Westsider WESTSIDER 3/15/13
North Jeffco
POSTAL PATRON
March 15, 2013
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourwestminsternews.com
North Jefferson County, Colorado • Volume 12, Issue 10
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Immigrant tuition bill clears Legislature Measure garners some GOP support on way to governor By Vic Vela
vvela@ourcoloradonews.com After several unsuccessful attempts over a 10-year period, a bill that would allow undocumented immigrant students to pay instate tuition rates at Colorado colleges and universities has finally been passed by the General Assembly. The passage of Senate Bill 33 by the House of Representatives on March 8 was met with applause in the House chambers, and, in the Report case of 16-yearold Nadya Gallegos, tears of joy. The Westminster High School student’s family immigrated to the country illegally
Capitol
Jeffco schools alter district boundaries
when she was a child. “I’m so happy that it passed,” Gallegos said, with tears streaming down her face. “It clears my mind. Because now I have a future and I can pursue my dreams.” The so-called ASSET bill — Advancing Students for a Stronger Economy Tomorrow — would allow all students to pay instate tuition rates, so long as they are high school graduates who have attended a Colorado school for at least three years. Current federal law bars undocumented immigrants from working legally in the United States. Attempts to pass various versions of the bill have failed. But, this time, it got through — with Republican support, to boot. Three Republican House members voted for ASSET on March 8, joining three GOP senators who had done so on Feb. 25. “Immigrant children are hungry to succeed and we need them in this country,” said Rep. Kevin Priola, R-Henderson, during a March 5 House floor debate that preceded the final vote. Priola said he sees immigrant children at church every week who have “futures and
bright minds at stake ...” “I ask anyone who has issues on this bill to attend Mass with me at noon on a Sunday,” Priola said. Rep. Cheri Gerou, R-Evergreen, who also voted for the bill, said it was not “a Democrat or Republican issue.” “All I did was vote my conscience,” she said. Rep. Steve Lebsock, D-Thornton, said his best friend came to this country illegally when she was 2, but “that didn’t make her any less of a person.” “If a child graduates from a high school in Colorado, they’re a Colorado kid,” Lebsock said. “Colorado kids deserve in-state tuition. That’s what this bill is all about.” Many Republicans on March 5 argued that it’s wrong for Colorado taxpayers to chip in tuition costs for students who are not legal residents. That’s because undocumented students would be eligible for the same stipend from the state’s College Opportunity Fund as legal residents, under ASSET. Republicans unsuccessfully tried to tack on an amendment that would put ASSET to the voters.
“Because our taxpayers fund this, I believe our taxpayers deserve the right to vote on this,” said Rep. Amy Stephens, R-Monument. Republican arguments against the bill prompted an angry response from the bill’s House sponsor. “I’m frustrated,” said Rep. Crisanta Duran, D-Denver. “There is just an air of arrogance. I’m hearing that the only people who can vote in elections are the only people who pay taxes.” Duran said Republicans were referring to undocumented immigrants as if they weren’t part of the community. “It’s those people,” Duran said. “It’s those undocumented people over there. They’re not Coloradans. They’re somebody else.” Republican Rep. Clarice Navarro of Pueblo joined Priola and Gerou in voting for ASSET on March 8. Republicans Sens. Owen Hill of Colorado Springs, Larry Crowder of Alamosa, and Greg Brophy of Wray voted for the bill on 25. ASSET now goes to the desk of Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper, who is expected to sign the bill into law.
BEYOND THE WAR ZONE
By Glenn Wallace
gwallace@ourcoloradonews.com By 3-2 vote, the Jefferson County School District’s Board of Education changed district lines. Board members Laura Boggs and Paula Noonan voted against the redistricting, saying they did not approve with how the new lines bisected some school articulation areas. The vote came during the board’s March 7 meeting, and alters the board district lines that were established in 2003. State law requires school districts to update district lines at least every four years. The state statute reads: Director districts shall be contiguous, compact, and as nearly equal in population as possible. Board members are elected by all members of the school district, but represent a specific section of the district. The version of the new boundaries was reviewed at the board’s Feb. 28 meeting. Among the larger changes, District 5 now extends west to take in Morrison in exchange for more of Littleton to go to District 2, along the western side of C-470. District 3 also gained the Pleasant View and Denver West neighborhoods near Golden. In the new population distribution, District 5 would have the least population,105,656; while the smallest geographic district, District 4, would represent the most people, 109,434.
New districts
District One: Treasurer Robin Johnson, representing Westminster and Broomfield. District Two: Second Vice President Laura Boggs, representing Evergreen and Conifer. District Three: Secretary Jill Fellman, representing Arvada and Wheat Ridge. District Four: Board President Lesley Dahlkemper, representing Lakewood. District Five: First Vice President Paula Noonan representing the Morrison and Littleton area. Population of 105,656.
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Army Spec. Cody Jones, a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2008-09 sits with girlfriend Sondra Welsh. The Twelve Topics in 12 Weeks story features a look at challenges after returning from deployment. See Page 19. Photo by Andy Carpenean
Lawmakers’ bill eases acquisition of public records Staff Report Gov. John Hickenlooper has signed into law a bill that attempts to make public records easier to acquire. House Bill 1041 requires government agencies in Colorado to email, fax or send by traditional mail records that a person does not want to inspect at the records custodian’s office. The bill, signed by the governor March 8, allows for an agency to charge for postage if
records are mailed but states that no transmission fees shall apply if they are emailed. It also permits fees to be assessed for making paper copies of records and for time spent researching and collecting the information, as already allowed under state law. Critics of the legislation contend it will only make it more difficult to obtain records by allowing government agencies’ custodians to charge exorbitant fees.
The bill has also drawn fire for stating that records will not be delivered until fees are collected. The Colorado Press Association supports the legislation, saying that while it’s not perfect, it is a positive change. “There’s much work to be done with clarification of CORA (Colorado Open Records Act) and fees, but this is a great first step,” a statement on the CPA’s Facebook page says.