Colorado: District Of Columbia

A bill that gives some workers unpaid time off to attend their child's parent-teacher conferences got a passing grade in the Senate on Monday, despite protests from Republican lawmakers.

Sen. Bob Bacon, D-Fort Collins, urged support of House Bill 1057, saying students perform better when their parents are involved.

Republicans agreed but said the bill isn't the answer and sends the wrong message to businesses.

"You can't legislate parental involvement anymore than you can legislate parental love or anything else," said Sen. Nancy Spence, R-Centennial.

Sen. Mark Scheffel, a Parker Republican, said he was concerned because there was little testimony in the Senate Education Committee about businesses refusing to allow their

Here's how some major bills fared recently in Congress and how Colorado's congressional members voted, as provided by Thomas' Roll Call Report Syndicate.

HOUSE

The Colorado delegation District 1: Diana DeGette (D) District 2: Jared Polis (D) District 3: John Salazar (D) District 4: Betsy Markey (D) District 5: Doug Lamborn (R) District 6: Mike Coffman (R) District 7: Ed Perlmutter (D)

BANKRUPTCY AND MORTGAGES

For: 234/Against: 191 Members voted to allow bankruptcy courts to rewrite loans on primary homes in Chapter 13 actions if borrowers have exhausted other options. A yes vote backed a bill that would permanently hike FDIC insurance to $250,000 per depositor.

Denver green jobs rally at Alliance for a Sustainable Colorado, Sept. 27, 2008. (Photo/Greenforall.org)

President Obama’s economic stimulus program might be considered ‘green,’ but it’s still got a big streak of gray.

Denver green jobs rally at Alliance for a Sustainable Colorado, Sept. 27, 2008. (Photo/Greenforall.org)

The $785 billion spending bill that Obama signed Tuesday, shortly after he toured the sparkling solar-paneled roof of the Denver Museum, will save or create 3.5 million jobs over the next two years, according to the White House. Environmental groups, happy about the sharp departure from Bush administration policies, say up to 1.5 million or 40 percent of the jobs created by the unprecedented legislation will be “green” — meaning they will contribute to decreasing energy consumption, lowering oil demand and switching to renewable sources.