By Todd Engdahl, EDUCATION NEWS COLORADO

There was no good news about the future of state support for K-12 schools at the Joint Budget Committee’s Friday briefing on the Department of Education’s 2011-12 budget.

Committee staff analyst Carolyn Kampman told the panel and several other lawmakers who sat in that she recommends no increase for schools next year, and she also said lawmakers will need to adjust school finance law if they want to avoid a large mandated increase in schools spending starting in 2012-13.

Staff and committee discussion also indicated that some specialized education programs, specifically the Colorado Counselor Corps and the ASCENT fifth-year program for high school students, might be in the budget crosshairs during the 2011 legislative session.

The budget committee every December receives staff briefings on the proposed budgets for individual state departments in the upcoming budget year, which starts next July 1. It was CDE’s turn Friday.

Current “total program funding” for school operations is $5.4 million, down from about $5.6 million in 2009-10. The state is paying $3.4 billion of this year’s total. The executive branch has proposed a $91 million increase for 2011-12, an amount that won’t cover the costs of enrollment growth and inflation and which falls about $365 million short of what the traditional Amendment 23 funding formula would require.

The 2010 legislature passed a bill that allowed school funding to be reduced in 2010-11, using what’s called the “budget stabilization factor,” and that applies to the upcoming 2011-12 budget as well.

Because that factor currently is set to expire for the 2012-13 budget, “We have a big cliff coming,” Kampman told lawmakers. Returning to use of the previous funding system would require more than $700 million in additional state spending in 2012-13, according to the committee briefing document on CDE spending.

“Over the next five fiscal years, the General Fund appropriation would need to increase by more than one billion dollars,” the document continued.

Kampman suggested that the 2011 legislature consider extending the stabilization factor for one more year to avoid the $700 million cliff and that the 2012 legislature study more lasting changes. “For the longer term, staff recommends that the General Assembly consider making permanent changes to the school finance formula,” the briefing document says. (See pages 24-25 of the document for details.)

Next year might not be the best time to attempt permanent change, Kampman said, noting that there will be a new governor, many new legislators and that lawmakers have to deal with congressional redistricting. She also said the Lobato v. State lawsuit, which challenges the adequacy of state school funding, is scheduled to go to trial in August 2011. (Later in the day, the JBC got a closed-door briefing from the attorney general’s office about Lobato.)

Committee Vice Chair Rep. Cheri Gerou, R-Evergreen, noted, “2011-12 may seem like a walk in the park compared to what the next year will be like.”

Kampman also suggested that legislators be cautious about using the financially stressed State Education Fund, which is used to supplement general state school support and to fund some special programs.

Bernie Gallagher, another analyst who works on education spending, and Kampman also analyzed two special programs in their briefing paper.

The Colorado Counselor Corps is a $5 million program that’s in its final year of funding, although CDE has requested continuation of the effort. JBC staff last year recommended not funding the program, but lawmakers disregarded that advice. Gallagher said, “It’s difficult to determine if this program has had an impact.” (See pages 56-59 of the briefing paper for more details.)

The ASCENT program, created by the 2010 legislature, is a “fifth year” concurrent high school-college enrollment program. The current program had a projected participation of about 237 students at a cost of less than $2 million, but CDE projects it will balloon to 2,481 students and cost of $15.4 million next year. (See pages 33-40.) Kampman suggested capping enrollment at a much lower level.

On other matters, Kampman and Gallagher recommended that the legislature consider clarifying state law on the conversion of private schools to charter schools and on the use of contract schools.

A key function of JBC briefings is for members to raise questions they’d like a particular department to answer at a subsequent budget hearing. Committee members Friday racked up a long list, giving CDE staffers plenty to do before the department’s hearing at 1:30 p.m. next Friday, at which CDE executives will discuss those issues with the committee.

Among the issues raised Friday were queries about the cost of CSAP tests, the tab for expanding tests to include social studies, enrollment shift patterns between districts, spending on full-day kindergarten and preschool programs, the success of the Closing the Achievement Gap program, the health of the State Education Fund, charter school conversions, contract schools and the BEST school construction program.

