“Put our money where our mouth is”: Colorado Democrats’ internal debate over unions 

The internal battle among Democrats at the Colorado Capitol over how pro-union the party should be escalated this week when Colorado Democratic Party Chairman Shad Murib spoke at a labor rally in the foyer outside of Gov. Jared Polis’ office.

“I’m very proud to be here with all these Democrats — our brothers and sisters in labor — to make sure that we put our money where our mouth is,” said Murib, who was the closing speaker at the Tuesday event.

The labor movement’s relationship with Democrats has been on the rocks in recent years, hitting a low point at the end of the 2024 legislative session when Polis vetoed three of their priority bills. During a May protest on the steps of the Capitol, hundreds of demonstrators shouted “shame on Polis!,” some wearing “Polis failed workers” T-shirts as they gathered under a banner that said “Governor Polis turned his back on us.”

“Colorado Democrats performed uniquely well in this election,” state Rep. Javier Mabrey, D-Denver, said Tuesday, “and this is where we get a chance to put up or shut up. Which side are you on, Colorado Democrats? The power is completely in our hands.”

The rally was built around unveiling a bill that will be introduced during next year’s legislative session that would make it easier for unions to organize in Colorado.

The bill would drop a barrier before unions and employers can negotiate whether all employees should have to pay representation fees to the union, whether they are part of the union or not. Right now, those negotiations can only happen after a vote of employees, and it requires as much as 75% support to pass.

That vote is in addition to the simple majority vote required to form a union in the first place. The requirement is unique to Colorado and is part of the Labor Peace Act, a 1943 state law.

BUSINESS IS ALREADY PUSHING BACK

The business community is already chafing at the proposed changes to Colorado’s labor laws.

“The Labor Peace Act has been a cornerstone of Colorado’s economic success for decades,” J. J. Ament, president and CEO of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, said in a written statement. “To unravel this proven compromise now, while our economy is still recovering, is reckless. This isn’t just bad for businesses — it’s bad for Coloradans. Forcing employees to pay into unions increases costs for workers already struggling to make ends meet. We’re fighting for everyday Coloradans who need stability, and we’ll fight vigorously to protect the Labor Peace Act and keep Colorado competitive.”

Daniel Ryley, vice president of economic competitiveness at the chamber, said the first question businesses looking to relocate to Colorado ask is about the state’s so-called right-to-work status.

In right-to-work states, employees never have to join a union or pay union fees as a condition of their employment. Colorado isn’t a right-to-work state, but the second-vote barrier makes it more difficult for unions to require that employees pay for representation whether they are part of the union or not.

“Between 2018 and 2023, Colorado’s average annual employment growth rate of 1.5% was more than three times that of non-right-to-work states,” he said in a statement. “At its core, the Labor Peace Act supports a thriving environment where businesses, employees and communities can succeed together.”

Assuming the union fees bill passes, Polis will once again be caught between the wishes of his party and his free-market leanings. The governor expressed early skepticism in a statement released by his office.

Polis “is leery of the need for a new bill to open the Labor Peace Act that serves the state and workers so well,” said Shelby Wieman, a spokeswoman for the governor.

“Any changes to the Labor Peace Act would need to find common ground with employers and businesses and labor, and the governor is deeply skeptical of this bill without a heavily negotiated, thoughtful and comprehensive process,” she added.

ANALYSIS: The relationship between Polis and Murib is something to keep an eye on. They have a personal and professional history. Murib served as a legislative assistant to Polis when he was in Congress, and was policy and research director for his 2018 gubernatorial campaign.

When Murib and Polis aren’t on the same page, it’s a bit more complicated than just two high-profile Democrats disagreeing.

• Democrats are planning a bill to remove Colorado’s unique barrier to union organizing. But Gov. Jared Polis is “leery.”
  — The Denver Post 🔑

THE BILLS POLIS VETOED

It’s unclear which of the bills Polis vetoed this year that may return in 2025. They were:

• House Bill 1008, which would have created new wage theft protections for construction workers, making general contractors liable for wages owed by their subcontractors. Polis argued it would have let subcontractors off the hook for bad behavior, and increased the cost of construction by passing the financial burden on to general contractors.
• House Bill 1307, which would have prohibited school districts from using federal money to hire HVAC contractors who aren’t certified by the state Department of Labor and Employment. Polis said it would have made it harder for rural schools to apply for grants, noting in his veto letter that more than a dozen counties lack state-certified electrical or plumbing contractors in their area. He also told The Colorado Sun he would have signed it if lawmakers had agreed to provide waivers to schools that made good-faith efforts to meet the new standards.
• House Bill 1260, which would have prohibited employers from disciplining workers who refuse to attend an employer-sponsored meeting that involves religious or political matters, with some exceptions. Polis said the bill was so broad it would have created a chilling effect on free speech and could have limited even businesses’ basic operational functions and work meetings.

