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Colorado: Colorado General Assembly

May 21, 2009 - 10:21 am
NEWS FEED: Denver Post

Senate seat goes to lobbyist

A Denver lobbyist who has championed civil rights beat nine other Democratic contenders to become Colorado's newest state senator.

Pat Steadman won a vacancy committee election Wednesday night to replace Sen. Jennifer Veiga, D-Denver, who resigned to move to Australia.

Veiga had endorsed Steadman, who lobbies at the state Capitol. He has said he plans to resign from his firm.

The election caused angst on two fronts:

Adams County Democrats wanted someone from their county to win the election; Senate District 31 comprises central Denver and portions of Adams County.

Others pushed for a minority to win.

"We need some color down at the statehouse," said Julia Hicks of Westminster, who is black.

Read More at Denver Post >
There have been 25 comments posted in response to this story.

January 29, 2009 - 09:46 am
NEWS FEED: Colorado Independent

Bringing transparency to Colorado government in three easy steps

By Chantell Taylor

As one of his first official acts, President Barack Obama issued an executive memorandum instructing members of his administration “to operate under principles of openness, transparency and of engaging citizens with their government.” There are a number of ways Colorado state and local government can follow suit and join the president in his commitment to an “unprecedented level of openness in government.”

To begin, the Colorado General Assembly should immediately adopt and implement a uniform policy for the members and their staff, setting minimum standards and guidelines for the retention of electronic records, including e-mail records in particular. Incredibly, there is currently no policy at all.

Read More at Colorado Independent >
There have been 20 comments posted in response to this story.

January 26, 2009 - 07:44 pm
NEWS FEED: Rocky Mountain News

Colorado's percentage of women lawmakers is tops in U.S.

By Lynn Bartels

When B.J. Nikkel - known to her family as Betty June - was sworn in as a state representative last week, Colorado boosted its already impressive record of having the highest percentage of women lawmakers in the country.

Colorado held that distinction even before Nikkel, a Loveland Republican, took office, replacing a male lawmaker who had gone to the state Senate.

Forty percent of Colorado's lawmakers are women; nationally, the average is 24.2 percent.

"I just think it's great that Colorado is leading the way," said Katie Fischer Ziegler, a policy specialist with the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Ziegler said one reason Colorado might be leading the nation is that the White House Project, a national, nonpartisan organization that pushes to put women in leadership, has been "very active in Colorado.

Read More at Rocky Mountain News >
There have been 20 comments posted in response to this story.

January 8, 2009 - 07:50 am
NEWS FEED: Rocky Mountain News

Historic opening to 2009 session

By Lynn Bartels

The struggling economy dominated the opening day of the legislature, although plenty of attention was paid to the historic appointment of two black men to lead the Colorado General Assembly.

Tears and cheers permeated the House on Wednesday as Terrance Carroll became the speaker of the House, while in the Senate, Peter Groff again was elected president. Both are Denver Democrats.

Colorado is the first state to have blacks leading both legislative chambers, and in his address, Carroll noted the historic nature of the day.

"In these difficult times, Americans have sent a clear message to their political leaders: We don't care where you come from, what color your skin is, or what party you belong to," Carroll said.

Read More at Rocky Mountain News >
There have been 21 comments posted in response to this story.