Serving the community since 1906
VOLUME 117 | ISSUE 50
WEEK OF DECEMBER 12, 2024
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BRIGHTON STUDENT’S IMPRESSIVE EYE Nursing home
industry wants Trump to rescind staffing mandate BY JORDAN RAU KFF HEALTH NEWS
Covid’s rampage through the country’s nursing homes killed more than 172,000 residents and spurred the biggest industry reform in decades: a mandate that homes employ a minimum number of nurses. But with President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House, the industry is ramping up pressure to kill that requirement before it takes effect, leaving thousands of residents in homes too shortstaffed to provide proper care. The nursing home industry has been marshaling opposition for months among congressional Republicans — and some Democrats — to overrule the Biden administration’s mandate. Two industry groups, the American Health Care Association and LeadingAge, have sued to overturn the regulation, and 20 Republican state attorneys general have filed their own challenge. SEE MANDATE, P20
For the second time, Greyson Carvalho won Honorable Mention in the annual Audubon Community Nature Center nature photography contest. GREYSON CARVALHO See the story on page 4.
Taking the ‘forever’ out of Forever Chemicals BY GABE ALLEN KUNC
Xcel Energy wants to charge more for electricity later in the evening BY SAM BRASCH CPR NEWS
Millions of Colorado residents could soon pay more to use electricity later in the evening under a proposal from provider Xcel Energy. The state’s largest utility filed to change time-of-use rates in early September. If state regulators approve the proposal, customers will pay the most for power from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. on nonholiday weekdays during the summer and from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. during the winter. The current “on-peak” hours currently stretch from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. year-round. The company also charges
slightly higher rates during “mid-peak” hours from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., which would be eliminated under the new proposal. State utility regulators expect to reach a final decision in February 2025, and the company could begin implementing the updated rate schedule as soon as May 2025. The Colorado Public Utilities Commission recently encouraged residents to participate in a public hearing on the proposal on December 17. Xcel Energy customers can also provide written feedback to the commission through an online form. Xcel Energy started moving its Colorado customers to time-of-use rates in
WESTMINSTER VOICES: PAGE 6 | CULTURE: PAGE 8 | BRIEFS: PAGE 10
2022. The pricing plans are meant to nudge customers to use energy during periods of lower demand and higher renewable energy production. Wind energy, for example, often goes to waste at night, so a utility can operate more efficiently by encouraging customers to run dishwashers or charge electric cars later in the evening. The company says the latest proposal isn’t only easier to understand. By setting higher rates for customers in the evening, the utility hopes to discourage energy usage at a time of day when solar energy production tends to drop — along with the sun. SEE ENERGY, P5
A team of Front Range chemists have made a breakthrough that could have global implications. The scientists, led by Colorado State University postdoctoral scholar Xin Liu, detailed a new technique for breaking down polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS or “forever chemicals,” in a paper published in Nature. Previously, known methods for decomposing PFAS required large amounts of energy via UV radiation or heat. In conSEE CHEMICALS, P5
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