Community Choice Energy (CCE) is a concept currently implemented in numerous states, under which local municipal-ities could choose to purchase electricity at wholesale through
a supplier other than the local investor-owned electric utility
CCE has the potential to enable communities to purchase renewable energy and save money without disrupting the local utility’s
current status as sole supplier of transmission, distribution, and customer service functions
House Bills 20-1162 and 20-1163
take on reduction and responsibility through polystyrene and single-use plastics bans and management Well thought-out, and with exemptions for hospitals, assisted living facilities, etc., these
two bills would implement a statewide reduction for single-use items across Colorado
HB20-1162 would prohibit restaurants from sending patrons home with polystyrene boxes for leftovers, and HB20-1163
NON-PROFIT ORG.
U.S POSTAGE PAID GRAND JUNCTION, CO PERMIT NO 134
WESTERN COLORADO ALLIANCE
PO BOX 1931
GRAND JUNCTION CO 81502
RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
Stirring pots for 40 years 2
A big win for clean air in Western Colorado 3 Members in the spotlight 3
2020 Special Legislative Guide 4-5
A new chapter for homegrown prosperity 6 Loving our public lands!
7 West Slope Youth Vote success 7 Goodbyes and hellos 8
Inside
The
Vol 40 No 1 Spring 2020
by Jeriel Clark
Political &
Organizing Director
A look at the 2020 legislative session
The 2019 People’s Lobby Trip was our biggest ever But already, more people have registered for the 2020 trip on February 24.
Continued on page 2
Trang 2would prohibit stores and
restaurants, from providing
single-use plastic carry-out
bags, stirrers and straws
On the heels of the TriState
Generation announcement to
shut the Craig Station Power
Plant and its corresponding
mines and its pending impact
on Western Slope economies
(see HOMEGROWN
PROSPERITY, page 6), we are
also closely tracking three rural
economic development bills:
House Bill 20-1003 proposes to
expand partner eligibility under
the Rural Jump-Start Zone Act,
which provides a tax nudge to
incentivize new businesses and
new hires to open their doors
in distressed communities
Senate Bill 20-054, the Rural
Development Grant Program,
to help incubate early-stage small businesses with goods and export potential in rural areas
Senate Bill 20-002 shores up
funding for Rural Economic Development Initiative grants, one of Colorado’s most powerful tools for economic
diversification in small towns
All of these bills are being championed by Western Slope lawmakers and have bipartisan support While these bills may
be overlooked on a statewide level, they can make all the difference toward strengthening our communities in Western Colorado We owe a huge thanks
to our legislators representing us
on the Western Slope for joining forces for their constituents
West Slope Youth Vote
And we can’t forget our West Slope Youth Vote interns, who, between voter registration events
at their local high schools, have also turned their attention toward the Capitol They’re impressed with several bills that could have
a direct impact on West Slope youth and want to encourage their legislators to support them
These bills include ones which would expand excused absences
in school to cover mental
health days (SB20-014), a grant
program to support shelters focused on youth experiencing
homelessness (HB20-1122), and
an anti-discrimination policy to protect students from in-school and out-of-school discrimination based on cultural and race traits,
including hairstyles (HB20-1048).
It can be kind of hard to see from way over here, but all eyes should
be on the Colorado Capitol And
if you’d like a closer look, and maybe a conversation or two, join
us for our 2020 People’s Lobby Trip! We’re heading to Denver
on Monday, February 24 and will be back on February 26.
Members of Western Colorado Alliance, including some of our West Slope Youth Vote interns, will meet with our legislators to discuss all these bills and more
If you’re interested in attending, send me an email at jeriel@
westerncoloradoalliance.org
Our Alliance’s Staff
2481 Commerce Blvd., PO Box 1931 Grand Junction CO 81502 (970) 256-7650 Emily Hornback, Executive Director Jeriel Clark, Political & Organizing Director Stefanie Harville, Operations &
Finance Director Joel Dyar, Community Organizer Troy Redding, Community Organizer Arn McConnell, Communications
Coordinator WesternColoradoAlliance.org info@WesternColoradoAlliance.org
brings people together to build
grassroots power through
community organizing and
leadership development.
