Gov. Jared Polis set a new PR this year — in annual vetoes.
The governor, who finished his bill-signing tour Wednesday, rejected 11 measures passed by the legislature. That’s up from his previous record of 10 in 2023.
A look at the bills Polis vetoed by the numbers:
All but 3 were bipartisan. One passed unanimously. That was House Bill 1088, which would have limited how much ambulance services can charge for transporting patients. The bills with the most “no” votes that Polis vetoed were House Bill 1026, which would have eliminated health care copayments for Colorado prison inmates, and Senate Bill 5, which abolished a requirement in the Colorado Labor Peace Act that 75% of workers at a company sign off before unions can negotiate with businesses over union security. They both had 34 total “no” votes in the legislature.You can check out our veto list here.
We’ve written a lot about the fractured relationship between Polis and Democrats in the legislature. The higher number of vetoes this year is a direct reflection of that.
But the governor, speaking to reporters this week, downplayed the significance of his record year.
“It’s always about reviewing each individual bill and always doing what’s right for Colorado,” he said. “That’s what I was elected to do, and that’s my job as a co-equal branch of government. We review them legally, for policy and from stakeholders, and evaluate each bill before making a decision about whether it’s in the best interest of Colorado.”
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THE GOVERNOR’S SILVER LINING
Polis told reporters that his vetoes often aren’t the end of the conversation on bills. He pointed to several measures he rejected last year that came back with tweaks in 2025, such as the wage-theft measure and legislation around HVAC systems in schools.
“Usually, if you look through the letters on the vetoes, if it’s an idea I’m totally opposed to, I’ll say that,” he said. “That’s happened from time to time, but, more often than not, it has to do with specific aspects of the legislation. We want to work with legislators to figure it out.”
Polis said he is willing to work with lawmakers on bills he vetoed around rideshare safety and regulating the use of rent algorithms.
“There’s absolutely room for executive action and to legislate on rideshare safety,” Polis said. “We felt that the final bill was not in the best interest of Colorado and had a number of elements that need to be improved upon.”
On rent algorithms, Polis said “we’re open to versions of that legislation.”
Keep in mind, however, that Polis will only be governor for one more legislative session. Democratic lawmakers have signaled they may just wait until his successor takes office in early 2027 to try to tackle some of their pricklier issues again.
WHAT TO WATCH IN THE WEEK AHEAD
The Colorado Democratic Party today must report its fundraising and spending in May. The Colorado GOP, which is now on a quarterly reporting schedule, won’t have to file a campaign finance report until the middle of next month. The Wildfire Matters Review Committee meets at 9 a.m. Thursday at the Colorado Capitol.ELECTION 2026
Amie Baca-Oehlert on the anti-capitalism resolution adopted during her tenure leading teachers union
Democrat Amie Baca-Oehlert, who this week entered the crowded primary in the 8th Congressional District, is distancing herself from an anti-capitalism resolution adopted by members of the Colorado Education Association in 2023 when she was leading the statewide teachers union.
The resolution, pushed by a group of progressive teachers, said “The CEA believes that capitalism inherently exploits children, public schools, land, labor, and resources. Capitalism is in opposition to fully addressing systemic racism (the school to prison pipeline), climate change, patriarchy (gender and LGBTQ disparities), education inequality, and income inequality.”
Baca-Oehlert told The Colorado Sun this week that she was simply presiding over the union when its members passed the resolution. She pointed out that CEA’s members rescinded the resolution the following year. As president, Baca-Oehlert chaired the delegate assembly and did not vote.
She said the resolution reflected “a belief in the democratic process.” She advocated for “elected people coming together, sharing a view, debating it and voting on it.”
It was about “upholding the values and the processes of our democratic process, and that’s something that I believe in deeply,” she said. “I believe in the ability to give our members the autonomy, the voice to have public debate.”
The resolution is sure to become a talking point on the campaign trail, especially if Baca-Oehlert, a first-time candidate, wins the primary.
