We have to protect the places that all of us love. I am working to ensure Coloradans have clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, and clean energy to power their lives.
Action to Address Climate Change
I was a strong advocate in the Assembly for environmental reforms that will address and mitigate the impacts of climate change in our state.
Two efforts I sponsored included a bill to increase Coloradans’ resiliency in the face of increasing wildfires through reforms to the insurance claims process, and a bill to diversify the governance of our rural electrical co-ops, enabling more renewable energy options for hundreds of thousands of rural Coloradans.
Additionally, I advocated for and voted YES on other key environmental legislation, including:
- Wildfire prevention and mitigation: With more and more severe wildfires a virtual certainty in our state, the 2022 Assembly passed a slew of innovative bills to prevent wildfires and mitigate their damage.
- Historic Air Quality Investments: We made a record $111 million investment to improve Colorado’s air quality through immediate emission reduction strategies and air quality monitoring (HB22-1362), deploying clean transportation initiatives such as electric-powered school buses and e-bike sharing programs, and incentivizing the reduction of emissions (SB22-193).
- Protections From Air Toxics: Toxic air pollution leads to poor health and higher risks for disease and cancer. We passed legislation to reduce toxic pollution from harmful chemicals by establishing health-based air quality standards for hazardous air pollutants (HB22-1244).
- Water Saving Incentives: HB22-1151 requires the Colorado Water Conservation Board to develop a statewide financial incentive program for voluntary turf replacement for homeowners, local governments and nonprofits. It will save Coloradans money on their water bills and reduce water use in metro areas, while promoting the innovative landscaping industry.
- Seasonal Free Public Transit: We invested $10 million in the Revitalizing Main Streets grant program for communities to provide free transit rides during ozone season, which will improve air quality through increased use of public transit (SB22-180).
- Producer Responsibility for Recycling: With the passage of HB22-1355, Colorado became the first state in the country to create a fully producer-funded and operated statewide recycling system for consumer-facing packaging and printed paper.
- Waste Diversion and Circular Economy Development Center: HB22-1159 will help local businesses overcome supply chain challenges by creating new end markets for recycling and composting. It will attract remanufacturers and entrepreneurs to the state while creating local jobs.
Looking forward, I hope to work with my colleagues from both rural and urban districts to bring solutions to bear on Colorado’s water crisis.