Our Alliance’s vision for the future
is one where engaged local voices
are leading communities across
Western Colorado that are healthy,
just and self-reliant
Local Affiliate Directors
G rand V alley C itizens a llianCe
Betsy Leonard, Battlement Mesa
r idGway -O uray C Ommunity C OunCil
Al Lowande, Ridgway
u nCOmpahGre V alley a llianCe
Kevin Kuns, Montrose
w estern C OlOradO a llianCe in m esa C Ounty
Andreya Krieves, Grand Junction
Director Emeritus
Peggy Rawlins, Grand Junction
Our Alliance’s Board of Directors
Stirring pots for 40 years
Officers
Steve Allerton, President, Grand Junction Kevin Kuns, Vice President, Montrose Andreya Krieves, Secretary, Grand Junction
A look at the 2020 legislative session: Up and coming bills
Continued from page 1
I suppose we’ve all had
experiences where we’ve felt out
of bounds I don’t mean stepping
out of bounds while playing
a game, or slicing a golf ball
across two fairways I mean
taking an action, or stating an
opinion that is looked upon with
disfavor During my years in
human services and education,
there were times I spoke
against the status quo and the authority that held the power and suffered some consequences
No jail time, but I’d stirred a pot which was not to be stirred
In its now 40-year history, Western Colorado Alliance (formerly Western Colorado Congress) has stirred some pots and continues to do so While being looked upon with disfavor
by some, we’ve numerous allies, members, and supporters that stir the pot right along with us toward the creation of healthy, just, and self-reliant
communities That’s what makes this 40-year journey so amazing
Given my relatively short time with our Alliance, I am no expert
on the organization’s history, nor can I claim to have a real sense of what the journey of the
“founding humans” was like
I can say that in 2020, we’ll continue to stir those pots and perhaps travel out of bounds
a bit, having firmed up our foundation with renewed mission and vision statements,
a platform that guides our work based on our values, a growing professional staff, and committed board members and members alike It will also be a year in which we celebrate 40 years of inspired community organizing And with that, I leave you with a poem written
by Founding Human Chuck Worley, who passed away
in 2016 at the age of 98:
by Steve Allerton
Alliance President
Permission to publish “Out of Bounds” was graciously provided
by Speak4Peace Publishing
Learn more about their efforts to support “living with conscience”
at speak4peace.com.
1945-1947 by a Conscientious Objector to the Good War)
You who by the grace of law
go free walk by spongy springs and load your lungs up with
the smell of things for me
And when dawn yawns
and silver noises dribble from
her wings gather up such nuggets as
free fall
You who are still in luck dig your itching fingers deep
in muck and wash your eyes with all
that’s fresh and green
Summer finds me out of
bounds this year…
but conscience clean.
We are actively seeking a candidate for Board Treasurer If you or someone you know might be interested, please contact us!
At-large Directors
Gabriel Otero, Grand Junction Rodger Steen, Steamboat Springs
Trang 3In a time of national climate
dereliction, Patrick Church
is a radical optimist A New Hampshire native turned Crested Butte high country adventurer, Patrick’s first winter in Gunnison County saw record-low snowfalls
“It was worse than any of the
local life-timers could remember,”
Patrick recalls
“We were looking
at a future of skiing on rocks.”
Patrick dove headlong into local organizing that culminated with the Crested Butte Town Council joining dozens of winter sports com- munities across North America
in declaring
a climate emergency
His work helped bring 20 stakeholders together to craft
a Climate Action Plan for the town, including a target for 100% clean energy by 2030
In December, 175 locals came out for the
plan’s official ratification
“It’s clear that our civilization was going to have to tackle this energy transition issue at some stage, at some point,” Patrick says “We’re just lucky to be the ones alive when that happened We’re the ones who get to figure this out.”
Not satisfied with the town’s historic announcement, Patrick and friends packed the house for a Gunnison County Climate Action Conference at Western Colorado University
The conference brought
winter sports enthusiasts, climate researchers, businesses and policymakers together
to discuss climate change threats in the High Country and what locals could do
He ended January with a training
of 30 volunteers and was working
to help enroll customers in a new community solar garden offered by Gunnison County Electric Association — until the program was overwhelmed with demand and sold out
“This is all about love for these mountains,” Patrick says “This is the least
we can do for them.”
