Politics
National Park Service extends public comment period for proposed fee hike
DENVER – The U.S. National Park Service has granted an additional 30 days for the public comment period for people to sound off on the proposed fee hike that would triple the amount it costs to visit certain parks, like Rocky Mountain National Park.
NPS said Tuesday it had already received more than 65,000 comments on the proposed hikes ahead of the original Thursday deadline. It said the new deadline, set for Dec. 22, was made “to accommodate interest in this issue from members of Congress and the public.” Continue reading
Colorado’s Hickenlooper grants pardons for 22 he says have improved lives and communities
DENVER – Gov. John Hickenlooper granted clemency to 22 people Monday he says have “taken great strides to improve their lives and communities.”
“The 22 people I am pardoning today serve as an example that redemption is possible. I believe they will use this opportunity to continue improving their lives, raising families, and being productive members of their communities,” Hickenlooper said. “They have earned the opportunity for a second chance.”
The 22 pardons mean Hickenlooper has publicly forgiven those people, and come after each person’s completion of their sentence. Continue reading
Rep. Diana DeGette says ex-congressman tried to force kiss on her, alleges other harassment
DENVER – Congresswoman Diana DeGette, D-Colo., alleged in an interview Monday that a former congressman tried to force a kiss on her in an elevator and that she’d been sexually harassed several other times in her career.
The new allegations from DeGette came in an interview with Katy Tur on MSNBC’s Meet the Press Daily. Continue reading
Uber’s parent company faces $8.9M fine in Colo. over questionable, or incomplete, background checks
DENVER – Uber’s parent company is facing an $8.9 million fine after the Colorado Public Utilities Commission found 57 Uber drivers in the state were driving when they weren’t supposed to be, and the state is questioning whether background checks on those drivers were performed at all.
The parent company, Rasier, LLC, was issued notice of the civil penalty Monday — $2,500 a day for each day one of the 57 disqualified drivers worked, resulting in the penalty of close to $9 million. Uber uses an accredited background check company to screen potential drivers. Continue reading
Hearing officer denies appeal by Denver 4/20 rally organizer, opening door for new permit holders
DENVER – If you want to be the organizer for Denver’s famed 4/20 rally, now is your chance.
Denver’s hearing officer on Friday denied an appeal made by the previous organizer to have his three-year suspension from getting a permit and fines overturned. Continue reading
Colorado Republican lawmakers accused of sexual advances deny allegations
DENVER – Two more Colorado lawmakers were accused of sexual harassment in a report published Thursday night by KUNC.
The allegations against state Sens. Randy Baumgardner and Jack Tate, both Republicans, come amid accusations of sexual harassment or advances made against two other state lawmakers in the past week, though no formal complaints against Baumgardner or Tate had been filed as of Friday. Continue reading
House passes tax reform measure: what lawmakers from Colorado are saying
DENVER – The U.S. House of Representatives voted 225-207 Thursday to pass a sweeping tax reform bill while the Senate GOP finalizes its version of the bill. If the chambers can come to a passing compromise, there would be sweeping effects on the nation’s economy and Americans’ tax brackets.
The GOP is trying to pass a full tax reform measure for the first time in 30 years and has deemed it imperative to their platform heading into 2018.
Though the bills have been undergoing changes this week and some were still being made in the Senate as of publication of this story, there are a few things we know about the bills: Continue reading
Second Colorado lawmaker faces formal sexual harassment complaint
DENVER – Another Colorado lawmaker has been accused of unwanted sexual advances and had a formal complaint filed against him—the second in a week.
The latest allegation comes against Rep. Paul Rosenthal, D-Denver, and was first reported by The Denver Post.
Thomas Cavaness filed a formal complaint against Rosenthal on Tuesday with House Speaker Crisanta Duran, according to the document, which was obtained by Denver7 Wednesday. Continue reading
Enrollment on Colorado’s health insurance marketplace up 33% so far from 2016
DENVER – Colorado’s health insurance marketplace, Connect for Health Colorado, has seen a 33-percent increase in signups in the first two weeks of open enrollment this year when compared to 2016.
More than 22,600 Coloradans have picked a plan on the state’s ACA marketplace—an increase of more than 5,000 people who signed up for coverage between Nov. 1 and Nov. 15 of last year. Continue reading
Report from Colorado doctors finds possibility of first death attributed to marijuana
DENVER – An 11-month-old child who died after being exposed to marijuana is believed to be the first person whose death has been attributed to marijuana exposure, according to two Colorado doctors who published a report on the death in August.
The report by Thomas M. Nappe, DO, who works at the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center in Denver, and Christopher O. Hoyte, MD, with the Department of Emergency Medicine at the CU Anschutz Medical Center, was published in the August edition of the journal “Clinical Practice and Cases in Emergency Medicine.” Continue reading