Turtle Bill Clears Senate

The bill that would designate the Western painted turtle (Chrysemis picta bellii) as Colorado's official reptile passed the Senate this week.

HB 1017 arose from interest expressed by some Adams County children who discovered the state has no official reptile.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Cherilyn Peniston, D-Westminster, and Sen. Jennifer Veiga, D-Denver, awaits Gov. Bill Ritter's signature.

State Newspapers Speculate About Fate of HB 1208

The Grand Junction Sentinel's "Political Notebook" speculated this week about the fate of HB 1208, the bill that would eliminate district attorneys' ability to file felony charges against 14- and 15-year olds in adult court without judicial approval. The Sentinel blog reported that Ritter may be inclined to veto the bill.

Mike Saccone, the Sentinel's political reporter, wrote that Rep. Bernie Buescher, D-Grand Junction, voted "no" on the bill after discussing it with Gov. Bill Ritter, a former Denver DA.

The Denver Post also published an article this week speculating that Ritter may plan to veto the bill.

However, according to an email message from Evan Dreyer, the governor's chief spokesman, received by Colorado Capitol Journal on Mar. 13, the Governor has not decided what he would do with HB 1208 if it reached his desk.

"Bills very often change and are amended as go through committee hearings and move from chamber to chamber, so we generally do not weigh in until and if a bill arrives on the Governor's desk," Dreyer wrote. "If a bill does make it, it will get a thorough review from the Governor before a decision is made."

The Post story also quoted Dreyer as saying Ritter has not made up his mind.

Correction: Colorado Ranks Second in Percentage of Female Legislators

In a Feb. 12 article this journal reported that the swearing-in of Rep. Karen Middleton, D-Aurora, would mean that 37.9% of Colorado legislators are women.

That is not accurate. The correct percentage, following Middleton's joining the House, is 36%.

That figure does not, as the Feb. 12 article said, lead the nation. Vermont leads with 37.8% female legislators. Colorado ranks second.

We apologize for the mistake.

US Highway 285 Designated "Ralph Carr Memorial Highway"

Both chambers of the General Assembly approved Friday a resolution designating the portion of U.S. Highway 285 from its intersection with Colorado Highway 470 in Jefferson County to the New Mexico state line as the "Ralph Carr Memorial Highway."

The designation honors the late former Republican governor known for his opposition to interning Japanese-Americans during World War II.

A recent book by local reporter Adam Schrager details the impact Carr's stance on the question of imprisoning Americans of Japanese descent had on his political career.

Carr, a former Conejos County attorney, assistant attorney general and United States attorney, sought a U.S. Senate seat in 1942. He lost to incumbent Democrat Edwin Johnson, in part because of his opposition to federal efforts to detain Japanese-Americans at the Ameche relocation camp in eastern Colorado during his term as the state's 29th governor between 1939-1943.

Carr (Dec. 11, 1887-Sept. 22, 1950) grew up in Cripple Creek. He was an opponent of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's "New Deal" program but generally supported FDR's foreign policies.

He was nominated by the GOP for another term as governor in 1950 but died before the general election. He was replaced as the Republican candidate 20 days before the election by Daniel I.J. Thornton, who went on to beat the favored incumbent, Walter W. Johnson. Ironically, Thornton was succeeded by the man who beat Carr for the U.S. Senate seat in 1942, Edwin Johnson.

Carr is buried in Denver's Fairmount Cemetery.

The resolution re-naming U.S. Highway 285 was sponsored by Reps. Rob Witwer, R-Genesee, and Rafael Lorenzo Gallegos, D-Antonito, and Sen. Josh Penry, R-Grand Junction.

College Textbook Affordability Act Heads to Ritter's Desk

The Senate approved Friday an amended version of SB 73, the proposed "College Textbook Affordability Act," and sent the bill to Gov. Ritter.

The bill aims to ensure that students are provided with more information about the textbooks required in classes, in order to be able to compare previous editions with the current edition specified by the course instructor, and prevents publishers from requiring that textbooks be purchased in a bundle with other media items such as DVDs.

To accomplish the information objective, the bill requires textbook publishers to post on their websites the prices of textbooks, history of substantive revisions to textbooks, and estimated length of time the publisher intends to keep such textbooks on the market.

The Senate sponsor is Democrat Ron Tupa of Boulder. The measure was sponsored in the House by Rep. John Kefalas, D-Fort Collins.

There was no opposition to passage of the amended bill by the Senate Friday.

Romanoff's "B.E.S.T." Bill Clears House

The House gave final approval Friday to a bill that would dedicate about $1 billion derived from state school trust lands toward school facilities construction and renovation.

HB 1335, the "Building Excellent Schools Today (B.E.S.T.)" bill sponsored by speaker Andrew Romanoff, D-Denver, was approved 63-1. Rep. Douglas Bruce, R-Colorado Springs, was the only "no" vote.

Fifty-three members of the House, including representatives from both parties, signed on as co-sponsors.

The bill now heads to the Senate.

LTC Rice & Col. Ward, Together in Baghdad

This photo of LTC Joe Rice, U.S. Army (a.k.a. Rep. Joe Rice, D-Littleton), and Col. Steve Ward, U.S. Marine Corps (a.k.a. Sen. Steve Ward, R-Littleton) was taken last November and posted on Rice's blog.

Both men are in safer surroundings these days, back at home on the Front Range and at work in the General Assembly.