A big win for clean air in Western Colorado
The Alliance secured an
important win with the Air
Quality Control Commission
(AQCC) last December New
rules were adopted during the last
AQCC rulemaking process which
will help to protect air quality
here in Western Colorado
Coloradans will now be able to
look forward to a future where
the oil and gas industry will
be required to enhance their
Leak Detection And Repair
(LDAR) practices and apply
these practices statewide
Due to these new rules oil
and gas operators will at
a minimum be required to
perform inspections on their
infrastructure twice a year These
rules will close what is known as
the 90-day permitting loophole
This loophole allowed oil and
gas operators to begin their
drilling and hydraulic fracturing
operations before the operators
obtained the required permits
They avoided these permits
because they placed limits on
the amount of air pollution
operators were allowed to emit
Additionally, these new rules will
further reduce harmful emissions
from both storage tanks and low producing wells To ensure that methane producers adhere to these new standards they will
be required to submit an annual report of the emissions being released from their facilities
Western Colorado Alliance is especially proud of our work to strengthen air quality monitoring and repair requirements of oil and gas facilities near businesses, homes, and schools The Alliance along with our partners at
Grand Valley Citizens Alliance (GVCA) and the League of Oil and Gas Impacted Coloradans (LOGIC) proposed that the AQCC implement stricter air quality monitoring require-ments and repair standards for oil and gas operations located within 1000 feet of these areas
In December, the AQCC chose to accept our proposal
According to the AQCC, one of the reasons why they chose to adopt these increased protections was because Western Coloradans testified overwhelmingly in support of these new standards
Hundreds of residents on the Western Slope raised their voices
to protect our air quality These people wrote letters and came to
meetings where they provided both verbal and written testimony urging the AQCC to strengthen the current regulations and to apply them statewide Without these voices we wouldn’t have been successful in our efforts to increase monitoring near homes and schools It is because we wielded our collective power that Coloradans will now be able to breathe a little bit easier
The Alliance wants to thank all of our allies, supporters, and members for making these
changes possible Without your contributions we wouldn’t be able to carry out our work and while we have certainly made progress our work isn’t finished We look forward to working with all of you again during the coming months as
we participate in the upcoming Colorado Oil and Gas Conser-vation Commission (COGCC) rulemakings and the next AQCC rulemaking Thank you again for your support and we will look forward to seeing you during the next rulemaking!
“We were looking at a future of skiing on rocks.”
by Joel Dyar
Community
Organizer
Members in the Spotlight
by Troy Redding
Community
Organizer
Literally years of work on the part of Battlement Concerned Citizens
helped pave the way for this victory.
Trang 4If you’re interested in taking a deeper dive into Colorado politics, sign up for Western Colorado Alliance’s Legislative Committee! Email our Political Director Jeriel Clark at jeriel@westerncoloradoalliance.
org to learn details!
For more info, visit:
www.congress.gov
BROUGHT TO YOU BY
Senate Committees
Agriculture & Natural Resources
Donovan, Chair;
Danielson, Vice-Chair;
Coram, Rodriguez, Sonnenberg
Appropriations
Zenzinger, Chair;
Moreno, Vice-Chair;
Foote, Gardner, Gonzales, Hansen, Hisey, Rankin, Rodriguez, Woodward
Business, Labor &
Technology
Williams, Chair;
Danielson, Vice-Chair;
Priola, Story, Tate
Education
Todd, Chair;
Story, Vice-Chair;
Bridges, Hill, Lundeen
Finance
Gonzales, Chair;
Lee, Vice-Chair;
Hansen, Lundeen, Tate, Todd, Woodward
Health & Human Services
Fields, Chair;
Winter Vice-Chair;
Crowder, Ginal, Smallwood
Judiciary
Lee, Chair;
Gonzales, Vice-Chair;
Cooke, Gardner, Rodriguez
Local Government
Ginal, Chair; Williams, Vice-Chair; Bridges, Coram, Crowder
State, Military & Veteran Affairs
Foote, Chair; Fields, Vice-Chair; Hansen, Marble, Sonnenberg
Transportation & Energy
Winter, Chair; Donovan, Vice-Chair; Foote, Hisey, Scott
Pres Donald Trump (R)
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, DC 20500 Switchboard: (202) 456-1414 Comments (202) 456-1111 www.whitehouse.gov
@realDonaldTrump
@POTUS
U.S Sen Michael Bennet (D)
