COLORADO'S FRONTPAGE
Face the State
Xcel ad campaign shows it's hard to serve two masters
FTS Opinion
August 11, 2009
Xcel Energy has proposed raising energy rates on consumers while at the same time spending an undisclosed sum of money on a self-serving ad campaign. The “Responsible By Nature” ads seen online, in print and on the air encourage consumers to save money by decreasing consumption and take advantage of the company’s rebates. To encourage saving money by reducing consumption while at the same time raising rates at the meter has us scratching our heads.
Hiring 'freeze' thawed, now Elliman's domain
FTS Opinion
July 21, 2009Despite substantial fiscal instability, the state hiring freeze quietly came to an end June 30. The moratorium on hiring, to which exemptions were liberally granted, will now be replaced by an even looser prior-approval process.
New mandatory CU fee is not a 'contribution'
FTS Opinion
June 18, 2009
A recent Face the State report detailed CU Boulder's new "Forever Buffs" fee, a $70 per student subsidy for the school's alumni association. The money - collected on matriculation, not graduation - will be instituted in the name of fraternity and togetherness, but is unfair, overreaching and excessive.
CoPIRG doesn't get it on rail
FTS Opinion
May 26, 2009
In recent weeks, the Regional Transportation District has received a lot of mixed media coverage regarding the departure of RTD General Manager Cal Marsella. The sources of concern stem from a "sometimes bumpy ride," including a delay in a vote on an additional tax increase for FasTracks and a potential "railroading" of a viable business to build a bus maintenance facility. Despite this, the state director of the liberal Colorado Public Interest Research Group, or CoPIRG, authored a guest opinion piece in The Denver Post urging voters to "climb aboard high speed rail."
What exactly counts as an 'official' announcement?
FTS Opinion
May 18, 2009Former Congressman Scott McInnis is unofficially running for governor in 2010 and has been doing so for nearly two months. He maintains campaign finance rules don’t require his compliance because he, well, isn’t official yet. So what exactly makes a candidate official?
Denver Post looks the other way on state of higher ed in Colorado
FTS Opinion
May 11, 2009While the media has eagerly clambered to cover stories chronicling higher education's budget woes, reporters have rarely - if ever - bothered to look closely at the real sources of the problem.
The Senator who saved the death penalty
FTS Opinion
May 8, 2009
Whoever thought Gov. Bill Ritter would have a reason to thank Senate Minority Leader Josh Penry?
During his time as Denver’s district attorney, Ritter unsuccessfully pursued the death penalty seven times. As debate in the legislature raged over House Bill 1274, a proposal that would have ended capitol punishment in Colorado, using the savings investigate cold cases, Ritter became increasingly quiet and neutral on the issue.
Lessons to be learned from Routt County
FTS Opinion
May 5, 2009
Routt County, population 19,000 in northwest Colorado, doesn't make headlines in Denver much. That's unfortunate, because its elected leaders could teach those at the state Capitol a lesson or two when it comes to ensuring fiscal stability and accountability in today's tough economy.
Capitol security budget cuts overlook broken system
FTS Opinion
April 27, 2009For its $1.6 million price tag, you would expect capitol security to be nearly impenetrable to those wishing to do harm. Instead, all the money buys is a false sense of security.
Editor's note: Catch a Fox 31 report featuring Face The State's capitol security investigation Monday night at 9:00.
Fishy endangered species endanger progress
FTS Opinion
April 20, 2009
While we consider ourselves animal lovers here at Face The State, we have to take issue with Endangered Species Act - the most powerful tool environmentalists have at their disposal. Created with the best intentions, the law too often unfairly harms private property owners who find their land infiltrated by a rare bug or weed. Once an obscure plant or animal makes it on to that list, there is little chance it will ever be removed.