Apartment building owners sue Colorado over large building energy mandate
Apartments owners have filed a lawsuit in Denver District Court to stop Colorado’s mandate to reduce energy consumption for large buildings.

The owners, along with a trade organization representing more than 3,600 members who own and manage more than 350,000 apartments, argue that the Colorado Air Pollution Control Division delayed release of the proposed "Building Benchmarking and Performance Standards" rule by two years — and then rushed to pass the regulation beginning in February 2023.

In doing so, the state denied the public and building owners meaningful opportunity to participate in the rule making process, the lawsuit said.

The regulation requires owners of all buildings larger than 50,000 square feet in floor area to make changes or improvements to those buildings to achieve a 7% reduction in energy use by 2026 and a 20% reduction by 2030 from a 2021 benchmark for a specific building. The regulation doesn't specify how building owners must achieve those goals.

“An individual building owner has the option of electrification, which is the best way to avoid being vulnerable to costly spikes in natural gas, either by itself or as part of a portfolio of measures, but no owner is required to electrify,” Conor Cahill, a spokesperson for Gov. Jared Polis, said in a previous statement. “Building owners will also be able to apply for adjustments, in case they cannot meet their set target or need more time to replace equipment.”

“There is no mandatory electrification requirement,” Cahill earlier said. “The proposed Building Performance Standards (BPS) rules provide flexibility, offering multiple pathways for building owners to select from, including energy efficiency, electrification, renewables, or a combination.”

https://denvergazette.com/news/business/big-building-owners-sue-colorado/article_4cd412d8-95eb-11ee-9f72-17cb0e3f124c.html

Denver Gazette

Apartment building owners sue Colorado over large building energy mandate

Apartments owners have filed a lawsuit in Denver District Court to stop Colorado’s mandate to reduce energy consumption for large buildings. The owners, along with a trade organization representing more than 3,600 members who own and manage more than 350…

Burglaries at over 40 Denver-area marijuana dispensaries lead to charges for members of two organized crime groups Denver District Attorney Beth McCann on Friday announced her office will charge 23 members of two organized crime groups with carjacking and…

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23 accused in Denver cannabis dispensary thefts

Denver's district attorney says 23 people are accused of organized crime linked to the thefts of dozens of cannabis dispensaries. FOX31's Talya Cunningham speaks with Beth McCann. » Subscribe to FOX31 on YouTube: https://bit.ly/2PntEm4​ » Watch more FOX31…

Happy Friday Colorado!

Coloradans won't know how much their property taxes will increase until at least January 17
DENVER — The special legislative session to reduce next year’s increase in your property tax bill ended more than a week ago.

Yet, property owners still cannot estimate how much their property tax bill might be next year.

For that matter, local governments haven't figured out the math yet either.

“Many of those local governments are asking that very question, how do we find out what the numbers are going to be?” Ann Terry, executive director of the Colorado Special District Association, said.

Terry knows the upcoming deadlines better than most. Several dates at the start of the new year will reveal the numbers needed to complete the property tax math equation.

“We’re hoping that by January 17, that you would be able to know what your tax commitment would be to your county or to your special district and to your school districts,” Terry said.

Several deadlines were pushed back by legislature in the special session.

“I was encouraged,” Terry said. “The governor said that they are having DOLA, the Department of Local Affairs, create a toolkit for local governments, so that they will be able to figure this all out.”

Normally, county assessors would have needed to certify the final valuation of all county property by Dec. 10. That deadline was pushed back to Jan. 3.

https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/next/next-with-kyle-clark/coloradans-wont-know-property-tax-increase-until-january/73-b540073a-3ec3-4914-9b06-b166d734061a

https://www.colorado.gov/governor/news/11026-following-special-legislative-session-delivered-property-tax-relief-gov-polis-urges

www.colorado.gov

Following Special Legislative Session That Delivered Property Tax Relief, Gov. Polis Urges Local Governments to Provide Additional…

DENVER - Last week, the legislature completed a special session that delivered real property tax relief for Coloradans. During the special legislative session, Governor Polis, in partnership with the legislature, took action, passing a new law to reduce property…

Did you see that the lawsuit against Jena Griswold is proceeding?

Grislwold claims that Colorado's elections are the "gold standard," but the voter roles might not be accurate...

More news of the week: https://youtu.be/4fmP11py1c4

A Colorado county’s creative effort to provide property tax relief could lead to a showdown with the stateThe promise was simple — “property tax relief is coming” — but the mechanism through which elected officials in conservative Douglas County made the $28 million break for homeowners happen was anything but.

State officials are now mulling whether to intervene and potentially reverse Douglas County’s decision to reconsider its property values. There are concerns the move will be repeated across Colorado, which could have tens of millions of dollars in consequences for homeowners and local government revenues.

The situation isn’t happening in a vacuum. It comes as voters across the state will decide Nov. 7 on Proposition HH, a 10-year property tax relief plan created by Gov. Jared Polis and Democrats in the legislature aimed at blunting the effect of skyrocketing property values during the pandemic. But Republicans say the initiative doesn’t offer enough of a break.

https://coloradosun.com/2023/10/12/douglas-county-property-tax-relief-challenge/

The Colorado Sun

A Colorado county’s creative effort to provide property tax relief could lead to a showdown with the state

Douglas County’s Republican commissioners reduced residential property values by 4%. A state board controlled by Democrats may try to roll back the decision.

I hope you had a great week!

Anti-gun Jared Polis signed a GUN BAN last week that turns Colorado gun owners into criminals if they own an "unserialized" gun.

This is an unconstitutional law that spits in the face of the Second Amendment.

Full Video: https://youtu.be/54EIT5R9vHw