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By Todd Shepherd, COLORADO NEWS AGENCY

As economic activity has failed to significantly pick up during 2010, Colorado is among numerous states borrowing from the federal government to cover deficits in its unemployment insurance fund.

Original reports in the late spring of this year indicated that the state had borrowed roughly a quarter of a billion dollars to shore up the fund. That figure now stands at $368 million, according to a U.S. Treasury website.

When measured on a per-capita basis, Colorado is not as deeply in hock as several other states. However, the prospect of continued borrowing still has some legislators concerned. The loans will begin to accrue interest beginning in January.

A June evaluation of the fund by the state auditor noted that the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment had not fully investigated options for deferring interest, and that by not doing so, Colorado businesses were at risk for making up the difference through higher premiums:

Statute requires interest costs on federal loans to be paid by employers. Because Colorado’s loan will likely be outstanding for more than three years, employers in the State will incur two costs: (1) interest accrued on the loan beginning on January 1, 2011, and (2) a decrease in the federal tax credit (i.e., FUTA tax credit) beginning in late 2012. These additional costs will be levied on employers while recovery from the current recession is still occurring. Federal law and regulations offer states options for deferring interest costs on loans, which could help Colorado employers.

Cher Haavind, spokeswoman for the labor department, said that several months ago, the department convened a stakeholder group comprised of business and labor representatives to address fund-solvency issues.

“A deferred interest proposal, among other remedies, is part of the current discussion,” Haavind said. Additionally, she says the labor department has joined the National Association of State Workforce Agencies in lobbying the U.S. House’s Ways and Means Committee for an extension of interest-free borrowing.

GOP Senate Minority Leader Mike Kopp, of Littleton, says over the fall, Senate Republicans laid out an agenda that included weening the state off of federal “backfills.”

“We want to push back on the reliance on federal funds, so the senate (Republican) caucus is certainly ready to have that fight,” Kopp said.

Sen. Rollie Heath, D-Boulder, said the federal loans are troubling, but he argued that they served their purpose over the last year.

“The level of debt is only representative of the fact that that’s how much the citizens of Colorado got,” Heath said. “To do nothing for those folks, would have been more alarming.”

In recent weeks, businesses all across the state have faced rising unemployment insurance premiums to increase cash flows to the unemployment-insurance fund.

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LAW WEEK COLORADO

DENVER–A Colorado legislator has moved to a Denver personal injury law firm.

The Sawaya Law Firm announced Thursday the addition of Sen. Morgan Carroll, D-Aurora, reports the Denver Business Journal. Carroll, who is also chair of the senate judiciary committee, practiced 10 years with her mother at law firm Bradley & Carroll before joining the firm.

As a trial attorney, Carroll specializes in workers’ compensation issues and disability advocacy in the areas of Social Security, long-term disability and personal injury. As senator, she’s sponsored numerous bills calling for more regulation of quasi-government workers’ compensation entity Pinnacol.

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By Todd Engdahl, EDUCATION NEWS COLORADO

The Colorado legislature this year gave up its direct power to control college and university tuition, but the rates students may pay in the next five years indirectly still will be up to lawmakers.

The Colorado Commission on Higher Education Thursday unanimously approved tuition flexibility plans submitted by six higher education institutions and systems. Five of the plans contain “what-if” scenarios that suggest different levels of tuition increases depending on how much state support the 2011 legislature allocates to higher ed.

So the lower state support is, the more tuition may jump.

A law passed by the 2010 legislature allows college boards of trustees to raise tuition up to 9 percent a year for each of the next five years. (Traditionally, the legislature set tuition increase ceilings in the annual state budget bill.) The new law also allows colleges that want higher rates to ask permission from the CCHE. Those are the plans approved by the commission Thursday.

The commission votes don’t set future tuition rates, nor have any colleges and universities made official tuition decisions for 2011-12. The commission merely gave institutions authority to raise tuition more than 9 percent, and individual college boards won’t set actual 2011-12 tuition until next May or June.

“Nobody wants these tuition increases. What we have tried to do is set up a mechanism for colleges to respond if they have to,” said Rick Munn, director of the Department of Higher Education.