261 Russell Senate Office Bldg.
Washington, DC 20510 Phone: (202) 224-5852 Fax: (202) 228-5097 http://bennet.senate.gov
@SenBennetCO
225 North 5th St., Suite 511 Grand Junction , CO 81501 Ph: (970) 241-6631
U.S Sen Cory Gardner (R)
354 Russell Senate Office Bldg Washington, DC 20510 Phone: (202) 224-5941 Fax: (202) 224-6524 http://www.gardner.senate.gov
@SenCoryGardner
400 Rood Avenue, Suite 220 Grand Junction CO 81501 Phone: (970) 245-9553
U.S Rep Scott Tipton (R, D3)
218 Cannon House Office Bldg Washington, DC 20515-0603 Phone: (202) 225-4761 Fax: (202) 226-9669 http://tipton.house.gov
@RepTipton
225 North 5th St., Suite 702 Grand Junction, CO 81501 Phone: (970) 241-2499 Fax: (970) 241-3053
Federal Contacts
Western Colorado
Senate Districts
DISTRICT
5
6
7
8
35
SENATOR
KERRY DONOVAN (D) DON CORAM (R) RAY SCOTT (R) BOB RANKIN (R) LARRY CROWDER (R)
136 State Capitol Denver, CO 80203-1792 www.colorado.gov/governor (303) 866-2471 Front Desk (303) 866-2885 Constituent Services
Gov Jared Polis (D)
= LEADERSHIP
= WESTERN COLORADO LAWMAKER
John Cooke (R, SD13)
(303) 866-4451
john.cooke.senate@state.co.us
Don Coram (R, SD6)
(303) 866-4884
don.coram.senate@state.co.us
Larry Crowder (R, SD35)
(303) 866-4875
larry.crowder.senate@state.co.us
Jessie Danielson (D, SD20)
(303) 866-4856
jessie.danielson.senate@state.co.us
Kerry Donovan (D, SD5)
(303) 866-4871
kerry.donovan.senate@state.co.us
Stephen Fenberg (D, SD18)
(303) 866-4872
stephen.fenberg.senate@state.co.us
(MAJORITY LEADER)
Rhonda Fields (D, SD29)
(303) 866-4879
rhonda.fields.senate@state.co.us
Mike Foote (D, SD17)
303-866-5291
mike.foote.senate@state.co.us
Leroy Garcia (D, SD3)
(303) 866-4878
leroy.garcia.senate@state.co.us
(PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE)
Bob Gardner (R, SD12)
(303) 866-4880
bob.gardner.senate@state.co.us
Owen Hill (R, SD10)
(303) 866-2737 owen.hill.senate@state.co.us
Dennis Hisey (R, SD2)
303-866-4877 dennis.hisey.senate@state.co.us
Chris Holbert (R, SD30)
(303) 866-4881 chris.holbert.senate@state.co.us
(MINORITY LEADER)
Pete Lee (D, SD11)
303-866-6364 pete.lee.senate@state.co.us
Paul Lundeen (R, SD9)
303-866-4835 paul.lundeen.senate@state.co.us
Vicki Marble (R, SD23)
(303) 866-4876 vicki.marble.senate@state.co.us
Dominick Moreno (D, SD21)
(303) 866-4857 dominick.moreno.senate@state.co.us
Rachel Zenzinger (D, SD19)
(303) 866-4840 SenatorRachelZ@gmail.com
Brittany Pettersen (D, SD22)
303-866-4859 brittany.pettersen.senate@
state.co.us
Kevin Priola (R, SD25)
(303) 866-4855 kpriola@gmail.com
Bob Rankin (R, SD8)
303-866-5292 bob.rankin.senate@state.co.us
Robert Rodriguez (D, SD32)
303-866-4852 robert.rodriguez.senate@
state.co.us
Joann Ginal (R, SD14)
303-866-4841
joann.ginal@yahoo.com
Ray Scott (R, SD7)
(303) 866-3077 ray.scott.senate@state.co.us
Jim Smallwood (R, SD4)
(303) 866-4869 SenatorSmallwood@gmail.com
Tammy Story (D, SD16)
303-866-4873 tammy.story.senate@state.co.us
Jack Tate (R, SD27)
(303) 866-4883 jack.tate.senate@state.co.us
Nancy Todd (D, SD28)
(303) 866-3432 nancy.todd.senate@state.co.us
(PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE)
Angela Williams (D, SD33)
(303) 866-4864 angela.williams.senate@state.co.us
Faith Winter (D, SD24)
303-866-4863 faith.winter.senate@state.co.us
Rob Woodward (R, SD15)
303-866-4853 rob.woodward.senate@state.co.us
Note: Contact information is from
Colorado’s legislative website
which can be found at www.leg.
