Letters and Op/Eds

Pueblo Chieftain opinion page

BY JOSH PENRY

For more than 15 years, Colorado's state budget has been reined in by a sensible spending cap that limits annual general fund growth to 6 percent. Two other laws require the next several hundred million dollars in government revenue above that limit to flow toward funding critical road and bridge needs.

These policies not only have shored up our vital infrastructure, but they also have ensured that our state government doesn’t go on a spending spree. That is why Colorado has been spared the kind of binge-and-purge budget calamities that have slammed other states.

By. Sen. Mike Kopp, published in The Pueblo Chieftain

What if we could lift a costly and obsolete tax off the backs of Colorado’s businesses while also imposing a little more fiscal discipline on our state government - all in one move? Especially with the state’s economy slumping amid a deepening national recession, there is no surer way to help our state’s employers create jobs than to lighten the load heaped on them by government.
We can accomplish that and more through legislation I have introduced in the General Assembly. Senate Bill 37 will repeal a state surcharge on the premiums that employers pay for their insurance policies covering their workers' job-related injuries. The surcharge is one of the many hidden taxes Colorado’s businesses pay, eroding their ability to invest in expanded operations and new jobs.
We could inject nearly $300 million back into our state's economy over the next five years by eliminating this assessment on businesses. In fact, ending the tax would free up additional business cash flow that would amount to the equivalent of 5,000 jobs at $50,000 a year each. That could give a boost to businesses up and down the Front Range and across the state, especially among smaller employers. What’s more, the tax is obsolete. It was implemented decades ago to help defer the high costs associated with catastrophic on-the-job injuries. The revenue has gone into two funds -the Subsequent Injury Fund and the Major Medical Fund - which were closed to new beneficiaries years ago for a number of reasons.

By Sen. Greg Brophy, published in The Denver Post

 So far, Colorado's energy industry has remained a rare bright spot in what are increasingly dark economic times, creating thousands of high-paying jobs in our state and providing badly needed tax revenues for state and local government coffers.

Thanks to Gov. Bill Ritter, however, all of that looks set to change.

The energy sector has been struggling with a number of challenges in the last several months: fluctuating prices, inadequate transmission infrastructure, and increasingly unpredictable financial and credit markets. Making matters worse, the governor's hand-picked Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) issued far-reaching new rules — rules that are adding to energy companies' uncertainty and forcing them to think twice about investing their money Colorado.

Read full commentary: http://www.denverpost.com/commented/ci_11539968

By Sen. Josh Penry, published in the Pueblo Chieftain

Jobs and highways.
Both issues are pressing in their own right, and they are closely related to each other. Not only does road construction create jobs but improved infrastructure also speeds the flow of commerce and boosts our overall economy.
The need to act now on both counts is critical. Colorado’s transportation grid is urgently in need of upgrades, even as road funding is in a nosedive. As for the economy, families and businesses are struggling. Unemployment is up and times are tough. The Legislature can't fix the jobs quagmire quickly or by itself, but there are important steps we can take - and we should.
That's why it's time to put on hold for a few months the "permanent campaign" that has come to define - and mar - the business of governing. The public knows well that politicians can lob vitriolic 30-second advertisements at our opponents, but they're less sure of our ability to actually govern.
"Can't you guys get something done?"
It's a question elected leaders get more often than we should.