Capitol Coverage

• Colorado sending National Guard troops to inauguration
• Governor launches Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction roadmap
• Congresswoman Lauren Boebert's communications director resigns
• Senator John Hickenlooper announces 7 regional offices, including Grand Junction, Durango
• Colorado lawmakers adjourned for at least a month after 3-day 'soft opening'
• KBUT's Christopher Biddle reports on the fight for clean drinking water in Somerset

• Colorado lawmakers returned to the state Capitol for a soft opening of the General Assembly
• Kori Stanton speaks to Learning Council director Alicia Michaelson and Delta County School District superintendent Caryn Gibson about the donation of a 154-book diversity library
• KGNU's Dave Ashton reports fed up voters organized "Remove Trump Now" events around the country this week, including a car rally and parade at Denver's South High School that featured notable public officials calling for the removal of the president from office

• Wilderness Workshop leads conservation groups blocking 53 fracking leases in the Piceance Basin
• Animas River sees lowest flow in recorded history as southwest remains in exceptional drought
• Scott Franz reports state lawmakers are feeling on edge as they prepare to return to work in Denver
• The state has overhauled oil & gas rules, giving local communities more authority to regulate the industry, but as Maeve Conran of KGNU reports, 2 Front Range counties have radically different ideas of what local control means

• As Capitol Coverage journalist Scott Franz reports, new Colorado laws that took effect Friday include less power for the state government, fewer hurdles for workers who lose their jobs due to domestic violence, stronger protections from discrimation for renters, higher taxes on cigarettes and other nicotine products, and more paid time off for sick workers
• RMCR Fossil Fuel Collaboration: KZMU's Justin Higginbottom reports that with changing commodity prices and speculation, oil and gas wells on public lands aren't always pumping

• Hemp market contracted in 2020
• State regulators approved new Xcel Energy electric vehicle prgoram
• Colorado is changing vaccine distribution plan to prioritize older residents
• States in the Colorado River Basin ready to negotiate
• Part 3 of Mountain West News Bureau reporter Noah Glick's series on lithium mining

• Vandalism at 3 Aspen natural gas pump stations left 3500 residents without heat or hot water
• Resort community real estate sales in Colorado have set records since July
• Health officials believe they've identified first confirmed case of COVID-19 variance in Colorado
• Mountain West News Bureau shares part 2 of series on the environmental impacts of lithium mining

• New Delta County Human Services Building flooded badly on Christmas Eve
• COVID deaths in Delta County double during December, 2 more die over holiday weekend
• New study suggests working out at a gym not linked to viral COVID transmission
• State health departments encouraging people with COVID to do their own contact tracing
• Scott Franz interviews Governor Jared Polis about his coronavirus response

• Historic bank building in Ridgway gutted by fire
• Southwest Airlines now flying from Montrose to Denver, Dallas
• Montrose green waste program suspended due to contaminated loads
• West Elk Mine facing new fines
• CSU research project brings 10 bison to preserve in Bent County
• Local drug case thrown out due to illegal police search
• Governor praises Congress for COVID relief package
• Jodi Peterson reports on more efficient irrigation methods 

• Montrose School District announces plans for start of semester
• Applefest in Cedaredge saved by Town Trustees as Chamber of Commerce dissolves
• Robert Redford announces sale of Sundance Mountain Resort in Utah
• Colorado lawmakers will delay legislative session at least a month due to COVID
• KOTO: 3 local governments join climate change lawsuits against fossil fuel companies 

• Backcountry skier Jeff Schneider died in an avalanche Friday, 2 others died Saturday near Silverton
• 2 earthquakes near Nucla
• Delta County Hospital workers getting first local doses of COVID-19 vaccine
• Congressman Ken Buck will not seek second term as Colorado GOP chair
• Air Quality Control Commission reverses decision on coal-fired power plants
• Economists say state budget outlook is improving
• Laura Palmisano talks to Hinsdale County Commissioner Kristine Borchers about acquisition of island, peninsula on Lake San Cristobal

• Delta County Commissioners approve $36M budget for 2021
• Public comments on Delta County Land Use plan due before Monday's meeting
• Montrose Hospital changes management companies
• Colorado unveils plan for distributing COVID vaccines
• Advocates fielding growing number of calls from potential DACA applicants
• Jodi Peterson hears from Center for Mental Health on when alcohol & substance use becomes abuse

• FEC finds Republican Lauren Boebert failed to report donations for a third time
• Colorado sending $375 stimulus payments to unemployed residents
• Montrose School District adds more COVID safety measures
• State lawmakers approve 10 relief bills at special session
• Reporter Ed Williams talks about his Rolling Stone article on year's biggest marijuana bust

• Delta County moves to High Risk level orange on COVID dial
• Governor Jared Polis tests positive for COVID, asymptomatic, working remotely
• New state task force hopes to help schools return to in-person learning safely
• Lawmakers return to Capitol for special session on coronavirus relief spending
• Update on historical monuments removed this year
• Senator Michael Bennet hears input on Future of Local News Commission Act from news leaders

• Mesa County ICU beds at capacity
• Polis appoints Maria Berkenkotter to Colorado Supreme Court
• Colorado recycled less in 2019
• Report finds insulin costs are forcing Colorado diabetics to ration drugs
• Delta renovating Centennial Park
• No rush to reintroduce grey wolves
• Immigrants celebrate launch of Vida Foundation in Eagle County