The race in the 8th District is expected to be fierce next year, as the contest could decide which party controls Congress. Tens of millions of dollars will pour into the district, and you can bet Democrats and Republicans alike will seize on any line of attack to try to gain an edge.
Former head of Colorado’s largest teachers union jumps into Democratic primary in 8th Congressional District Colorado Treasurer Dave Young jumps into crowded Democratic primary in 8th Congressional DistrictCONGRESS
Brittany Pettersen passes overdose grant bill out of House, falls short in attempt to save Medicaid addiction treatment program
Rep. Brittany Pettersen speaks during a tour of the St. Cloud Hotel on April 14, 2023, in Cañon City. (Mike Sweeney/Special to The Colorado Sun)U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen on Wednesday came up short in her effort to save a Medicaid program in Colorado that provides residential and inpatient care for people struggling with addiction as she passed a bill reviving a grant program aimed at stemming overdoses and treating substance use and mental health.
Pettersen sought to amend the grant program measure to protect Colorado’s so-called 1115 waiver program, which will be gutted if Republicans’ budget bill, currently being debated in the Senate, passes.
The program, which Pettersen helped create as a state lawmaker in response to her experience with her mother’s opioid struggles, allowed Colorado to expand Medicaid coverage to treat addiction in the hopes that it would offer cost savings in the long run by reducing the need for uncompensated emergency care. But the GOP budget bill would require that 1115 waiver initiatives like Pettersen’s be cost neutral up front, which would effectively shut down Colorado’s plan since it’s based on theoretical savings.
The state asked the federal government in December to extend the program, which is set to expire at the end of the year.
“It would decimate everything that we’ve done in Colorado,” Pettersen said of the Republican budget proposal’s effect on Colorado’s 1115 waiver addiction treatment program.
Pettersen’s amendment failed 213-213, with all four Colorado Republicans in the House voting against the change despite Pettersen’s lobbying.
The passage of the broader measure, H.R.2483, is still a win for Pettersen. If signed by Trump, it would mark her second bill to become law. The first came during her first term under President Joe Biden.
The lead sponsor of H.R.2483 is U.S. Rep. Brett Guthrie, a Kentucky Republican. Pettersen is the lead original cosponsor of the measure, which comes with hundreds of millions of dollars in grant funding.
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THE POLITICAL TICKER
ILHAN OMAR IN COLORADO
U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, was in Denver on Sunday for a fundraiser with a number of elected officials.
A flier for the event said it was hosted by Lisa Calderón, an unsuccessful candidate for Denver mayor, along with Democratic state Sens. James Coleman, Iman Jodeh, Cathy Kipp and Julie Gonzales. Democratic state Reps. Yara Zokaie, Junie Joseph, Lorena Garcia, Elizabeth Velasco, Jamie Jackson, Jennifer Bacon, Javier Mabrey and Andrew Boesenecker were also listed as hosts.
Republicans blasted Democrats for appearing at a fundraiser with Omar on the same day, and about the same time, as a man yelling “free Palestine” attacked a group trying to raise awareness about Israeli hostages taken by Hamas in October 2023.
State Rep. Anthony Hartsook, a Parker Republican, called Omar, a fierce Israel critic, a “notorious anti-Semite” and said in a written statement that the Democrats who raised money for her “should be ashamed of themselves.”
About the attack, Omar said on X: “Violence against anyone is never acceptable. We must reject hatred and harm in all its forms.”
PERSONNEL FILE
Kaylin Dines has been named chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen, a Lakewood Democrat.
Dines previously served as deputy chief of staff and communications director to U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo and as communications director for U.S. Rep. Jason Crow. She’s a Denver-area native.
ELECTION 2026
Democrat Gabriel Cervantes announced this week that he’s running to unseat state Rep. Jacque Phillips, D-Thornton, in House District 31.
