Sunday 1/7/2022
Before adding to government, shouldn't what we have work already?
Before (or maybe at least at the same time as) we take on a bunch more new government agencies, shouldn't we make sure that the ones we already have are doing as they should?
That's going to be one of the questions I ask when I testify about bills that will grow Colorado's government, because, apparently, in the Progressive Democrat's rush to add to our state's government they've not thought to check so far.
Let me show you what I mean with a quote from the article linked below:
"The Colorado State Auditor's annual report on whether state agencies are tuning up their financial controls found nearly four dozen serious recommendations still haven't been implemented, some going back more than five years."
Want to know one of the worst offenders? Again, quoting:
"The agency with the largest number of those serious unimplemented recommendations - 17 in all - were in the governor's office, with two dating back a decade and a third that was first reported in 2014. Six of the most serious were designated as "material weakness," the most serious level of internal control weakness. A material weakness leads to concerns by the auditor that there is a "reasonable possibility of a material misstatement to the entity’s financial statements or of material noncompliance with a federal program requirement that will not be prevented, or detected and corrected, in a timely manner," according to the audit report."
Not all of this is Polis' fault (nor, to be fair the current crop of Democrats' fault either).
They, however, had a chance to do something about it when taking office. They didn't. Instead, they got busy adding yet more layers to the onion in this state. Layers that, while no one can predict the future, stand a decent chance of following in the footsteps of existing departments.
Your tax dollars at work.
https://www.coloradopolitics.com/governor/state-auditor-finds-state-agencies-delays-in-implementing-audit-recommendations-run-five-years-or-more/article_ec12d402-7a52-11ed-b4c1-9756f3412f39.html
A recommendation from a friend.
I have a friend who recommended the Facebook page below (and its associated regular website--both are linked below in that order). After poking around some, I thought it would be a good resource to share.
The part that I thought you might find particularly helpful, especially if you intend to advocate, is the "Liberty Scorecard". This is a rating and sort of "one stop shop" for looking at bills and legislators.
**Two notes:
1. You'll see that the scorecard so far is only up to 2022. The 2023 session has yet to start (starts tomorrow) so there's nothing to rate yet. However, if you subscribe, they will send you updates on new bills and etc. with their ratings. If you're not ready for that, you can follow their page. I did both.
2. It should be pretty obvious (if you doubt me, look through the 2022 ratings, or check their about us on their FB page below), that this is a conservative, Republican group. That may or may not synch entirely with your politics. I might still recommend you sign up. That way you can get a heads up on bills that might interest you, skip their commentary, and then go check out the bill for yourself. This is what I intend to (mostly) do.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/rlccolorado/?paipv=0&eav=Afa4YsfzoAJ5gXzQRw47SEfaRqKE0xFzB75t-3xSiE0goSpWuudk3SGH9yfC8L1TQg0&_rdr
https://libertyscorecardco.us/?fbclid=IwAR2iCOKn0GxKwgLYDmuzo8Java4WO5EBjeYRw4MjXu89oc56Sie_iAQlH0c#/
The Colorado Assembly Session Starts this week.
Quick reminder:
I think I've mentioned it a couple times now, but a post specific to this topic won't hurt.
The Colorado General Assembly session starts tomorrow. Like always, with the time limit, things will get going quick and stay going quick the whole session.
I included a link to the Assembly's webpage below and then took a screenshot (boxing the links I find particularly useful in red).
I am also going to follow up (again) with Assembly staff to try and get a phone list of committee meetings in case you, like me, can only attend remotely on your cell phone (or landline). Be watching for that!
If there is something I could help you with in terms of advocating (say, where to find my rep or how to sign up for testimony), please ask. I am not an expert on everything, but can tell you where to find the info you'll need (or someone who knows better than I do).
https://leg.colorado.gov/