• Latest effort to recall Governor Polis fails 
• Tri-State plans to cut 80% of emissions in Colorado by 2030
• Biden transition team encouraging BLM return to DC
• Interior Secretary guts Gardner's conservation bill
• Polis orders hospitals to plan for handling COVID surge
• USGS releases wildlife migration tool
• State seeks stories from producers impacted by drought
• 2000 people in Gunnison, Hinsdale Counties lost communications for 10 hours Thursday

• Telluride TV off the air after 36 years
• East Troublesome Fire evacuees returning home
• Governor Polis proposes stimulus package as part of 2021 budget
• New study finds big western cities are using less water as they grow
• Public lands groups oppose BLM e-bikes
• Number of Coloradans who are food insecure increases 30% since COVID-19

• Get informed about judge retention here
• Over 10,000 mail ballots rejected as of Wednesday
• Federal appeals court once again tells Mountain Coal no new roads in NFV
• Suspect bites off fingertip of Olate police chief 
• Glenwood 5th grader kayaks Grand Canyon
• Scott Franz analyzes Gardner & Hickenlooper debate highlights

• Nearly 2 million ballots have already been returned in Colorado
• State commits additional funds to help landlords collect missed rent payments
• 50 state legislators sign letter demanding action from ICE as over 100 detainees in Aurora test positive for COVID-19
• Hospitals starting to show signs of stress due to increasing COVID cases
• After wildfires, people are finding themselves in new flood zones

Gavin Dahl speaks with data journalist Sandra Fish about covering campaign spending for The Colorado Sun, and Colorado College professor Corey Hutchins who publishes a must-read newsletter each week that's available through

• State launches phone-based COVID-19 exposure notification system. 
• Mesa County returning to more stringent COVID restrictions due to infection rate increase.
• Capitol Coverage reporter Scott Franz shares investigative story about Colorado taxpayer dollars paying for trips for visiting travel writers in exchange for their coverage of the state. The stories were then published by news outlets without disclosure to readers.

• Governor Jared Polis extends mask mandate for another 30 days
• DMEA receives $2M grant for Elevate Broadband in Cedar Mesa, Beaver Hill
• William Perry Pendley defies judge to stay in job at BLM
• AG Phil Weiser vows to fight EPA rollback of clean car standards
• Scott Franz reports on Proposition 115, which would outlaw abortions after 22 weeks of pregnancy

• Russell Stover intends to buy its property from City of Montrose for $1, resell land & factory
• Fire at Olathe storage unit destroys resources of 3 charitable ministries: Angels for the Needy, Haven House, & Open Hands, Open Hearts
• New report finds most western states not doing enough to protect residents from COVID-19
• Capitol Coverage: Scott Franz examines Proposition 118, which would create a new state program in Colorado to provide paid family & medical leave to workers

• Delta County Sheriff's Office has taken Henry Russell into custody after he allegedly shot Matthew Burge of Paonia on Monday
• Cloud seeding effort on Grand Mesa seeks permit renewal
• Appeals court considers allowing larger religious gatherings in Colorado
• Microbreweries preparing for colder business climate
• Kori Stanton reports on Pumpkin Hollow disc golf tournament

• Now 15 human cases of West Nile in Delta County
• Montrose Lighthouse looking for new location to avoid reduced shelter capacity due to COVID
• Arch Resources looking to sell West Elk Mine in North Fork Valley, the largest coal producer in Colorado
• Legal fate of 2020 Census count deadline still uncertain
• Scott Franz explains the most complicated statewide ballot question, Amendment B, which would change the Gallagher amendment in Colorado

• Watchdog group challenges new Delta County ag plan
• Toxic algae spreading in Blue Mesa Reservoir
• COGCC approves new rules for oil & gas 
• Governor warns COVID numbers are still too high
• Climate change causing reduction of aspen trees in Colorado
• What's next for BLM with acting director Pendley ousted by judge?

• State names Delta Walmart pharmacy, Delta Building Center as COVID outbreak sites
• Affordable housing project in Ridgway to break ground next spring
• Luke Runyon: Colorado River's largest reservoirs expected to keep struggling due to climate change
• Scott Franz: Gray wolf reintroduction proposition will be on the statewide ballot 

• Mesa County approved for final phase of COVID reopening
• Cory Gardner makes surprise visit to Confluence Park in Delta 
• Colorado forcing state workers to take unpaid days off due to budget shortfall
• Migratory birds dropping dead across the region, submit data here
• Laura Palmisano: Lake City now hosts an International Dark Sky Park

• 10 people became U.S. citizens at Colorado National Monument
• Matterhorn Mill south of Ophir being restored
• Economists at the State Capitol say Colorado's budget picture is improving
• KVNF's Laura Palmisano interviews Jason Blevins of The Colorado Sun about efforts to revitalize western Montrose County

• Cameron Peak Fire has now destroyed 54 structures
• Beware of voter misinformation, including from USPS itself
• KUER: Advocacy groups are calling on BLM to cancel upcoming oil and gas lease sales 
• As Scott Franz reports, Colorado voters will get a say in doing away with the electoral college this November