state.co.us The information is
accurate as of January, 2020 This
website is also a good source for
the current status and language of proposed bills.
Julie Gonzales (D, SD34)
(303) 866-4862
julie.gonzales.senate@state.co.us
Trang 5House CommitteesAppropriations
Esgar, Chair; McCluskie,
Vice-Chair; Bird, Bockenfeld,
Coleman, Kennedy, Kraft-Tharp,
Pelton, Ransom, Rich
Business Affairs & Labor
Kraft-Tharp, Chair; Coleman,
Vice-Chair; Arndt, Bird, Duran,
McKean, Sandridge, Snyder,
Sullivan, Van Winkle, Williams
Education
McLachlan, Chair; Buentello,
Vice-Chair; Baisley, Buck,
Buckner, Coleman, Cutter,
Exum, Geitner, Larson,
McCluskie, Jenet, Wilson
Energy & Environment
Jackson, Chair; Hooton,
Vice-Chair; Froelich, Geitner, Kipp,
Landgraf, Liston, Saine, Sirota,
A Valdez, Weissman
Finance
Herod, Chair; Bird, Vice-Chair;
Benavidez, Bockenfeld, Gray, Kraft-Tharp, Rich, Sandridge, Snyder, Sullivan
Health & Insurance
Lontine, Chair; Caraveo, Vice-Chair; Baisley, Buckner, Jackson, Mullica, Soper, Tipper,
Titone, Will
Judiciary
Weissman, Chair; Herod, Vice-Chair; Benavidez, Bockenfeld, Carver, Gonzales-Gutierrez, Roberts, Soper, Tipper
Public Health Care &
Human Services
Singer, Chair; Jenet, Vice-Chair;
Caraveo, Cutter, Gonzales-Gutierrez, Kipp, Landgraf, Larson, Liston, Mullica, Pelton
Rural Affairs &
Agriculture
Roberts, Chair; Valdez, Vice-Chair; Arndt, Buentello, Catlin, Holtorf, McCluskie, Pelton, Titone, Will, Young
State, Veterans &
Military Affairs
Kennedy, Chair; Lewis, Vice-Chair; Duran, Humphrey, Kipp, Lontine, Rich, Sirota, Williams
Transportation &
Local Government
Gray, Chair; Exum, Vice-Chair;
Carver, Catlin, Froelich, Hooton, Humphrey, Lewis, Melton, A
Valdez, D Valdez, Wilson
Western Colorado House Districts
REP.
KC BECKER (D) DYLAN ROBERTS (D) MATT SOPER (R) JANICE RICH (R) PERRY WILL (R)
DIST.
13 26 54 55 57
DIST.
58 59 61 62
REP.