House Bill 1307 was time sensitive and tied to federal dollars. Meanwhile, the National Labor Relations Board recently ruled that companies cannot force workers to attend meetings where employers express their views on unionization, making House Bill 1260 less relevant.

Negotiations around bringing back House Bill 1008 in a way that could win Polis’ approval are underway.

“We did meet with the governor and the governor’s team over the summer. We talked about a few things — seeing where we could possibly work with the governor’s team,” said Mark Thompson, senior representative for the Western States Regional Council of Carpenters.

Thompson said, however, that the two sides are “not on the same page.”

“This coming session, we’re not going to push a contractor liability piece,” he said. “We’re not going to go there.”

A wage-theft bill is still coming, Thompson said. But it would only allow workers who are victims of wage theft to file larger claims with the state.

YOU HEARD IT HERE

Bridges made the comment after state Rep. Shannon Bird, the JBC’s vice chair, reiterated a frequent plea for state officials to explain the effects of cutting programs in their departments. Bird, a Democrat from Westminster, said she hoped to make budget cuts “with a scalpel” to minimize the pain to Coloradans.

“As much as I would like to just cut with a scalpel, when we’re cutting as much as we are cutting out of this budget, there will be hatchets, there will be blood, there will be losses,” replied Bridges, a Democratic state senator from Greenwood Village. “I feel like lobbyists in particular and many of our colleagues have not gotten that — but this is going to be a bad year.”

THE POLITICAL TICKER

SENATE DISTRICT 31 VACANCY

Democrat Matt Ball, an Army veteran who works as the policy director for the city of Denver, intends to seek the vacancy appointment in Senate District 31 once state Sen. Chris Hansen, D-Denver, resigns.

“Last week, we woke up to the grim reality that Donald Trump will be our next President,” he said in a written statement. “This means it is all the more important that our elected officials protect our most vulnerable neighbors, as I’ve done throughout my career. Working for the city, I’ve seen how much there is to do on housing affordability, climate policy and mental health.

Meanwhile, Shaneis Malouff, chief of staff at the Auraria Higher Education Center, says she is now seeking the vacancy appointment to Hansen’s seat. She was initially planning to seek a vacancy appointment in House District 6 should state Rep.-elect Sean Camacho of Denver be selected to fill Hansen’s seat.

Also likely to seek the Senate District 31 vacancy appointment is state Rep. Steven Woodrow, D-Denver.

Hansen will resign Jan. 9, the day after the 2025 legislative session begins, as he becomes CEO of the La Plata Energy Association. A Democratic vacancy committee is expected to pick his replacement in early January.

MENASA CAUCUS

Legislative Democrats are launching a new joint caucus to represent Middle Eastern, North African and South Asian, or MENASA, communities as well as Muslims.

The Joint MENASA and Muslim Caucus will be led by Rep. Iman Jodeh of Aurora and Rep.-elect Yara Zokaie of Fort Collins. In a statement, Jodeh said it would also represent the interests of other religious communities from the region, including Sikhs, Hindus and Christians.

“This past year and an impending Trump administration has underscored the need to create a united caucus that ensures our community’s representation and presence is elevated and has an uncompromising agency at the Capitol,” Jodeh said. “Our region and population are unique because we are forced to identify primarily through religious narratives rather than our unified identities. It is time to challenge this monolithic framing.”

In 2020, Jodeh became the first Muslim and Palestinian American ever elected to the state legislature, while Zokaie will be the legislature’s first Iranian American, according to a news release announcing the caucus.