Cervantes is on the board of the Adams County Young Democrats and he’s a cofounder of Six-Siblings Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to help students from diverse backgrounds.
Phillips was elected to the seat in 2024. She hasn’t filed to run for reelection yet.
ABORTION
On Tuesday, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., revoked a Biden-era guidance that directed hospitals to provide abortions to women in emergency situations as part of the 1986 Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, known as EMTALA.
Without the guidance, experts warn that doctors may be discouraged from performing emergency abortions in states with abortion restrictions, even when women are at risk of serious harm or even death. EMTALA is still on the federal books requiring hospitals that receive federal funding to provide emergency care to people regardless of their ability to pay.
Colorado lawmakers this year passed an EMTALA-like bill, which Polis signed into law last month, that directs hospitals to provide abortions in emergency situations. “We were explicit that emergency medical service includes abortion, if necessary, for example in the context of an ectopic pregnancy,” said state Sen. Mike Weissman, an Aurora Democrat and sponsor of the bill. “People in Colorado now have the protections that they have assumed that they can have under federal law going back to 1986, and we think that’s very important.”
Women with life-threatening pregnancies have been denied emergency abortions in several states since 2022 when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, which had guaranteed abortion access nationwide since 1973.
READ MORE
Polis ordered state labor department to turn over personal information after ICE subpoena, lawsuit alleges Colorado law requiring people buying guns to be 21 or older can stand, federal judge rules PERA could be the big winner of Colorado’s police funding deal. Here’s how. Colorado’s governor, a member of Boulder’s Jewish community, knows two of the people injured in Sunday’s attack Jared Polis signs bill aimed at reducing Colorado’s rape kit backlog— KUNC via the Colorado Capitol News Alliance As trial opens, Mike Lindell’s attorneys say he spread claims about Dominion official because he was “triggered”— The Denver Post ? How Boulder politics, culture shaped Sundance Film Fest win over Utah and Ohio— The Denver Post ? Some Colorado counties say they were shocked to be labeled “sanctuary jurisdictions”— 9News Former federal prosecutor Hetal Doshi to run for Colorado AG— Axios Denver Fearful House Republicans scramble to mollify Musk— The New York Times ? AmeriCorps must restore grant funding and members to states like Colorado that sued over cuts, federal judge rules— The Associated Press? = source has article meter or paywall
THIS WEEK’S PODCAST: Jared Polis, legislative leaders talk about what happened at the Colorado Capitol this year
COLORADO SUN
Meet Taylor Dolven, The Sun’s new politics and policy reporter
Taylor Dolven, The Colorado Sun’s new politics and policy reporter.Hello, Unaffiliated readers. Happy to be here in your inbox.
This is my first week as a politics/policy reporter at The Sun, where I’ll be reporting alongside Jesse and Brian. A few things you should know about me: I grew up in Colorado and therefore root for the Buffs, can find my way down a ski slope and went to Casa Bonita before it was cool (or when it was cool).
Most recently, I was a fellow at the University of Colorado’s Center for Environmental Journalism and before that I was a reporter at The Boston Globe covering transportation. I care deeply about our state and am looking forward to bringing you accountability journalism you can rely on. I’d love to hear from you about what needs digging into.
Send your tips to [email protected]. Looking forward to connecting with you!
Follow Taylor on X and Bluesky.
OH BRIAN, WHERE ART THOU?
While Brian Eason is staying on with The Sun, he’s moving to a part-time role with a focus on covering housing. So while you may not see him at the Capitol or JBC hearings, or his work in this newsletter quite as often, he’ll still be lurking around.
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Dems are quietly forming a think tank to help them win again— Politico If Andrew Cuomo has a regret, it’s resigning as governor— The New York Times ? Tulsa announces reparations for the 1921 “Black Wall Street” massacre— The Washington Post ? Utah has “moved mountains” to build new homes, Cox says. But we need to “move faster.”— The Salt Lake Tribune ?? = source has article meter or paywall
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