Peter Marcus

Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper on Thursday called a special session of the legislature to address civil unions legislation and six of the 30 other bills condemned to death after House Republicans allowed the bills to languish on the calendar before a midnight deadline on Tuesday. The highly criticized GOP strategy was purportedly aimed at killing a controversial proposal to allow same-sex couples to have similar legal protections as traditional married couples.

Gov. John Hickenlooper joined with legislative leaders and members of the Joint Budget Committee on Monday, May 7, to sign the state budget for fiscal year 2012-13, praising lawmakers for having passed a budget with more support than it has received in 17 years.

The $7.7 billion General Fund spending plan — part of a $19 billion overall budget — was backed by 86 of the 100 lawmakers who serve in the legislature, a reflection of Colorado’s willingness to work across the aisle to pass important measures for the state, according to Hickenlooper.

Latino voters in Colorado may target Republicans in politically vulnerable legislative districts following a controversial vote last month by the GOP caucus that killed legislation aimed at providing reduced tuition rates to undocumented students.

Gay and lesbian couples on Thursday hugged their partners closely with tears of joy streaming down their cheeks, as a “courageous” Republican member of the GOP-controlled House Judiciary Committee agreed to break rank and swing her vote the Democrats’ way to allow same-sex civil unions in Colorado.

Rep. Jerry Sonnenberg, a Republican from Sterling, has found himself at odds with his own district over a proposal to prohibit the distribution of severance tax dollars to local governments that restrict or delay oil and gas operations.

The Eastern Plains lawmaker is unapologetic in defending his House Bill 1356, calling Sterling government officials “greedy” for opposing the measure. He says it is about property rights and limiting government spending, while encouraging oil and gas development across the state.

Federal and state proposals to regulate the oil and gas industry intersected Wednesday at the state Capitol with hearings which addressed rising concerns over hydraulic fracturing practices.

A rare field oversight hearing of the U.S. House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources, led by the committee’s chairman, Colorado’s own U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colorado Springs, kicked off the marathon of mid-week debate, addressing draft federal regulations on the so-called “fracking” operations.

For the sixth time, undocumented Colorado students and their supporters watched with tears in their eyes as state Republicans shot down the latest attempt to offer the students reduced tuition rates.

Three Republican members of the Colorado congressional delegation have proposed three bills to streamline and enhance domestic energy production. But critics of the so-called “Three Stooges” of energy bills say the proposed legislation moves away from long-term solutions in the name of a quick political opportunity to attack President Barack Obama’s administration and Democratic proposals in a tightly contested election year.

A bill aimed at increased oversight over public trustees in Colorado was dramatically altered on Monday to retain the state’s governor-appointed public trustees, but would still require more local and state oversight over how they conduct operations.

Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper likes to brag about Colorado’s bipartisan approach to politics, often saying, “Unlike Washington, D.C., we have shown the rest of the country that Colorado is a place where things get done.”