Online voter registration? Maybe, but not with Senate Bill 40

Rocky Mountain News editorial

A bedrock principle of democracy is one person, one vote. And the integrity of elections depends in large part on voter records that are accurate and up-to-date, so that only those people eligible to vote are allowed to exercise the franchise.

Unfortunately, a measure is moving forward in the legislature that would undermine the security procedures that protect voter registration records; it would invite mischief or even fraud that would be difficult to detect - and thus difficult to prevent.

Senate Bill 40, which passed an initial committee vote last week, would allow anyone (not necessarily registered voters, Colorado residents or even U.S. citizens) to change voter registration records online at the secretary of state's Web site....

Full editorial:  http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/mar/12/an-invitation-to-fraud/

Rocky Mountain News staff editorial 

...As now written, HB 1227 would require the counsel and the board to
consider equally "economic, social and environmental" interests in
dealings with the PUC - not simply matters of price and access, as
they have in the past.

It's not as if environmental interests aren't already heard at the
commission. Green groups are highly motivated, well-funded and
organized. They make their opinions known and provide plenty of
sophisticated analysis to back them up. Their views get far more
exposure than those of old-fashioned consumer advocates dedicated to
keeping ratepayers from being ripped off. That's why the Office of
Consumer Counsel's current mandate is so important. If it won't look
out for the economic interests of ratepayers, we're not sure who will.

The proposed law is an invitation to turn the consumer counsel into
another advocate for renewable energy even when it's not cost
competitive - as if there weren't enough articulate voices already
making that case....

Full Editorial:  http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/feb/17/dont-forget-consumers-at-puc/

By Jennifer Brown
The Denver Post

Gov. Bill Ritter's property-tax freeze will generate an estimated $2 billion more over 10 years than lawmakers were expecting when they approved it eight months ago, according to the latest calculations.

The revenue leap fired up Republican lawmakers — who were already calling the freeze an "illegal tax hike" — as the legislature convenes today for its 2008 session.

The freeze, which prevents local property taxes for schools from dropping, is now projected to result in nearly $3.8 billion in state money by 2017. That's more than double the $1.74 billion estimated when lawmakers passed the governor's proposal in May.