(:05) This is KVNF’s Regional Newscast for Tuesday, April 12th. I’m Gavin Dahl.
(:35) Yesterday when I ran through all of KVNF’s wins at the Colorado Broadcasters gala and Top of the Rockies contest, I failed to mention a special award bestowed on a member of the KVNF board of directors Saturday by the Society of Professional Journalists. Betsy Marston was honored with a Keeper of the Flame award by SPJ for her 19 years as editor of High Country News and her ongoing work as editor of the independent nonprofit Writers on the Range. She tells KVNF News it was a fun night being in a room filled with fellow journalists at the Denver Press Club on Saturday night.
(:30) Julian Rubinstein’s book “The Holly: Five Bullets, One Gun and the Struggle to Save an American Neighborhood” about Denver was featured on Local Motion last year. Now the Denver Gazette reports anti-gang activist Terrance Roberts, the subject of the book, wants to become Denver’s next mayor. The former gang member turned peace activist told the paper he doesn’t see seasoned politicians making real impacts on youth violence or homelessness in the city. Denver mayor Michael Hancock is term-limited.
(:28) Republican contender Marina Zimmerman is leaving the Republican primary race for the Third Congressional District. She failed to qualify for the ballot at the GOP assembly. Zimmerman writes she is abandoning a plan to mount a write-in effort. She doesn’t want to split the vote, and hopes incumbent Lauren Boebert will be defeated. Still no word from the Secretary of State’s office on if Don Coram submitted enough petition signatures to qualify for the June primary.
(:35) On Friday, Judge John Kane threw out a challenge to unaffiliated Colorado voters participating in primary elections, according to the Denver Post. John Eastman, the controversial lawyer who advised Donald Trump on how to overturn the 2020 election, and conservative talk radio host Randy Corporon, represented the plaintiffs in the case. They argued Proposition 108, passed by Colorado voters in 2016, violates the First Amendment right to associate or not associate with whom you choose. The judge disagreed. Secretary of State Jena Griswold says the dismissal maintains the rights of unaffiliated voters.
(:35) Lawmakers are advancing a bill to ensure wildfire survivors get compensated for their property losses more quickly. Current Colorado law requires insurance companies to pay out only thirty percent of a claim up front. The bill would more than double that coverage to sixty five percent of the loss, even if a homeowner doesn’t have a detailed list of the things that were lost. The measure is a response to complaints from survivors of the East Troublesome fire about the rate of insurance payouts. The House already passed it with bipartisan support. It passed a first test in the Senate yesterday.
(:35) Avian flu has wiped out a backyard flock of chickens in Pitkin County. The USDA on Friday confirmed H-5-N-1 in a sample from the flock, which had been exposed to sick waterfowl. This is the first discovery of the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus in domestic birds in Colorado. The State Veterinarian Office is urging those with backyard flocks to immediately enhance biosecurity efforts, like decreasing interactions between wild and domestic birds, and preventing wild birds from accessing feed. Bird flu is known to decimate flocks within 48 hours. The CDC says there is no danger to humans.
(:15) With our region facing more than two decades of drought, securing a water supply is crucial. Nevada, Idaho and other states are looking at reservoirs as a solution. Alex Hager of KUNC reports on one huge project for the Mountain West News Bureau.
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(:22) This story from the Mountain West News Bureau is part of ongoing coverage of the Colorado River, produced by KUNC and supported by the Walton Family Foundation. We want to hear from you. Send feedback, corrections, news tips or story ideas to news@kvnf.org. That does it for Tuesday’s KVNF Regional Newscast. Special thanks to I’m Gavin Dahl.