Gov. Bill Ritter has proposed $555 million in state support for higher ed in 2011-12, so that’s the base against which colleges have calculated their what-if tuition plans (see this story for background). Of course, that amount may change depending on state revenues, the proposals of the incoming Hickenlooper administration and, ultimately, the decisions of the legislature.

At a previous meeting, the commission approved flexibility plans for the Colorado State University System, Metro State College and Fort Lewis College (see this story for details). The Colorado School of Mines chose not to file an application.

The flexibility law requires colleges to have plans to maintain affordability for low- and middle-income students. While institutions have proposed a wide variety of affordability strategies, a common tactic is to earmark percentages of increased tuition revenue for financial aid and for student counseling and retention programs.

The plans are a sign of the accelerating shift towards state college pricing models that look more like those of private colleges – higher tuition, different tuition rates for different programs depending on cost and student demand and more individually tailored financial aid based on the needs of individual students.

Here are highlights of the flexibility requests approved Thursday:

University of Colorado System – The university won’t raise undergraduate resident tuition more than 9 percent if currently proposed levels of state aid for 2011-12 are approved. At a lower level of state funding, CU would raise tuition up to 9.5 percent. The system did not request permission for increases above 9 percent in budget years 2012-13 through 2015-16.

Community College System – The system won’t raise tuition more than 9 percent if state funding is approved at forecast levels, but it may raise 2011-12 tuition by 15.7 percent if state aid is 10 percent below what has been proposed. Also, depending on state support, the system wants the flexibility to raise tuition between 10.8 and 12.7 percent in 2012-13.

University of Northern Colorado – The university proposes average increases of 15 percent next year (ranging from 8 to 22 percent depending on program and credit hours taken), an average of 12 percent in 2014-15 and of 9 percent in 2014-15 and 2015-16.

Adams State College – Tuition could increase 11 percent annually through the five-year period if 2011-12 state support comes in at the forecast levels. If state aid drops by about 10 percent, Adams proposes a 25 percent increase next year, 20 percent in 2012-13, 12 percent in 2013-14 and 9 percent in 2014-15 and 2015-16.

Mesa State College – The college proposes keeping overall tuition increases below 9 percent if state funding is as expected. If state funding is more than 10 percent below projected levels, Mesa proposes to increase tuition .49 percent for each percentage that state funding drops. The college doesn’t expect increases of more than 9 percent for 2012-13 through 2015-16.

Western State College – The college is considering raising tuition by 11.6 percent a year during the five-year period if state funding is stable and by 16 percent a year if state funding drops by 10 percent or more.

The new flexibility system applies only to tuition for Colorado residents who are undergraduates. College trustees can set rates as they choose for out-of-state students and for graduate programs.

(See the bottom of this DHE page for links to the full financial plans for each college and system. Go here to read a new DHE detailed new report on tuition rates and fees in the current school year, and see a report on financial aid for Colorado students in 2009-10 here. Also see this table showing the change in tuition and fees from 2009-10 to 2010-11.)

Master plan, or master planning?

Now that a citizens’ committee has taken a year to develop a higher education strategic plan, the commission is going to take another year to decide how to implement it.

The commission Thursday formally adopted the strategic plan recently finished by a citizen committee as part of the CCHE’s new master plan for higher education. DHE staff also proposed that the commission develop more detailed plans to implement the broader goals suggest in the document, titled “The Degree Dividend.”

That sparked discussion among commission members about whether they were adopting a “master plan” or a system of “master planning.” Eventually they agreed to give themselves a Dec. 31, 2011, deadline for the additional work.

At any rate, the tuition flexibility law also requires CCHE to submit a plan to the legislature before the 2011 session starts, so “The Degree Dividend” was approved as that document and will be sent along to the Capitol.

Another delay for Westwood

For the second time this fall, the commission delayed a decision on whether to place for-profit Westwood College on “probationary accreditation.” The college has been placed on probation by its accrediting agency, the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges. The CCHE in October discussed whether to put Westwood on Colorado probation to align with the accrediting body’s action.

No decision was made then because the accrediting commission was to reconsider the Westwood case in November. Staff members told CCHE Thursday that the accrediting commission apparently has made a decision but won’t be announcing it until next week.