MARC CATLIN (R) BARBARA MCLACHLAN (D) JULIE MCCLUSKIE (D) DONALD VALDEZ (D)
Richard Holtorf (R, Dist 64)
303-866-2398 (no email)
Tim Geitner (R, Dist 19)
303-866-2924 tim.geitner.house@state.co.us
S Gonzales-Gutierrez (D, Dist 4)
303-866-2954 serena.gonzales-gutierrez.house
@state.co.us
Matt Gray (D, Dist 33)
(303) 866-4667 matt@matthewgray.us
Leslie Herod (D, Dist 8)
(303) 866-2959 leslie.herod.house@state.co.us
Jeni Arndt (D, Dist 53)
(303) 866-2917
jeni.arndt.house@state.co.us
Mark Baisley (R, Dist 39)
303-866-2935
mark.baisley.house@state.co.us
KC Becker (D, Dist 13)
(303) 866-2578
kcbecker.house@state.co.us
(SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE)
Susan Beckman (R, Dist 38)
(303) 866-2953
susan.beckman.house@state.co.us
Adrienne Benavidez (D, Dist 32)
(303) 866-2964
adrienne.benavidez.house@state.co.us
Shannon Bird (D, Dist 35)
303-866-2843
shannon.bird.house@state.co.us
Rod Bockenfeld (R, Dist 56)
303-866-2912
rod.bockenfeld.house@state.co.us
Perry Buck (R, Dist 49)
(303) 866-2907
perrybuck49@gmail.com
Janet Buckner (D, Dist 40)
(303) 866-2944
janet.buckner.house@state.co.us
(SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE)
Bri Buentello (D, Dist 47)
303-866-2905
bri.buentello.house@state.co.us
Yadira Caraveo (D, Dist 31)
303-866-2918 yadira.caraveo.house@state.co.us
Marc Catlin (R, Dist 58)
(303) 866-2955 marc.catlin.house@state.co.us
James Coleman (D, Dist 7)
(303) 866-2909 james.coleman.house@state.co.us
Lisa Cutter (D, Dist 25)
303-866-2582 lisa.cutter.house@state.co.us
Monica Duran (D, Dist 24)
303-866-5522 monica.duran.house@state.co.us
Daneya Esgar (D, Dist 46)
(303) 866-2968 daneya.esgar.house@state.co.us
Tony Exum (D, Dist 17)
303-866-3069 tony.exum.house@state.co.us
Terri Carver (R, Dist 20)
(303) 866-2191 terri.carver.house@state.co.us
Meg Froelich (D, Dist 3)
303-866-2921 meg.froelich.house@state.co.us
Alec Garnett (D, Dist 2)
(303) 866-2911 alec.garnett.house@state.co.us
(MAJORITY LEADER)
Edie Hooton (D, Dist 10)
(303) 866-2915 edie.hooton.house@state.co.us
Stephen Humphrey (R, Dist 48)
(303) 866-2943 rephumphrey48@yahoo.com
Dominique Jackson (D, Dist 42)
(303) 866-3911 dominique.jackson.house@state.co.us
Sonya Jaquez Lewis (D, Dist 12)
303-866-2920 sonya.jaquez.lewis.house@state.co.us
Chris Kennedy (D, Dist 23)
(303) 866-2951 chris.kennedy.house@state.co.us
Cathy Kipp (D, Dist 52)
303-866-4569 cathy.kipp.house@state.co.us
Tracy Kraft-Tharp (D, Dist 29)
(303) 866-2950 reptracy29@gmail.com
Lois Landgraf (R, Dist 21)
(303) 866-2946 lois.landgraf.house@state.co.us
Colin Larson (R, Dist 22)
303-866-2927 colin.larson.house@state.co.us
Kimmi Lewis (R, Dist 64)
(303) 866-2398 kimmi.lewis.house@state.co.us
Larry Liston (R, Dist 16)
(303) 866-2937 larry.liston.house@state.co.us
Susan Lontine (D, Dist 1)
(303) 866-2966 susan.lontine.house@state.co.us
Julie McCluskie (D, Dist 61)
303-866-2952 Julie.mccluskie.house@state.co.us
Hugh McKean (R, Dist 51)
(303) 866-2947 hugh.mckean.house@state.co.us
Barbara McLachlan (D, Dist 59)
(303) 866-2914 barbara.mclachlan.house@state.co.us
Jovan Melton (D, Dist 41)
(303) 866-2919 jovan.melton.house@state.co.us
Dafna Michaelson Jenet (D, 30)
(303) 866-2945 dafna.michealson.jenet.house@state.co.us
Kyle Mullica (D, Dist 34
303-866-2931 kyle.mullica.house@state.co.us
Patrick Neville (R, Dist 45)
(303) 866-5523 patrick.neville.house@state.co.us
(MINORITY LEADER)
Rod Pelton (R, Dist 65)
303-866-3706 rod.pelton.house@state.co.us
Kim Ransom (R, Dist 44)
(303) 866-2933 kim.ransom.house@state.co.us
Janice Rich (R, Dist 55)
303-866-3068 janice.rich.house@state.co.us
Dylan Roberts (D, Dist 26)
(303) 866-2923 dylan.roberts.house@state.co.us
Lori Saine (R, Dist 63) (303) 866-2906 lori.saine.house@state.co.us Shane Sandridge (R, Dist 14)
(303) 866-2965 shane.sandridge.house@state.co.us
Jonathan Singer (D, Dist 11)
(303) 866-2780 jonathan.singer.house@state.co.us
