Colorado electricity utilities — from the largest investor-owned corporation to rural electric cooperatives — are straining to meet reliability standards and state clean energy mandates as they face cost-spiraling economics and the threat of tariffs. … The signatories included the Colorado Chamber of Commerce, unions representing electrical workers and pipefitters, more than a dozen rural […]
In the News
Axios: Colorado braces for Trump tariff fallout
Colorado businesses, consumers and lawmakers are preparing for President Trump’s new tariffsto significantly damage the state’s economy. State of play: The state’s public companies lost about $44 billion in market value Friday, the Denver Post reports. And local business leaders are warning of further financial fallout. “Specifically for Colorado, which is already one of the […]
Colorado Politics: Colorado utilities voice concerns over accelerated carbon emissions reduction targets
Colorado utilities are concerned that they may struggle to meet the state’s carbon emissions reduction goals if the proposed bill, which has yet to be introduced, changes the current targets. The 2025 legislative session is nearing its final month. … Meghan Dollar of the Colorado Chamber of Commerce said that many of her members from […]
Denver Post: Gov. Polis, lawmakers consider plan to accelerate Colorado’s clean energy transition
Colorado lawmakers and Gov. Jared Polis’ office are weighing legislation that would require 100% of the state’s energy to come from clean sources by 2040 — 10 years earlier than the current target. The proposal is still being drafted and has not yet been introduced in the state House; its details were described to The […]
Denver Gazette: Colorado leaders, businesses brace for fallout from Trump tariffs
Colorado business and political leaders are bracing for the fallout following President Donald Trump’s new round of tariffs, expressing worries about higher prices and possible damage to the state’s economy, though some offered calibrated responses and noted robust sales in some areas as customers decide to buy goods now in anticipation of higher prices later. […]
Colorado Sun: Future of union organizing in Colorado remains fuzzy as legislative session enters home stretch
After about three months of negotiations, the future of union organizing in Colorado remains fuzzy as the 2025 lawmaking term slowly winds down. At stake is a roughly 80-year-old requirement in the Colorado Labor Peace Act that requires 75% of workers at a company to sign off before a union can begin discussions with an […]
Summit Daily: Colorado wage theft bill would strengthen worker protections, but critics say it’s overreach on small businesses
Colorado lawmakers are proposing sweeping reforms to the state’s wage theft enforcement laws to better protect workers from business malpractice — but some groups fear some provisions could put employers at a disadvantage. House Bill 25-1001, sponsored by Democratic lawmakers, attempts to make it easier for victims of wage theft to recover stolen wages through […]
Denver Post: Colorado labor bill may launch a ballot-box arms race as Gov. Jared Polis’ veto decision looms
A contentious proposal to change a provision of Colorado’s labor law is nearing a final collision point, with Gov. Jared Polis continuing to gesture at a veto and a new ballot measure ratcheting up pressure on negotiations between union and business leaders. … Loren Furman, the president and CEO of the Colorado Chamber of Commerce, […]
Colorado Sun: Colorado would become second state to limit when workers can be fired under union-backed ballot measure
Colorado would become the second “just-cause employment” state in the U.S. should a measure proposed by state union leaders make the 2026 ballot and pass. Initiative 43 would prohibit companies with more than eight employees from firing or suspending a worker without just cause, which is defined in the measure as substandard performance, material neglect, […]
Total Food Service: Colorado’s Restaurant Industry Seeks Lifeline Through Tip Offset Bill
Keeping a restaurant open and profitable has never been more difficult. Rising food costs due to inflation, ongoing supply chain disruptions, and a highly competitive labor market have created significant hurdles for restaurant owners across Colorado. Recruiting and retaining both front-of-house staff and kitchen employees has become increasingly difficult, especially as wage expectations grow and […]