Colorado: Colorado

Surrounded by more than 10 Sudanese refugee who now call the state home, Gov. Bill Ritter signed a proclamation this morning declaring it Genocide Awareness Day in Colorado.

"Genocide is not some abstract concept," Ritter said. "It is a very real thing. Genocide has faces of people who are murdered, assaulted and raped."

Ritter was asked to address the Genocide in Sudan by Roz Duman, the director of the Colorado Coalition for Genocide Awareness and Action.

Since tribal clashes in the Darfur region resumed in 2003, an estimated 400,000 people have died, Ritter said. In addition to those that have been killed, thousands of women and girls have been raped, said Omhagain Dayeen , a Sudanese refugee and activist who spoke at the proclamation event.

Starting today, Coloradans will pay more to register their vehicles.

They'll face criminal charges if they possess someone else's passport, Social Security card or driver's license without that person's permission.

And adults will be in big trouble if they're caught "sexting" to a child.

The three measures are among the 57 new laws that go into effect today.

One of the more high-profile bills this year increased auto-registration fees an average of $41 to start, as part of an omnibus transportation bill aimed at raising money to fix 125 of the state's crumbling bridges.

The new law is expected to generate criticism and about $250 million a year, just half of what transportation experts have said is the annual minimum the state needs to maintain its infrastructure.

Denver Democrats Michael Johnston and Pat Steadman were sworn in Friday.

Johnston of Mapleton Expeditionary School of the Arts in Thornton replaces former Senate President Peter Groff, who took an education post in Obama's administration.

Steadman helped lead a lawsuit challenging Amendment 2, which banned laws protecting gay people from discrimination. The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the law as unconstitutional in 1996. Steadman replaces Jennifer Veiga, who moved to Australia.

Johnston and Steadman were selected by vacancy committees this month.

Gov. Bill Ritter plans to sign nine education bills during a ceremony Thursday in Denver.

One would set up a statewide system to track the performance of teachers and principals to help close the so-called "teacher gap," where less experienced teachers tend to work in low-income schools.

Another provides more options for overhauling low performing schools.

The Obama administration is offering more than $4 billion to a select group of states willing to push school reforms. Closing the teacher gap and turning around struggling schools are among the goals of that "Race to the Top" program.

Colorado stands to win about $400 million if it's among the eight to 10 states that are selected.