Emily Sirota (D, Dist 9)
303-866-2910 emily.sirota.house@state.co.us
Marc Snider (D, Dist 18)
303-866-2932 marc.snyder.house@state.co.us
Matt Soper (R, Dist 54)
303-866-2583 matthew.soper.house@state.co.us
Tom Sullivan (D, Dist 37)
303-866-5510 tom.sullivan.house@state.co.us
Kerry Tipper (D, Dist 28)
303-866-2939 kerry.tipper.house@state.co.us
Brianna Titone (D, Dist 27)
303-866-2962 brianna.titone.house@state.co.us
Alex Valdez (D, Dist 5)
303-866-2925 alex.valdez.house@state.co.us
Donald Valdez (D, Dist 62)
(303) 866-2916 donald.valdez.house@state.co.us
Kevin Van Winkle (R, Dist.43)
(303) 866-2936 kevin.vanwinkle.house@state.co.us
Mike Weissman (D, Dist 36)
(303) 866-2942 mike.weissman.house@state.co.us
Dave Williams (R, Dist 15)
(303) 866-5525 dave.williams.house@state.co.us
James Wilson (R, Dist 60)
(303) 866-2747 RepresentativeWilson@gmail.com
Perry Will (R, Dist 57)
(303) 866-2949 perry.will.house@state.co.us
Mary Young (D, Dist 50)
(303) 866-2929 mary.young.house@state.co.us
NOTE: As of time of publication, no replacement had yet been chosen for Chris Hansen’s seat in District 6 Hansen left when he was chosen to replace Lois Court as state senator Court left for health reasons.
Trang 6A new chapter for
homegrown prosperity
America was built on coal
Colorado too Coal provided
the cheap, abundant fuel that
powered our country’s
industrialization, peaking at
nearly 900,000 mining jobs in
1923 and providing half of the
US electricity generation supply
as late as 2005 For Western
Colorado communities like Craig,
Gunnison, Hayden, Meeker,
Naturita, Nucla, and Paonia,
coal was the multi-generational
anchor that built entire towns and
families The U.S government
invested heavily in coal’s success,
with direct subsidies and tax
breaks worth $70 billion
Today, coal is no longer cheap
Eleven coal companies have
declared bankruptcy since the
Trump election, including some
of the nation’s largest Coal
production has fallen 42% since
its historic peak in 2008, with
jobs falling by nearly half to
53,000 nationwide and 1,300
in Colorado In the last decade,
operators in the United States
closed 550 coal-fired generation
facilities worth a stunning
110GW of output In 2020,
coal will supply just 20% of
the nation’s electricity — but
nearly half of Colorado’s
Cries of a “war on coal” from
some politicians may have
provided a cathartic channel for
community anger as one town
after another was confronted
with the loss of hundreds of
livelihoods and their proud
histories This weaponization of
recent lay-offs failed, however,
to own up to the market and
technology forces at work in
coal’s decline — or to provide
leadership for entire regions in
desperate need of a future
Solar costs are just 12% of
what they were a decade ago
Wind costs are 31% Both
technologies have a long
cost-curve distance yet to travel
This year, virtually all new
utility-scale wind power will be
less expensive than fossil fuel
facilities, including most natural gas A full switch from coal-fired power to new wind and solar
is estimated to offer a savings
of $78 billion in the US and a stunning $389 billion in China
Grid-scale ion battery storage technologies, capable of banking power between sunny days and windy nights, are already beating some natural gas peaker facilities on cost in Colorado
These historic changes came home to roost this January as Tri-State Generation &
Transmission, owner of several coal stations that power rural Colorado’s electric co-ops, announced that it could no longer postpone its own transition After years of member co-op and investor pressure for cheaper sources, Tri-State set dates for the retirement of its Craig coal stations worth 1.3
GW of power Craig Station
1 closes in 2025 and Stations
2 and 3 by 2030 The nearby Trapper mine winds down between 2026 and 2030, with the Colowyo mine closing around