So, CCHE again decided to wait to act until after the national body’s decision is known. (See previous story about Westwood and CCHE.)

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By Peter Marcus, DENVER DAILY NEWS

More than 100,000 Coloradans could lose their unemployment benefits over the year and an estimated 8,863 Colorado jobs are at stake if Congress fails to act on extending unemployment benefits, according to a White House report released yesterday.

But Republicans say that without offsetting the $12.5 billion extension with cuts elsewhere, they simply won’t support the proposal, even if it comes back around through a compromise proposal.

The benefits expired on Wednesday, leaving 100,471 workers in Colorado facing the possibility of losing their temporary support over the course of the next year, according to the White House Council of Economic Advisers.

Colorado would have had 11,756 fewer jobs as of September 2010, and failure to act could cost the state 8,863 jobs by the end of the year, according to the White House report.

President Obama is in the process of negotiating with Republicans over extending both unemployment benefits and tax cuts enacted under President George W. Bush. Concessions could be made on extending tax cuts for the rich that could inspire Republican leadership to back extending unemployment benefits.

But Congressman Mike Coffman, R-Aurora, said yesterday that he will not vote in favor of a second proposal if costs are not offset. Coffman rejected the extension last week.

“A proposal would have to be fiscally responsible and not increase the deficit,” he said.

A spokeswoman for Congressman Doug Lamborn, R-Colorado Springs, said yesterday that she is not certain how Lamborn would vote on a second proposal, but said the congressman is not interested in adding to the nation’s $13.7 trillion debt. He also rejected the extension proposal last week.

“He believes the long-term solution to unemployment is to grow the economy through sound fiscal policies,” said Lamborn’s spokeswoman, Catherine Mortensen. “Congressman Lamborn is certainly sympathetic to those families struggling in the worst economy since the Great Depression, but he would rather help people find jobs than simply give them a government handout.”

Meanwhile, the Colorado AFL-CIO union has a message for both Coffman and Lamborn: “Don’t leave Colorado’s economy in the cold this December. Keep our communities and jobless families afloat …”

Workers say Congress should be focusing on the unemployed and not extending tax cuts for the rich. They say extending unemployment benefits will only add to the economy, whereas not extending the benefits could be disastrous.

“The domino effect of the unemployment insurance expiration will affect more than just the families of the unemployed,” says the Colorado AFL-CIO. “When jobless families are unable to pay their mortgage, buy groceries or generate tax revenue, local communities, businesses and governments all suffer.”

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STATE BILL COLORADO

State Rep. Paul Weissmann only thought he was out of the frying pan.

The outgoing Colorado House majority leader, who is term-limited, will return to the legislature in 2011 as a staff member. He’ll be chief of staff to the House Minority Leader-designee, Rep. Sal Pace, D-Pueblo.

The news was made public this morning. The full press release follows.

COLORADO
HOUSE DEMOCRATS
STATE CAPITOL

House Democrats Announce New Chief of Staff

DENVER – Minority Leader-elect Sal Pace of Pueblo announced this morning that Paul Weissmann of Louisville will be joining the House Democrats as their Chief of Staff.

Yes, that Paul Weissmann: former Senator, former Representative, and current Majority Leader serving with Speaker Terrance Carroll.

“I feel like we snagged the big one!” said Minority Leader Pace. “Few folks have the breadth of experience that Paul has. He will bring to our team his wisdom gleaned from years serving in both the House and the Senate, in both the minority and majority caucuses, and the most recent redistricting year.”

“Paul has managed the Blue Parrot restaurant in Lousiville for years, and he understands how to run government like a business, with an eye on the bottom line and balancing the budget. He is widely respected in the Capitol and among stakeholders for his commitment to bi-partisanship. His deep understanding of the issues and of legislative process, and his integrity and ethics make him a natural fit. It doesn’t hurt that like all good bartenders, he has a great sense of humor and an ability to listen to others. I’m so pleased he he’ll be on our team.”

# # #

In other coverage:

The Denver Post: With Democrats now in the minority in the state House, they could probably use a stiff drink or three. Problem solved.

