Good morning, Colorado.
Lawmakers promised more school funding last year — but now, a budget crisis is forcing them to walk back some of those plans.
Join us at 6 p.m. tonight for a virtual chat about what’s happening with school funding and what it means for students across the state. Education reporter Erica Breunlin will talk with lawmakers, school district leaders and experts about the road ahead.
You may RSVP, here, to tonight’s free event and any other event in our stacked May lineup!
At The Colorado Sun, we want to make it easier for our readers to hear directly from people shaping Colorado’s future. These virtual and in-person conversations are a chance to get real answers, learn what’s going on behind the scenes, and dive a little deeper than the headlines. We hope to see you there.
Now, on to the news.
Olivia Prentzel
Reporter
THE NEWS
POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT
Colorado legislature declines to override Jared Polis’ veto of social media bill after House caves
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis speaks to reporters March 13 at the governor’s office in the Colorado Capitol in Denver. He is flanked by Canadian Consul General Sylvain Fabi. (Jesse Paul, The Colorado Sun)“The votes are not here. That’s a fact.”
— Rep. Andy Boesenecker, a Fort Collins Democrat and one of the lead sponsors of the bill
The Colorado legislature Monday declined to override Jared Polis’ veto of a bipartisan bill regulating children’s use of social media, sparing the governor the embarrassment of the state’s first veto override in 14 years. Jesse Paul has more on how the override effort fell apart.
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EDUCATION
Are Colorado lawmakers leaving money on the table that would prevent school funding cuts?
Students participate in classroom lessons at Alice Terry Elementary School on Feb. 20 in Sheridan. (Jeremy Sparig, Special to The Colorado Sun)“If we’re in a budgetary crunch and there is concern about the ability to fund the school finance act, why would we put that money into a savings account, aka the permanent fund, when we could use that money as a Band-Aid for the school finance act?”
— Matt Samelson, BEST Grant Program board member
As lawmakers race toward the end of the legislative session, one tool for funding schools hasn’t been touched: The state’s “permanent fund” — a constitutionally guaranteed fund that absorbs and invests land trust revenues to return interest to schools in the future. Erica Breunlin looks at the effort to reroute some of the money headed for that savings account directly to schools.
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ENVIRONMENT
The latest victim of Trump cuts? Beetles keeping an invasive plant at bay in Colorado
Biocontrol beetles disperse from the lid of their container onto a patch of leafy spurge during a 2022 release in Little Yampa Canyon. (Peter Williams, provided by Yampa River Leafy Spurge Project)30 feet
The depth some root systems of the invasive leafy spurge plant can reach, making it hard to control with herbicides
The leafy spurge may have a funny name, but the invasive plant is a threat to both the ecosystem and economy of the Yampa River Valley. A project to capture and release thousands of beetles that love to eat leafy spurge roots had been making progress — until the Trump administration froze more than $300,000 that had already been appropriated for this year’s beetle-gathering trip. Parker Yamasaki has the story.
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NEWS
Greeley wants to be the next city to cash in on the Cache la Poudre River
Students from Fred Tjardes School of Innovation engage in one of several hands-on GIS Day activities to discuss challenges and ideas for improving the Poudre River on Nov. 20. (City of Greeley photo)“Ultimately, we just want to give the Poudre more room.”
— Victoria Leonhardt, senior urban transportation planner for the city of Greeley
After decades of “turning our backs on the river,” Greeley is looking to other cities and towns that have revitalized their waterways with a plan to reconnect the Cache la Poudre River to its historic flood plains, revive its ecosystem and — eventually — create a recreational destination. Dan England has more on the future of the river.
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Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler
THE COLORADO REPORT
Trump administration rescinds Denver grants worth $24 million for migrant shelters. The Federal Emergency Management Agency awarded Denver $32 million to cover what the city spent to house and take care of the roughly 43,000 migrants who came to the city between 2022 and 2024, and has already sent the city $8 million. But the Trump administration followed through on its threat to sanctuary cities by canceling the remaining $24 million. — The Denver Post ? Denver leaders say Civic Center Station should be renamed for “Gang of 19” activist Wade Blank. The Rev. Wade Blank headed the most prominent group of disability advocates in the 1970s, including leading the revolutionary protest that saw wheelchair users stopping RTD buses to force some of the first accessibility rules for public transit.— Denverite Aspen-area fraudster gets prison for “callousness and heartlessness.” Repeat offender Ron Wallace, 68, was first convicted of fraud in the early 2000s for selling European wine futures to businessmen and athletes and using the money to make Ponzi scheme payments, before switching to defrauding people looking to invest in a CBD company and defrauding the PPP loan system.— BusinessDen ? A tale of two cities: Homeless reports back opposing ideas in Denver, Aurora. “Homelessness ends with a home,” the Colorado State of Homelessness Report 2024 said, in no uncertain terms, backing a housing-first model in Denver. Meanwhile, across the border in Aurora, a privately funded report by the free-market think tank the Common Sense Institute supports a tiered system that would require employment, sobriety and other preconditions before providing permanent housing.— Westword?=source has article meter or paywall
Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler
THE OPINION PAGE
COMMUNITY
AmeriCorps cuts will harm Colorado nonprofit programs and send a devastating message to our young people. No matter what you know about AmeriCorps, it has almost certainly touched your life here in Colorado.— Christine Benero, President and CEO of Mile High United WayThe Colorado Sun is a nonpartisan news organization, and the opinions of columnists and editorial writers do not reflect the opinions of the newsroom. Read our ethics policy for more on The Sun’s opinion policy and submit columns, suggest writers or provide feedback at opinion@coloradosun.com.
SunLit
REVIEW
“Bitter Creek” tells many faceted story of Rock Springs Massacre
Author Teow Lim Goh ventures into the epic poetry realm to tell the decadelong story of labor unrest in the Union Pacific coal mines in the 19th century — and the anti-Chinese violence that erupted amid a miners strike. In “Bitter Creek,” she touches on all points of view reflecting both empathy and deep research into the Rock Springs Massacre in Wyoming that claimed 28 lives. Think you’re not that into poetry? Read the excerpt and think again.
READ AN EXCERPT
Interview with the author. When Teow Lim Goh drove through Rock Springs in her early 20s, before she’d become a writer, she remembers experiencing a “strange feeling.” Years later, she returned to that location to research what would become “Bitter Creek.”Section by Kevin Simpson | Writer
Don’t forget to RSVP to tonight’s conversation on what’s next for Colorado’s schools. Have a great Tuesday!
— Olivia & the whole staff of The Sun
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