It isn’t very often that citizens are presented with the opportunity to lower their own taxes, but this November, the people of Colorado will have the chance to do just that. At the ballot box this year, Coloradans will be faced with Proposition 116, an initiative that would permanently lower both individual and corporate tax rates. Given the state’s relatively healthy financial state, it is positive to see legislators taking initiative to change the tax code to pass the benefits of alternative revenues on to the citizens in the form of tax cuts.

FreedomWorks is proud to honor Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) as our member of the month for October 2019. He is in his third term in the House of Representatives, serving since 2015 for Colorado’s 4th Congressional District, which encompasses the eastern third of the state, mostly east of Denver.

In the wake of the federal prison and sentencing reform legislation, the First Step Act, states that have not yet embarked on criminal justice reform as well as states whose reforms served as models for the federal legislation have moved in their 2019 legislative sessions to contribute to the momentum behind the shift toward smart-on-crime policies.

Many of the Democrats are critical of the Electoral College which elects the president of the United States of America. Instead of having a direct election of the president, there are electors representing each state. The number of each state’s electors is determined by the number of Senators and Representative in Congress.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit recently issued a ruling in a case on “faithless electors,” Baca v. Colorado Department of State, that has received some media attention. The case is certainly interesting and the opinion from the court is thoughtful and thorough. The opinion from the court is deserving of some explanation of what it could mean for 2020 and beyond. There has also been speculation of the decision’s impact on the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which is also deserving of explanation.

Radical changes to federal election law have become cause célèbre of Democrats. The House has already passed the For the Politicians Act, H.R. 1, on party lines. Although H.R. 1 has no chance of passage in the Senate, Democrats are discussing other changes to federal elections, including abolishing the Electoral College.

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The ObamaCare bailout provision is leading some health insurance companies to low-ball premiums to attract consumers during the open enrollment period, but they could be setting up enrollees for sharp cost spikes once the transitional section of the law expires after 2016.

In September 2009, during an interview with a local Fox affiliate, Sen. Mark Udall (D-CO) told Coloradans that "[i]f you have an insurance policy you like, doctor or medical facility that provides medical services to you, you'll be able to keep that doctor or that insurance policy." There was no ambiguity in his statement, just the same line that was repeated by President Obama and other Senate Democrats to help sell ObamaCare to a skeptical public.

Sen. Mark Udall (D-CO) has gone on record, once again, saying that he would he vote for ObamaCare all over again, if he had the chance. Not that it was ever in question, given that the Colorado Democrat has voted with his party 98 percent of the time.