(You can listen to this column, read by the author, here.)
Hubris? Arrogance? Disdain? Contempt? What word describes the attitude of the Colorado legislature towards to those who elected them. What explains their actions?
Long time political strategist Eric Sonderman described it to me in three simple words. “Because we can.”
How can senator Chris Hansen run for reelection knowing that as soon as he wins, he’ll resign to take a half-million dollar a year crony job at a power utility? Well, because he can.
How can the governor who campaigned promising to massively cut special interest tax breaks instead create an avalanche of new ones, enough to drain the budget of all TABOR surplus money? Again, because he can.
How can they pass environmental mandates they know full well are unachievable and will economically destroy the state in the name of their virtue signaling? Because they can.
And for God’s sake how can they exempt themselves, and only themselves, from large portions of Colorado’s Open Meetings law? Because they can!
There are over 5,000 governments and special districts throughout Colorado. And none of them, sans one, can have secret meetings to discuss legal changes. None of them, sans one, can pass secret, disappearing electronic messages about public business. Only the legislature has this new, secret-police power of privacy thanks to their recently passed Senate Bill 157, sheepishly signed into law by Jared Polis.
And within weeks after passage lawmakers put their newfound powers of darkness to work. During the summer special session on property taxes, their closed meetings and secret communications made their negotiations opaque. In old school C
hicago political style, we found out what happened after all the deals were cut.
Not insulting enough for you? The new law calls for the executive committee of the legislature to hold a performative meeting to chat about their new dark powers and to take public comment. So, when do they choose to have this meeting? Well of course on one of the darkest days, the one before New Year’s Eve, arguably the most inconvenient time for citizens to involve themselves.
As the perfect way to say goodbye to 2024, I just had to go watch this middle finger to their constituents. Over 30 folks representing a wildly diverse groups shared their anger and disgust of the legislature’s hubris. Not even one of them had a pleasant thing to say about SB-157 and being shut out of watching policy being made.
To put an exclamation point behind their disdain for open government, the prime sponsor of SB-157, House Speaker Julie McCluskie, had the audacity to say she “remains committed to values around transparency and openness,” and that legislature is “doing all we can to facilitate good communication and healthy debate.”
She actually said this crap with a straight face.
“Committed to transparency” when it was her law that ripped it away? “Facilitating good communications and healthy debate” by scheduling the meeting to review her law for the last day of the year? She was like a kid who swears to his parents he didn’t get into the cookie jar yet has crumbs all around his mouth.
Something positive has come out of this insult to open government. It spurred the Independence Institute, which I run, to bring together the most interesting coalition I’ve ever seen, “Team Transparency” if you will.
Our offices serve as the meeting place for a growing lineup of odd bedfellows to design a change to Colorado’s Constitution to not only reverse this law but to empower all Coloradans to witness their government in action.
When I say odd bedfellows, I’m not kidding. The Colorado league of Women Voters has almost religiously taken the opposite side of Independence Institute on issues. But they are active in this effort.
The Colorado Press Association is at the same table hosted by one of their biggest critics, me. The Colorado Broadcaster Association, the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition, alternative news outlets, citizen activists, civil rights attorneys and industry groups are making one of the most diverse and powerful coalitions for open government perhaps in the state’s history.
Our collectively decided mission is difficult but simple. To pass a constitutional amendment guaranteeing that Colorado governments conduct their business in full sunshine.
So, thank you Colorado lawmakers for your offensive overreach to hide public business from the public. Your arrogance was the spark that ignited this effort.
Jon Caldara is president of the Independence Institute, a free market think tank in Denver.