TRANSPORTATION

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis on Tuesday unveiled his Colorado Transportation Vision 2035, which sets goals for emissions reductions over the next decade. He didn’t provide many specifics on how he intends to accomplish the benchmarks. Here’s what they are:

• Reducing nonautomobile transportation emissions by an additional 1.2 million metric tons
• Doubling Colorado’s nonautomobile transportation trips to 19.2% from 9.6% 
• Increasing transit service miles to 145 million miles from the current 79 million miles
• Building 3,540 miles of new bicycle lanes, an 81% increase
• Creating 1,345 new miles of sidewalk, a 3.4% increase
• Ensuring 52% of new housing is built in transit-oriented areas

READ MORE

• Another Colorado state senator announces their resignation just after winning reelection to a four-year term
• Colorado marijuana sales — and tax dollars — are still falling. The rise of intoxicating hemp may be to blame.
• Colorado county clerk spent $4,000 on get-out-the-vote billboard with her name, face on it
• Feds release highly anticipated options for managing overstressed Colorado River in coming years
• Colorado’s incoming U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd wants to bring the BLM back to Grand Junction — and he’s found an unexpected ally
• 1 in 3 Colorado unaffiliated voters say both parties are out of touch
  — Axios Denver
• Coloradan tapped to lead Department of Energy likely to expand fossil fuel production, decenter climate change
  — The Denver Post 🔑
• Gov. Jared Polis explains his support for RFK Jr.
  — 9News
• Polis announces Colorado Transportation Vision: 2035 to reduce emissions
  — CBS Colorado
• Colorado to pay $1.5 million in same-sex wedding websites case
  — Colorado Politics 🔑
• Familiar faces: They’re new to Congress, but they’ve been here before
  — Roll Call
• How Denver’s mayor is responding to Trump’s threats to defund sanctuary cities
  — Denverite

🔑 = source has article meter or paywall

THE NARRATIVE

PERA board approves 20% budget increase

As state lawmakers look to make $1 billion in spending cuts, Colorado’s public pension board last week agreed to a $22 million increase in the Public Employees’ Retirement Association’s spending next year, about a 20% jump from this year’s $110 million operating budget.

PERA’s staff insist the large budget increase, which calls for an eye-popping 70 new employees, is badly needed and long overdue. Most of the money will be spent to begin modernizing the pension’s administration system, which manages the payroll, benefits and personal data of its 700,000 members.

The computer system PERA uses to track and pay out benefits is 40 years old — the oldest still in use by any public pension in the U.S., said Andrew Roth, PERA’s executive director. The system is so ancient, PERA has a hard time finding workers who know how to use it; those who do are nearing retirement, and younger workers no longer learn it through school or in training with other employers.

“We have the oldest system in the United States — that’s a risk,” Roth told The Colorado Sun in an interview. “That’s a pretty serious risk.”

If the technology fails, Roth said PERA could find itself in the position of needing to cut over 140,000 paper checks by hand each pay period. That adds up to more than $330 million a month in benefit payments.

The timing of the spending jump was not lost on the pension’s leaders. The state faces $1 billion in budget cuts next year that are expected to result in cuts to other PERA-covered employers, as well, such as K-12 school districts, colleges and universities.

Those agencies, in turn, are already contributing more than they ever have to the pension — and additional contribution rate increases are possible in the coming years. PERA is expected to complete its periodic review of its demographic assumptions early next year — an exercise that led to benefit cuts and contribution hikes each of the last two times it was completed in the last eight years.

PERA retirees, meanwhile, have seen their annual cost of living adjustments fall to just 1% — less than half the rate of inflation.

“A budget like this in a time of the state facing a deficit and our retirees experiencing a 1% COLA — we absolutely understand the optics of making this kind of request,” Roth said. “We wouldn’t do it unless we felt it was absolutely necessary.”

Roth, who previously worked for teachers’ pensions in Texas and California, told The Sun PERA began studying whether to update the system over a year before he was hired in May 2024.

“When’s a good time to make a major investment in our organizational capacity, in our pension administration system? I think an ideal time really would have been years ago,” Roth said. “I wasn’t here. The system wasn’t ready.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE

• Alaska’s ranked choice repeal measure fails by 664 votes
  — Alaska Public Media
• Kamala Harris’ loss has Democrats fighting over how to talk about transgender rights
  — The New York Times 🔑
• Pennsylvania lawmakers say candidates choose to pay $250 late fee to avoid revealing donors
  — The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 🔑
• Biden inks billion-dollar climate deals to foil Trump rollbacks
  — Politico
• No raise for California’s minimum wage workers as voters reject Prop. 32
  — CalMatters

🔑 = source has article meter or paywall

Corrections & Clarifications

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