News roundup for March 17, 2010

Good morning. Today we begin a daily feature on the Policy Matters blog, a roundup of news reports from around the state on issues of interest to the Colorado Center on Law and Policy. The same information has been distributed internally, to our staff, each weekday for about the past month. Now we're sharing the compilation on our blog. Our hope is to provide a one-stop shop for people who want to be informed on these issues, and to stimulate discussion about solutions to the problems highlighted in news stories.

Listing a news story here doesn't mean we endorse its content. In some cases, we might reply to a news account we consider particularly misleading. The comments section with each blog post is your chance to do the same thing.

Remember, the blog software offers a number of ways to have the weekday news roundup delivered to directly to you, so please take advantage of those features. Here's the news roundup for Wednesday, March 17, 2010.

FISCAL POLICY
The Denver Post: Colorado officials make pitch in D.C. for education grant
Colorado's bid for a chunk of the $4.4 billion Race to the Top education grant came down to the final push Tuesday, as representatives from 16 finalist states made their last pitches here before the federal grants are awarded early next month.

Boulder Daily Camera: CU regents will vote on tuition March 29
University of Colorado regents will vote March 29 on a 9 percent tuition increase for in-state students.

Colorado Pols opinion: Amazon "Job Loss" Fiction Continues
We're not unsympathetic to any loss of income in these tough economic times, to be sure, but we don't know anybody who would consider the loss of seven dollars a month to be a "lost job" in any realistic sense of the term.

Fort Collins Coloradoan commentary: State abusing power with tax measure
In the early days of promoting my books, I had an Amazon associates account. I did not utilize it to the degree some Colorado business people did, but many wound up making that program a substantial part of their business model, some generating hundreds of dollars a month through affiliate sales with Amazon. Now, that income stream has abruptly dried up, leaving the affiliates looking to make up the earnings.

Longmont Times-Call editorial:Another school district moves to 4-day weekIt’s no secret that school districts around the state are facing financial challenges.


ECONOMY
The Denver Post: Mountain states slower to snap back in this recession, report finds
The current recovery is challenging the Mountain West's reputation for accelerating out of recessions faster than the rest of the country, according to the most recent "Mountain Monitor" from the Brookings Institute.

Colorado Springs Gazette: Springs faring better than many as region's economic recovery spreads
Colorado Springs is weathering the economic crisis better than many cities in the six-state mountain region, according to a survey of conditions in the fourth quarter of last year.

Fort Collins Coloradoan: Education proves recession proof
Fort Collins and Boulder are two of the top performing metro areas in the Mountain West as well as the best educated, according to Mountain Monitor study.

Grand Junction Sentinel: GJ economy lagging, but moving, report says
The Grand Junction economy was one of the worst performing in the Intermountain West over the last year, according to Brookings Mountain West, a partnership of the Brookings Institution and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.


HEALTH POLICY
Denver Post editorial: A new low for health care bill?
House Democrats are weighing use of a so-called "self-executing rule" to pass — without actually voting on — the health care bill the Senate squeaked through on Christmas Eve. A leading legal scholar says such a move is unconstitutional. We think, at the very least, that it's an affront to our representative form of democracy.

Denver Post commentary: We can't afford to wait on health care
John Q. Public, out of work and without health insurance, awakes with a life-threatening asthma attack. He must go to the emergency room or may call 911. He gets "stabilizing" treatment. And who pays his bill? Care to guess? We do not have time to complete all those actions above before implementing reform. Now is the time. Who will realize the necessary savings while John Q. waits, and we pay?

Colorado Springs Gazette: Health care report: Middle-class Coloradans slipping through the cracks
The wealthy are likely to have access to health insurance or can pay for their own coverage. The poor can find relief through government programs like Medicaid. It’s America’s middle class that’s falling through the cracks faster than any other group, according to a report released today by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, a nonpartisan independent philanthropy that focuses on health care issues.

Huffington Post Denver: Does Defeating Marilyn Musgrave Give Betsy Markey the Okay to Vote "No" on Health Care Reform?
Rep. Betsy Markey voted against the initial House bill on health care reform. She voted "no" when it was clear that the bill would pass the House. After considerable thought, I would be dismayed if Markey's upcoming vote was about political positioning rather than a vote of her convictions.


Fort Collins Coloradoan: Poll: Majority of 4th District voters oppose health-reform bill
A majority of 4th Congressional District voters oppose the health-care reform bill the House is scheduled to vote on this month, according to a poll released Tuesday by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which also opposes the effort.

Grand Junction Sentinel commentary: Local chamber should speak for itself on health care reform
While the national Chamber of Commerce continues to resist these reforms, local chamber members should send a message to the Washington lobbyists that Coloradans can speak for themselves about health care reform.

Grand Junction Sentinel editorial: House may Slaughter Constitution’s rules
Regardless of one’s views on health care reform, all Americans should be appalled at this maneuver. We hope 3rd District Rep. John Salazar will have the political courage to oppose it.



SELF SUFFICIENCY
Denver Post commentary: Halt the return of local rent control
Colorado may still have an alarming number of homes and rental properties in foreclosure, but at least the state is well positioned for an eventual rebound in housing investment.Naturally, some lawmakers are determined to change that happy prospect.