Longmont Times-Call: State Rep. Paul Weissmann, a Louisville Democrat, is leaving the Legislature, but not the statehouse. Weissmann, who was barred by term limits from seeking re-election to his eastern Boulder County House seat, has been named the House Democrats’ chief of staff.

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By Todd Engdahl, EDUCATION NEWS COLORADO

“We’re doing a great job, we’re very efficient and, by the way, please don’t cut our budgets.”

That was the basic message distilled from a day’s worth of testimony Tuesday to the legislative Joint Budget Committee by leaders of the state’s colleges and universities.

Beyond that, college presidents were eager to tout their completion rates, growing enrollments of first-generation and minority students, increased cooperation with neighboring colleges and school districts, growing use of online instruction and their big economic impacts on their regions and the state.

All that was packed into the daylong annual hearing that the JBC devotes to the state’s higher education budget. It’s become an occasion for the leaders of individual colleges to show their faces to six of the legislature’s most powerful members and tout the strengths and unique features of their individual campuses. (Lots of other legislators, including several with colleges in their districts, dropped in and out of the hearing.)

While the tone of the presentations was generally upbeat, the longstanding financial challenges facing higher education hung over the meeting, and one president used her time at the microphone to talk about just that.

University of Northern Colorado President Kay Norton didn’t recite encouraging statistics about the university, tout new programs or introduce students to tell their personal stories.

She talked about money, or the lack thereof.

“Over the last 20 years or so we have seen a decrease in the percentage of the state budget that has been devoted to higher education.” Referring to comparative statistics from other states, Norton said, “We are number one in something – disinvestment in higher education” as measured by spending relative to state personal income.

“For a generation or maybe more than that we have been a low state support, low tuition and low financial aid state. … We have gotten away with it because of the mountains.”

Norton continued, “We are much more reliant on tuition than we used to be … as we have really been unable to rely on the state.

“You have to understand that the source of our revenue [now] is students. … That is a permanent change that we see happening. Although we aren’t necessarily thrilled by it, that is the reality of the world in which we operate.”

Although Norton was the only campus leader to focus her remarks on the financial situation, some other presidents touched on the issue.

Mesa State President Tim Foster said that higher ed funding really has been declining for 40 years, and “We knew that all we needed was a good recession to accelerate the defunding of higher education.”

Bruce Benson, president of the University of Colorado System, warned, “Further cuts will hurt higher education and have a devastating effect on the Colorado economy.” (Benson, always well armed with upbeat CU statistics and facts, held forth with a rapid-fire presentation that lasted about half an hour.)

Joe Blake, chancellor of the Colorado State University System, said, “Colorado ultimately has to decide what kind of future higher education system it wants.”

The discussion didn’t get into a lot of financial specifics, although there was some back and forth on the 2011-12 institutional allocations that have been approved by the Colorado Commission on Higher Education. (See this story for background.)

Higher education Director Rico Munn urged the committee to accept the proposal, saying, “This should be only a temporary allocation … until we can realize what the new normal is.”

Most presidents said they support the plan as a least-bad option, but Nancy McCallin, president of the Community College System, said, “I would respectfully disagree that the funding formula is OK.” She said the proposed formula penalizes fast-growing schools and is “very detrimental to our ability to sustain our institutions.”

Committee members got into the weeds on only one issue – whether Mesa State violated the legislature’s 2010-11 9 percent tuition increase ceiling by raising tuition for freshman 16 percent while keeping overall increases under the ceiling.

Denver Democrats Sen. Pat Steadman and Mark Ferrandino said they think Mesa was in the wrong, but Foster said, “We simply believe we complied with the footnote” that specified the ceiling.

(Asked about the issue earlier in the meeting, Munn said, “President Foster is very creative in how he runs Mesa State.”)

Who’s No. 1?

Committee members and others who sat through the daylong hearing might justifiably have been confused by the overlapping claims various presidents made about their institutions in presentations studded with terms like “fastest growing.” “record,” “only institution of its kind,” “largest,” “finest” and the like.

