State of Colorado Archives: on Technology
Bob Beauprez:
10-hour traffic jams are not drivers' fault, as CDOT says
Q. Why are you running?A. Colorado deserves better than what we've been getting. There's been a noticeable lack of leadership. That's the key to this. You wonder if anybody is really in charge. Morning after morning, your newspaper keeps telling
us that things aren't going well, not by any stretch of the imagination. That tells me there's a weakness in management. There's a disconnect. Somebody's not paying attention. CDOT explains away a 10-hour traffic jam by saying it's the drivers' fault.
Q. Gov. Hickenlooper is a formidable candidate who is liked by the Republican business community.
A. He's liked by some. Every governor in Colorado is liked by people on both sides of the aisle because they're governor.
But I don't think there's much dispute that our economy could be doing better, our job creation is not what it should be. We're simply not going in the right direction.
Source: Denver Post Q&A on 2014 Colorado gubernatorial race
Mar 4, 2014
Cary Kennedy:
Rural areas need transportation & broadband infrastructure
My track record while I was state treasurer was to bring the largest investment in infrastructure to rural Colorado that I know of in recent history--over $1 billion in school construction, most of which has gone into small, rural communities.
I understand that rural areas of Colorado have unique needs and unique concerns. That's transportation, that's broadband, that's transmission, that's educational infrastructure.
And what I hear is that they want someone in the Capitol to be their partner--someone who'll listen to them and respect that they know what's best in their community and they just need someone in the
Capitol who will support them in accomplishing their objectives. That was my track record as treasurer, and that is the type of leadership I will bring to the Capitol as governor.
Source: Westword.com on 2018 Colorado gubernatorial race
Mar 30, 2017
Donna Lynne:
Goal of 100% internet access
We cannot sustain a strong statewide economy without universal broadband availability. Our entrepreneurs, our students and our health care workers can't get the information they need to succeed without this connectivity.
We've set an ambitious goal to reach 100% across the state, and as governor I will make sure we achieve it.
Source: 2018 Colorado Gubernatorial website LynneForColorado.com
Sep 15, 2017
Doug Robinson:
Infrastructure via government efficiency & private solutions
Our roads are aging and must be improved and expanded. The same is true of our water system and housing. We can address these issues without raising taxes by:- Prioritizing and improving government efficiency in order to free the money needed
for infrastructure investment.
- Expanding public/private transportation solutions.
- Implementing a reasonable construction defect law, one that will incentivize builders to build while protecting against severe abuses.
Source: 2018 Colorado governor campaign website DougForColorado.com
Aug 1, 2017
Eli Bremer:
We need to address the sickness caused by social media
Social Media platforms are tearing our nation apart. They have come to be used as information platforms vital to our communications systems in both the government and private sector, yet they have no oversight and routinely attempt to "tip the scales"
inappropriately. As a nation, we need to address the sickness caused by social media and create a cohesive strategy around how these platforms are operating in America.
Source: 2022 Colorado Senate campaign website EliForSenate.com
Jun 27, 2022
Ellen Burnes:
Navigate billions in infrastructure updates
In the coming century, America has to navigate some big changes with big price tags, that we won't be able to just spend our way out of. Trillions of dollars in student debt, billions in extreme weather damage, billions in infrastructure updates,
all while providing jobs, food, and housing to hundreds of millions of Americans.As a natural resources economist, Ellen works with people from all
64 counties to bolster Colorado's long-term economic success through manufacturing, public transit, water management, renewable energy, farm-to-table supply chains, and good old fashioned tourism.
Building a Smarter Future for Colorado means ensuring that families who are dependent on Colorado's natural resources will always have a seat at the table.
Source: 2020 Colorado Senate campaign website EllenBurnes.com
May 19, 2019
George Brauchler:
Improve roads without raising taxes
We can, and should, make transportation a top priority. As governor, I will lead on this issue and work with the legislature to develop a strategy for improving our roads and bridges without raising taxes.
Our roads suck. My family and I drive them every day. Traffic congestion and deteriorating roads have a negative impact on commerce in Colorado.