2030 Nearly 700 workers are directly affected Communities will lose anchor jobs, consumer spending, and tax revenue The race is on to help these workers and their families have a future
This can feel like only the latest chapter in a tired story
of boom and bust As former Nucla United Mine Workers’
Association President Roger
Carver wrote in the Daily
Sentinel: “In the long term, it’s
clear that our region has a bad habit of looking for easy money instead of building prosperity here at home Too many elected officials were happy to help big companies vacuum up profits from our resources while giving workers like me and communities like these nothing to stand on when the party was over.”
Western Colorado Alliance is determined to change that story
Our region now has the chance
to take active ownership of its economic destiny, beginning with
a future for post-coal communities like Craig, Naturita, Nucla and Paonia It’ll take a renaissance
of local democracy to achieve the unprecedented collaboration between workers, local officials, economic developers, business and policymakers required to get this right To us, that sounds like just the kind of collaborative, catalytic organizing that our Alliance has cultivated for 40 years
Western Colorado Alliance is excited to announce the 2020 Western Colorado Homegrown Prosperity Summit as our region answers that call The first of its kind in Western Colorado, the summit will bring hundreds of regional attendees together this spring to trade strategies, craft solutions, and adopt a policy agenda Trailblazing local community leaders will join regional experts in economics and policy for in-depth workshop tracks on the biggest challenges and opportunities we face
It will be a gathering worthy
of this moment in history
Look for a summit date and details coming soon — we think you’ll want to be in the room as
a better future for healthy, just, and self-reliant communities is written in Western Colorado
by Joel Dyar
Community
Organizer
Western Colorado Alliance is excited to announce the 2020 Western Colorado Homegrown Prosperity Summit!
Coming this Spring!
The race is on for solutions in places like Craig, Colorado
(Photo by Jimmy Thomas, licensed under CC BY-SA.)
Trang 7Loving our Public Lands!
This February, our West Slope Youth Vote interns at Olathe High School registered 100% of their senior student body to vote in less than eight hours!
Phew!
Take a bow, Cesar, Natalia & Cassie!
Trang 8especially when the people to whom we’re saying goodbye are so enormously special
In late 2019, we bid adieu to Kelly Dougherty, our intrepid Membership Coordinator, who moved with her family to pursue new opportunities
in Denver
And this month,
we said farewell to Leah López, our
Community Organizer working
on public lands and local agriculture, who will soon be farming hemp in the San Luis Valley
To say we will miss these two amazing and unique people
is just a huge understatement
Whether it was Kelly’s sly, dry humor and passion for justice,
or Leah’s serene profession-alism and genuine compassion, the qualities they brought to their work will be simply impossible to completely replace
We miss you both!
Saying goodbye is hard
But saying hello is easy
when we’re saying hello
to an amazing new Board
member like Gabriel Otero!
Gabriel joined our Alliance’s
Board of Directors in late
2019 He’s a 4th generation
Coloradan and grew up on a
farm in Fruita He’s worked in
congressional and senatorial
campaigns He also worked
for five years in the oil and gas
energy sector Gabriel received
his BA in Political Science from
Colorado Mesa University
Gabriel currently works in
conservation on oil and gas development, land management plans, conservation designations,
defending National Monuments and bedrock conservation laws across the Colorado Plateau
Gabriel, an outdoor enthusiast, loves hunting, fishing, hiking, camping and spending time with family