Consider this comments about online programs:

• “The only institution of its type in the entire nation.” – President Becky Takeda-Tinker of CSU Global Campus
• “We’re probably the leader in that.” – CU’s Benson
• “We didn’t give it a fancy name like Mesa State Global, but nevertheless it serves Western Colorado very well.” – Mesa’s Foster
• “We have the largest online enrollment in the state” – McCallin of the community colleges

Quotable, or at least amusing

• “Following CU is like following the proverbial elephant at the circus.” – Foster, who spoke after Benson
• Responding to a question about privatizing CU, “To really change it you probably need a scandal, and I’m going to do my damndest to prevent that.” – Benson
• “I came to Colorado … for a real sense of adventure in the wild, wild west.” – new Fort Lewis College President Dene Kay Thomas, originally from Minnesota
• “Our institutions of higher education are the horses that will help pull our economy out of the ditch it is in.” – Kyle Hybl, chair of the CU Regents
• “Does the Troy Tulowitski contract make you lay awake at night?” – Sen. Al White, R-Hayden, to UNC trustee chair (and Colorado Rockies owner) Dick Monfort
• “Absolutely.” – Monfort

Questions & Answers

The JBC prepares questions for college leaders ahead of time, and the answers are compiled into a briefing paper. Read it here.

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By Matt Masich, LAW WEEK COLORADO

DENVER — Gov. Bill Ritter’s appointment of his own legal counsel to a state district judgeship was strictly on the level, his office said Tuesday in response to a Law Week Colorado inquiry.

Ritter announced yesterday that he had named chief legal counsel Craig Welling to one of two open district judgeships in Adams County. Welling was one of the applicants interviewed by an independent seven-member nominating panel. The panel forwarded a list of six finalists for the two open judgeships, and from this list Ritter selected Welling and Walter Kiesnowski, Jr.

“It was an honor and a privilege to be able to appoint Craig to the District Court bench, in large part because of the quality of his analytical abilities,” Ritter said in a statement. “He is one of the best and deepest thinkers I know.”

Welling normally advises Ritter on judicial selections, but he was replaced in that role by a volunteer group of advisers.

“Craig was completely removed from this particular process so as not to create in practice or perception any unfairness or inappropriateness. He was not involved at all,” said Evan Dreyer, Ritter’s spokesman, in an e-mail to Law Week. “Additionally, just because Craig works for the Governor does not mean he should have been automatically disqualified from pursuing this opportunity. That, frankly, would have been unfair and inappropriate.”

Ritter made his decision based on criteria including judgment, intellect, analytical ability and temperament, Dreyer said.

Welling said he had been interested in seeking a judgeship for a number of years, and thought his civil litigation experience would add to the bench. He talked to Ritter before submitting an application, he said.

“I’m certainly not the first to apply who has worked closely with the governor,” Welling said. “I know he’s approached appointments where he’s known the candidate well objectively, and they’ve been appointed on their merits, not on their relationship with the governor.”

Welling was endorsed for the judgeship by three specialty bar associations, Ritter’s office noted — the Colorado Hispanic Bar Association (letter available here), the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Colorado and the GLBT Bar Association (letters available below).

APABA Endorsement — Craig Welling

GLBT Bar Association — Craig Welling

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By Peter Marcus, DENVER DAILY NEWS

Democratic State Sen. Chris Romer yesterday officially announced his run for mayor of Denver, highlighting a focus on the business community.

Hearing from local business leaders during a roundtable discussion prior to his announcement, Romer, D-Denver, listened to concerns about attracting more companies to Denver.

Jeff Bush, president and founder of CSI Recruiting, a Denver-based oil and gas industry staffing firm, said he would like to see the next mayor of Denver support tax incentives to attract companies to conduct business in Colorado. For Bush, part of the equation also includes easing restrictions on oil and gas exploration.

“I’d like to see both the City of Denver, as well as the State of Colorado, attract more companies here — more companies means more job openings, which means more revenue for my firm,” said Bush.

But Romer in 2008 pushed a ballot initiative that asked voters to increase the severance tax rate and eliminate a property tax credit enjoyed by the oil and gas industry — a proposal that was vehemently opposed by the oil and gas industry. Voters ultimately rejected the proposal.

Bush pointed out that his business and a significant amount of Colorado’s revenue is based on oil and gas exploration.