Source: 2018 Colorado Gubernatorial campaign website george2018.com
Jul 12, 2017
Jared Polis:
Support net neutrality: free exchange of ideas on internet
Q: Net Neutrality: Support requiring internet providers to provide equal access to all users?Jared Polis (D): Yes. "To compete in the global economy, we need an internet that allows for free exchange of ideas."
Walker Stapleton (R): Unknown.
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Colorado Governor race
Oct 9, 2018
Jared Polis:
Upgrade antiquated roads & limited public transit options
To keep our economy moving in the right direction, we must upgrade our antiquated roads and highways and limited public transit options. They are simply not equipped to sustain a growing 21st-century economy. Thanks to the bipartisan commitment made
last year to dedicate additional funds to transportation, we have hundreds of millions of dollars to improve our roads over the next few years. That's a strong foundation to work from but it's not enough. We must come together around a bipartisan
funding mechanism for our future transportation needs that the voters of this state will accept.We also need to expand access to broadband. We'll continue the good work of the Hickenlooper administration in supporting the creation of Strategic
Regional Broadband plans to make high-speed internet access a reality across our entire state. In the 21st-century economy, broadband is critical infrastructure that EVERYONE must have access to. Let's work together to give it to them.
Source: 2019 State of the State address to Colorado legislature
Jan 10, 2019
John Hickenlooper:
Bring antiquated budget & personnel systems to 21st century
Bring antiquated budget & personnel systems to 21st century
[We changed how] CDOT budgets for multi-year transportation projects. This is a better approach to budgeting that comes with an annual bump of $300 million for five years. This program provides a critical boost to the construction industry by directly
Bring antiquated budget & personnel systems to 21st century
25-year-old system, which means unemployed Coloradans will get their benefits faster and more quickly return to work.Two years ago, Colorado was caught in a bygone era with rules and procedures that made more sense back when we used electric
Source: 2013 Colorado State of the State address
Jan 10, 2013
John Hickenlooper:
COIN: Colorado Innovation Network incubates entrepreneurship
An attraction to entrepreneurship is a climate of innovation. We established the Colorado Innovation Network (COIN) to foster collaboration and idea-sharing across private sector, academic and public lines, including the 29 research laboratories in
Colorado. This will multiply occurrences like Primestar Solar, where an innovation at the National Renewable Energy Lab translated into more than 400 jobs in Colorado.COIN gives us a unique opportunity to incubate entrepreneurship and facilitate the
transfer of new ideas to the marketplace. While COIN is privately funded, we are asking for a modest public investment to continue the success we had with Arrow and GE. We are requesting $6 million to support the work of the Colorado Economic Development
Commission, and $3 million for a revolving loan fund to provide low-risk gap financing so Colorado can compete with other states for film, video gaming and electronic media productions. These investments will repay the state many, many times over.
Source: Colorado 2012 State of the State Address
Jan 12, 2012
John Hickenlooper:
Expand broadband connectivity
We're continuing the promising work of our Main Street improvement initiative, and pressing forward on efforts to bring broadband to every corner and corral in Colorado.
We are leveraging federal dollars, state assets and our new telecom law to ensure that all Colorado households, businesses, hospitals and schools--regardless of their location--have access to reliable, affordable broadband.
Source: 2016 State of the State speech to Colorado legislature
Jan 14, 2016
John Hickenlooper:
Bolster cybersecurity defense of our voting systems
As Governor, I established the National Cybersecurity Center, so I know what it takes to enact strong online protections. I support bolstering the defense of our voting systems
by investing in cybersecurity efforts to secure voter registration databases, voting machines, reporting websites, and other software vulnerable to meddling.
Source: 2020 Colorado Senate campaign website Hickenlooper.com
Jul 9, 2020
John Hickenlooper:
Provide ample funding for scientific research
Hickenlooper supports ample funding for scientific research to help create evidence-based policy to tackle some of the biggest challenges of our time, including addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, gun violence, inequity, and more.
Hickenlooper believes strongly in protecting the integrity of scientific research, including the accuracy and transparency in its communication; and as a former geologist in the U.S. Senate, he will be a strong and knowledgeable voice in support.
Source: ScienceDebate.org on 2020 Colorado Senate race
Nov 3, 2020
John Hickenlooper:
NASA's Earth Science program may help on climate crisis
Q: Over the years, NASA has assigned changing priorities to different aspects of its mission (Earth observation, robotic exploration, and crewed spaceflight). What missions would you have NASA prioritize and why?
