Ritter's Oil and Gas Severance Tax Proposal Would Provide Scholarships

Gov. Bill Ritter's proposal to increase the state's severance tax on oil and gas extraction activities could benefit eligible college students to the tune of $1,000-$6,000 if the initiative makes the ballot and is approved by Colorado voters.

The dollar amount is the value of scholarships that could be awarded to students, according to a report in today's Rocky Mountain News.

The grants, called "Colorado Promise Scholarships," would be funded by the removal of a property tax exemption now enjoyed by the state's prosperous oil industry.

The Ritter Administration's Department of Higher Education approved the scholarship proposal yesterday and indicated the agency's support for the ballot initiative.

According to the Rocky article by Berny Morson,

The analysis presented Thursday assumes scholarships would be available to students from families earning up to $102,000 a year. But the actual cap could be different, and it's not clear how the rules would apply to large families supporting several students in college, Skaggs said.

The analysis also includes the assumption that students would make a financial contribution, by working or with the help of a nonprofit organization. Awards would be affected by amount of federal aid the student receives.

Students would be expected to maintain a minimum grade- point average.

A portion of the money raised under the program would be given to each of the higher education institutions to distribute as additional aid based on academic merit.

Denver Election Chief O'Malley Appointed to Reform Panel

Senate president Peter Groff of Denver appointed the Mile High City's chief election official, Stephanie O'Malley, to a panel set up to examine Colorado's voting systems.

The Colorado Election Reform Commission, which was created by legislation approved last spring, will study the question whether electronic voting equipment is reliable and accurate. The commission will make recommendations to the state legislature by March 2009.

Two other county clerks, Scott Doyle of Larimer County and Patty Nickell of Bent County, were previously named to the commission by House speaker Andrew Romanoff, D-Denver.

Colorado First State to Honor Widows and Widowers of Veterans

Gov. Bill Ritter, House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, D-Denver, and Rep. Nancy Todd, D-Aurora, announced this week that Coloradans who are the surviving spouses of deceased veterans will be honored by a Widows and Widowers Appreciation Day on Saturday, June 28.

“For more than two centuries, American military personnel have fought and bled to defend the United States both at home and abroad,” Romanoff said. “I’m proud to recognize and support the widows and widowers of veterans for the grief they must bear and the sacrifices they have made for Colorado and the nation.”

The event will be the culmination of six years of work by the Veterans’ Widows(ers) International Network (VWIN).

Colorado becomes the first state to honor the widows and widowers of veterans with a day of commemoration.

Ritter Signs Bill to Build New Judicial Center, History Museum

Gov. Bill Ritter today signed legislation that authorizes construction of a new state judicial complex, to be named after former Gov. Ralph L. Carr, and creates a new home for the aging Colorado History Museum in downtown Denver.

SB 206 creates a financing mechanism to allow the building of the Ralph L. Carr Justice Center on the block currently occupied by the Colorado Supreme Court and Colorado History Museum. The 615,000-square-foot complex will consolidate into one location the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Attorney General’s office and several other judicial and legal offices, including the state Public Defender and Office of the Child's Advocate, now located across multiple sites. The History Museum will be relocated to a new 200,000-square-foot facility one block south.

“The existing Supreme Court and History Museum buildings opened more than 30 years ago,” Ritter said. “They were outdated and obsolete from the day they opened, and they have not aged well since."

By consolidating the state’s judicial and legal offices under one roof, the state should save more than $60 million in rent, lease and other expenses over the next 30 years. The state will also avoid having to spend $17 million in maintenance costs needed to bring the current Supreme Court and History Museum buildings up to code. The buildings are located on the block bounded by Broadway, Lincoln and 13th and 14th avenues.

The roof of the museum has leaked since it opened, and employees regularly use buckets and trash cans to collect rainwater and prevent damage to historical artifacts. The museum also lacks proper climate controls for storing and displaying its collection. The collection includes more than 10 million documents, 800,000 photographs and 250,000 artifacts.

Ritter said he was happy that the new courts building would be named after former Gov. Ralph L. Carr, who gained fame for resisting efforts to intern Japanese-Americans citizens during World War II.

“I am particularly pleased we are naming the new justice center after one of my heroes and one of the truly great Coloradans,” Ritter added. “More than 60 years after standing up for the rights of Japanese-Americans, and by extension the rights of us all, Ralph Carr is finally getting the recognition he deserves.”

Supreme Court chief justice Mary Mullarkey said the judiciary is pleased by the prospect, after years of effort, that a new courts building will be built.

“We very much appreciate the legislature’s hard work and bipartisan efforts in developing this bill and the governor’s approval of it,” Mullarkey said. “This new facility will provide greater safety for the court, efficiency in our operations and significant long-term cost savings to the people of Colorado.”

SB 206 authorizes the state to enter into lease-purchase agreements, increase court fees and utilize the state historical fund to pay for the project. Total project costs for the new museum are $113 million, and $295 million for the judicial center, both spread out over 35 years.

The new museum will open in late 2011 and the judicial center in 2014. The new museum site will be a public-private partnership, jointly developed with a private office tower.

The legislation was sponsored by Sens. Brandon Shaffer, D-Longmont, and Josh Penry, R-Fruita, and Reps. Terrance Carroll, D-Denver, and Don Marostica, R-Loveland.

Ritter Unsure About Romanoff's TABOR Strategy

The Denver Post is reporting today that Gov. Bill Ritter has declined to endorse House speaker Andrew Romanoff's initiative aimed at freeing the state from the revenue limits imposed by the Taxpayer Bill of Rights.

Romanoff, who unsuccessfully attempted to convince the General Assembly to put an initiative that would repeal Amendment 27 while guaranteeing public schools a predictable funding source on the ballot, is now trying to get the proposal on the ballot by going directly to the public.

"Since that has taken a different track now, it would appear I would have to go back and have a conversation with (Romanoff) and really ask the question, 'What is its winnability, who is the coalition, how do you fund the campaign, who are the opponents and how does it fit with other things on the ballot?' And that's a real big problem for all of us," the Post reported Ritter as saying.

Rocky Assesses Gov. Ritter

Denver's Rocky Mountain News assessed Gov. Ritter's performance after two legislative sessions today, concluding that the governor has an inclusive leadership style but that his cautious approach has limited his impact.

The article is here.

Teacher Merit Pay Program Added to School Finance Bill by Senate

The Senate, sticking to its guns on a bipartisan bill to implement performance pay for teachers in Colorado, added an amendment creating the program to the annual school finance bill Thursday, sending a rebuke to the House after a committee of that chamber killed an independent bill on the subject.

Sens. Nancy Spence, R-Centennial, Sue Windels, D-Arvada, and Peter Groff, D-Denver, convinced their colleagues to add the substance of SB 65 to HB 1388. SB 65 had been killed in the House Appropriations Committee.

The pay plan would establish a $2 million fund to help launch efforts by school districts to cultivate and retain teachers based on their performance.

SB 65 aimed to make $2 million available in seed money to all Colorado school districts for programs that those districts design to reward their teachers. The bill set some basic criteria, such as that the programs must be designed to help close the achievement gap between different groups of students. However, any district applying for some of the seed money would be free to come up with a specific program that best addressed its circumstances.

Denver Public Schools recently implemented a performance-pay program on its own, and Douglas County Schools also have such a plan in place.

Gov. Bill Ritter has indicated his support for Spence's proposal to implement performance pay programs for public school teachers.