“There’s a few tried and true methods such as tax incentives and making it attractive to do business here by virtue of different legislation, different rules regarding oil and gas exploration, and also marketing,” said Bush. “I think that that’s a key point as well. Denver for a long time has had the impression that the cost of living is high here, and I think that’s kept some companies away that might have come here otherwise.”

Romer this year also joined Democrats in supporting eliminating several tax credits and incentives enjoyed by the business community, including eliminating a sales tax exemption for direct mail, eliminating the non-essential articles sales tax exemption, suspending the agricultural sales and use tax exemption, and eliminating the candy and soda sales tax exemption, to name a few. Republicans opposed eliminating many of the tax incentives because they felt it would create an “anti-business” climate.

Romer also supported the so-called “Amazon Tax” in Colorado, which authorized the state to collect sales tax on online sales. Republicans bashed House Bill 1193 as being “anti-business” when Amazon.com said the law would cause the company to end relationships with thousands of online affiliates in Colorado.

But Romer yesterday said his 25 years of business experience will help put people back to work in Colorado, while helping to balance the city budget and build a “world-class” education system. Romer has been instrumental in Colorado in developing legislation to fund education, especially higher education. The severance tax increase he pushed in 2008 would have funded higher education.

“During the last four years I have had an opportunity to meet and listen to businesses, families, organizations and leaders across our city and, much like our discussion today, a common thread is clear,” said Romer. “The recession has created considerable concern and uncertainty for all members of the Denver community. There are no easy answers to the complex challenges facing our community. We need to have honest conversations, make tough choices, and work hard to navigate through these difficult times.”

Romer’s announcement yesterday at the offices of AllonHill, a risk management and mortgage due diligence firm, included a protest by a supporter of the medical marijuana industry. Romer made headlines this year when he spearheaded the effort to regulate the medical marijuana industry, earning him many enemies inside the burgeoning industry.

Robert Chase, a medical marijuana advocate, called Romer’s regulations on the medical marijuana industry a “crusade.”

“Why would Romer waste his and the General Assembly’s time on medicinal cannabis when our state is on the verge of economic disaster, and then run for mayor in a city that has twice voted to legalize adult possession of cannabis?” asked Chase. “He believes that the Denver elites’ rejection of cannabis will somehow win him the election … Denver and Colorado have real problems; we don’t need an investment banker who hijacked an entire session of the Legislature to obsess about medical marijuana to be mayor of a city which wants to stop harassing adults for cannabis entirely.”

Romer said he will vacate his Senate seat on Dec. 31st. Democratic leaders are required to hold a vacancy committee meeting within 30 days of the official resignation date.

Democrats are already putting together an estimated 150-person vacancy committee consisting of Democratic leadership to replace Romer. Those who have already expressed an interest in taking over Romer’s seat in Senate District 32 are:

» State Rep. Beth McCann, D-Denver;

» Owen Perkins, secretary of the Democratic Party of Denver;

» Irene Aguilar, a local physician;

» Jeff Hart, a local activist with the Democratic party, and;

» Matt Royster, a local environmentalist.

Romer joins Denver City Councilman Michael Hancock, as well as at-large Denver City Councilman Doug Linkhart, who have also announced that they are seeking Gov.-elect John Hickenlooper’s job.

Hickenlooper will hold his position until his Jan. 11 inauguration when Deputy Mayor Bill Vidal will then become acting mayor until the municipal election in May 2011.

Councilwoman Carol Boigon has also said that she expects to run for mayor.

Former Denver fire chief Rich Gonzales, who now serves as the executive director of the Colorado Department of Personnel and Administration, has also said that he is considering a run for mayor, but has not made any final decisions.

Others who have filed paperwork to explore a run for mayor are James Mejia, chief executive of the Denver Preschool Program, and Danny Lopez, a city employee who lost to Hickenlooper in the 2007 mayoral race. Other lesser known candidates who have filed are Dwight Henson, Michael Forrester, Kenneth Simpson and Gerald Styron.

Other figures considering a run for mayor, but have not filed paperwork, are hotel developer Walter Isenberg and businessman Buzz Geller.

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