A: Hickenlooper is interested in learning more about all of the priorities outlined in NASA's 2020- 2024 plan and has a particular interest in NASA's Earth Science program, with potential to inform solutions to climate crisis.
Source: ScienceDebate.org on 2020 Colorado Senate race
Nov 3, 2020
Victor Mitchell:
Shrink state agencies to look for funds for highways
Mitchell said he would pay for transportation and other costs by doing a performance audit of the Colorado Department of Transportation and all over state agencies to look for ways to shrink the agencies to steer money into highways.
Mitchell said he would fire Shailen Bhatt, the current highway director. "Nice guy, couldn't meet a nicer guy," he said of his meeting with
Bhatt. "He's absolutely the wrong guy to be running such an important state bureaucracy. Terrible guy, he's going to be gone on day one,
not because he's a bad person but because he's never, ever worked in the private sector."
Source: ColoradoPolitics.com on 2018 Colorado Gubernatorial race
Jun 13, 2017
Walker Stapleton:
Will restore transparency and accountability to CDOT
Our infrastructure problem is a sad example of government losing track of its purpose: serving the taxpayers of our state. Numerous studies show that deficiencies in our infrastructure cost drivers almost $7B per year. Our transportation gridlock
amounts to a hidden tax and fixing this issue is of the utmost importance. Solving big problems takes big solutions, and I will restore transparency and accountability to CDOT to ensure our tax dollars are being properly spent on projects for taxpayers.
Source: 2018 gubernatorial campaign website StapletonForColorado.com
Jun 23, 2018
William Owens:
More restrictions on Internet crime & porn
We must take steps to increase the penalties for those who engage in identity theft. Crucial to our prosperity are the economic opportunities created by on-line commerce and the Internet. Our citizens must feel safe that they can conduct business on-line
without people stealing personal information.I believe we must also do more to protect our children from hate, pornography and violence on the Internet. It seems clear to me that any computer used by a child in a
Colorado public school or public library should include filtering software to limit our children's access to hate, pornography and violence on these publicly-funded computers.Our libraries don't use taxpayer funds to buy
hate magazines or pornographic magazines - they shouldn't use taxpayer funds to allow access to the same material on-line.
Source: 2001 State of the State Address to Colorado legislature
Jan 11, 2001
Heidi Ganahl:
Criticized Facebook donations to 2020 local election offices
Ganahl refused on multiple occasions--including in early 2022--to say whether Joe Biden won the election legitimately. In Nov. 2021, Ganahl praised a group of election conspiracy theorists that has knocked on Colorado doors looking for evidence of
fraud, saying the group was "doing great things." In April 2022, Ganahl said, "I think there's a lot of questions about what happened in the election." Ganahl said in mid-June that "I don't believe there was enough fraud that would have flipped the
election." But she also said "there are a lot of procedural things that were weird about this election," criticizing states' pre-election changes to their elections policies and Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg's hundreds of millions in donations to
local elections offices around the country. (Those donations helped cash-strapped offices deal with the demands of the Covid-19 pandemic but have been criticized by Republicans, sometimes conspiratorially, as inappropriate private influence.)
Source: CNN on 2020 Election Denial in 2022 Colorado Governor race
Sep 9, 2022
Jared Polis:
Infrastructure to allow remote work in rural areas
On economic opportunity in rural Colorado and addressing the rural/urban divide that exists in the state: Ganahl said if elected she would relax state regulations for residential construction, in an effort to create more affordable housing.
Ganahl said, "We can go green. We can also provide affordable housing if we reduce regulations and provide innovations and new ways of doing housing."Governor Polis said there are a lot of great economic opportunities in western
Colorado and he wants to build on them by continuing to support the outdoor recreation industry, and to ensure the infrastructures in place to allow remote work to settle in rural areas. "Because many people want to live in and around the world class
outdoor recreation areas of Mesa County, of Western Colorado," said Polis, "and be able to work for a major global company or in Denver. Those opportunities continue to increase."
Source: CPR News on 2022 Colorado Gubernatorial race
Oct 26, 2022
Page last updated: Feb 18, 2023