CDOT wants yet more fee dollars. We'll all try to act surprised. Easy tells that a news source leans left. Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring
CDOT wants yet more fee dollars. We'll all try to act surprised.
I posted back on Dec 6th about CDOT wanting to raise more money that was outside of the TABOR revenue cap.
I'll repeat a quote from that newsletter (linked first below) for reference:
"CDOT Executive Director Shoshana Lew told the CTC [Colorado Transportation Commission] on Wednesday that the department could look at turning more of its programs into enterprises that are funded by fees rather than general-fund transfers. While that would stop the flow of general taxpayer funding to them, making those areas exempt from Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights revenue limits, it also would mean they wouldn’t count against the budget cap and be subject to future raids."
Fast forward with me now to the present, specifically a CBS news article linked second below.
In that article you'll read about how CDOT is asking the legislature for a deal. A fantastic deal for you and I: they want to increase the "Bridge and Tunnel Enterprise" fee by $8, but, they'll drop the FASTER fee you pay when registering by $11.**
Quoting the CBS article:
"Three and a half years after Gov. Jared Polis signed a bill enacting nearly $4 billion in new fees for roads and bridges, the Colorado Department of Transportation is asking for more fees. CDOT Director Shoshana Lew asked the Joint Budget Committee to increase a fee drivers pay to the Bridge and Tunnel Enterprise by $8 per vehicle, saying the enterprise has drastically improved the condition of the state's bridges because its fees are designated solely for that purpose."
And then later in the article:
"Which is why she [CDOT Director Shoshana Lew] wants to start a new enterprise for road maintenance. It would be funded by an additional 3 cents a gallon fee on special fuels, including diesel, to generate $20 million a year. Right now, taxes and fees on diesel add up to about 25 cents a gallon in Colorado. The new enterprise would also receive revenue from a new fee on electric trucks that is yet-to-be-determined. In exchange, CDOT says, it will lower a road safety surcharge -- or FASTER fee -- drivers pay by $11 a year, which would save the state about $65 million."
Sounds good to me! Add an $8 fee and drop the $11 one? Sure!
Too bad for those diesels though, hard luck that. Diesel drivers, truckers, and farmers all have tons of money hanging around as it is.
As is noted in the article, it isn't just the dollar amount, it's where the dollars come from.
An enterprise (either new or one that charges a higher fee) is exempt from TABOR. So whether CDOT funds highway repairs by increasing an existing fee or by making a new enterprise, the dollars going into that can increase and pile up without limit.
And don't be so foolish as to think that the lower rate now won't go up later.
Just like she said she wanted to do earlier in the month, CDOT's director is up in front of the legislature offering a deal: give us more money, and give it to us in a way that is exempt from TABOR.
And all of this on top of SB260 which enlarged and/or created other enterprises. That delivery fee you pay on everything? That was part of it. Sure, you remember SB260, the one that Polis said was to "fix our damn roads".
I guess now is the time that we are all supposed to feign surprise.
I keep my eyes and ears open. If and when this comes up as a bill, I'll update. If you hear before you see it on my page, buzz me and let me know.
**Quick side note: in that same Dec 6 newsletter you can read about how Gov Polis shifted money AWAY from highway repair and over to bus service. If they're that interested in maintaining highways, ... but I digress.
\https://open.substack.com/pub/coloradoaccountabilityproject/p/battery-trains-no-not-battery-powered?r=15ij6n&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/cdot-impose-new-fee-diesel-fuel-colorado-department-transportation-concerns/?utm_campaign=snd-autopilot
Easy tells that a news source leans left.
I corresponded by email with someone who asked me how it was that you can determine left-of-center or right-of-center in a news org.
I wrote up an op ed on the topic. It's linked below.
Got a list of "tells" for left-leaning bias in news? Add to the comments if you feel so moved. Would be curious to hear.
https://pagetwo.completecolorado.com/2024/11/25/gaines-easy-tells-news-source-leans-left/
Related:
Corey Hutchins, journalism professor at Colorado College (among other things), wrote about my op ed in one of his Substack newsletters which I link to below.
Quoting (with links and bolding left intact):
"Cory Gaines, a writer for Complete Colorado, the news and commentary arm of the nonprofit libertarian-leaning Independence Institute, believes one way to 'easily identify a left-leaning news source' is if its writers use 'person centered language.' (The Gazette in Colorado Springs and Colorado Politics might be surprised to learn some might view them as 'progressive' news outlets since their reporters have used the phrase “people experiencing homelessness” and 'individuals experiencing homelessness' in news coverage.)"
I thought this worth a mention here because it shows what I believe to be a common misconception. Outlets can have a lean, and news orgs can have a lean. This lean can be completely independent of the editorial board and/or other reporters.
The Gazette being one of them. Wall Street Journal another.
Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring
Last post til after Christmas. I'll be taking a few days off to enjoy the holiday and rest up. I hope you get a chance to as well. Should be back by the weekend.
In the tradition of the last post before a break being one that doesn't involve politics, I present you with one of my favorite pieces of Christmas music: Bach's Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring.**
I have heard all sorts of versions of this song, from instrumental, to arrangements for single instruments, to versions with a chorale singing in English.
The version linked below has an arrangement originally for flute and guitar, but the artists adapted it for guitar and cello. I liked the combo (nothing like a warm cello) so I linked to it below.
Enjoy and have a Merry Christmas if you're celebrating!
**Bach's a favorite in general -- go check out Brandenburg Concertos.
When a news source routinely informs it's consumers that a politician or organization is "right leaning," "Republican," "Trump supporting," etc, but rarely mentions such a descriptor of democrats or leftists, especially when it comes to negative stories, it's a clear tell. Also, the frequent use of "far-right," invariably tied to individualist or small government (or anti-big government) political positions.