Public Comments

It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever to move Nederland into the same district as the Western Slope and alienate it from its neighbors. What does Nederland, a small town in the Rocky Mountains, whose closest city of influence and convenience is Boulder, have in common with the Western Slope in terms of its needs as a community, its values, its geography? Nothing. What does it have in common with the rest of the foothills above Boulder? Everything. How will a congressperson address the needs of a Front Range mountain community while appeasing its majority base in a completely different environment and even different climate? They won't. Nederland's needs and electoral desires will be swept under the rug. Take one recent example: Nederland has been stridently watchful of the COVID-19 pandemic. It has put in place mask requirements and it's extremely important to this community that all its residents be healthy and safe, get vaccinated, and wear masks when appropriate. The Western Slope is anti-mask, pandemic deniers, has the largest increase in COVID cases since the appearance of the Delta variant. Nederland is a completely different atmosphere with different priorities, and wants their congressperson to address and champion them. Please do not redistrict Nederland into a Western Slope-dominated district, this would do immense damage to Nederland and simply is utterly, completely, and insanely illogical.

1. We believe that the population of each county should be represented with as many house and senate members as possible without overlap into other counties. Weld Larimer in Boulder County all should have two senators and four representatives with minimal intrusion into other counties to balance the population necessary. This provides continuity with existing political boundaries [counties]. 2. Compactness is an important factor in Redistricting. Your neighbors, your friends, those attending your local community events and churches should whenever possible be included in the same districts. Therefore protrusions or fingers extending out to pick up a particular population or group of people should be eliminated. It is especially important to keep ethnic groups together to the degree possible without violating the need to honor existing and historical legal boundaries. 3. Keeping cities and towns whole respecting their existing boundaries is important in accomplishing number one and two. When considering city and town boundaries the commission should consider as well the long range planning and service areas of these communities. Service areas such as water, waste water, drainage and many others should be considered as part of the municipal boundary consideration. 4. Stay within historical boundaries that people recognize and that have existed for many years. Looking at the boundaries of other overlapping municipal and quasi municipal districts that serve specific services to an area [fire districts water conservation district, recreation districts, etc.] should be added to your consideration. 5. Including identifiable natural resources within districts particularly those that are managed by or have statutory responsibility of the state legislature. In Northern Colorado particularly weld county has a major agricultural interest in water within the drainages of the Poudre in Thompson Rivers. Weld County‘s agricultural industry is over 50% of our economic wealth and is critical to all of our businesses. This should be represented at the state legislator within single or compact districts. 6. Other business interest should also be considered. Those as identified by the long-term economic development agencies of the individual counties and cities as well as the state wide economic development goals and objectives. This information is easily found on the website for the state economic development agency. 7. Competitiveness is extremely important to obtain equity in representation in the political arena. The commission should also look at the expected growth within the next 10 years where that will likely occur. This could provide a competitive atmosphere for the next decade not just the historical decades or the present decade. 8. We have looked at the present commission Maps and worked with the the statistical numbers that I have been provided by the commissions and believe that these goals can and should have much better representation as we move forward to a final Redistricting solution.

As a full time resident of Nederland Colorado I am shocked to see the new proposed redistricting separate Nederland from the Front Range and Boulder County, and group in in District 3 with which Nederland has far less in common with. This would do immediate and lasting damage to our community and I strongly urge you to reconsider this ill-conceived part of the redistricting plan. Also, I would greatly appreciate an explanation as to how this came to be in the first place, as it seems like it should have been an obviously bad idea. Those responsible for letting this get this far in the process should be held accountable.

These comments are directed to the Congressional Commission. I am speaking to you as a long-term member of the Longmont community, a bilingual Medicare counselor, and member of the Latin X community. I am not an expert on redistricting - I am coming to speak to you as a community member and as an advocate for Spanish-speaking older adults. Tonight, I plan to share with you my personal and professional observations and experiences living in Longmont, so that you can understand what it's like to live in my community. First, I'd like to describe one of the most common issues my clients come across regarding Medicaid. Most of the Spanish speaking older adults I speak with are struggling to make ends meet and once they hit age 65 the income eligibility guidelines to qualify for the Medicare Savings Program decreases. This means that even if they have been on Medicaid for years once they hit age 65 making the same monthly income they can no longer qualify for Medicaid. The MSP is a Medicaid program that helps Boulder County residents pay for the Medicare Part B premiums which are $148.50 per month this year. The max income to qualify for a single individual is $1,469 and $1,980 for a married couple. I am consistently told that they are barely able to pay for housing as it is and they ask me how are they going to survive after having almost $150 dollars per month taken out. I have limited resources to refer them to- including section 8 housing for which there is a lengthy waiting list and limited housing as it. Our older adults in Longmont are struggling to pay for medications and medical care due to being slightly over income to qualify for State assistance. They are faced with having to choose between paying medications and buying food or paying for housing. While this issue is common for folks at this socioeconomic level, it impacts the Latinx community uniquely. When Spanish-speaking older adults are in this position, they rely on their younger generations to support them, often living in multi-generational households. This experience is very specific to the Latinx community and affects us deeply. It is a part of our culture that can only be understood by those who have also experienced it. This is just one of many reasons that it is well past time for Colorado to have a Latinx congressperson. The Latinx community has been overlooked and underserved for far too long. Latinx community members are not getting the services they need, especially our older adults. We need an advocate in Congress who is intimately familiar with what it is like to be Latinx in Colorado and in the US. That is why I am asking you, Commissioners, to focus on creating an 8th Congressional District that prioritizes the Latinx community. By including Longmont, Adams County, and Greeley in one congressional district, the Latinx community will finally have an opportunity to have a strong say in who represents us in Congress. While the concerns of each of these different Latinx communities are different, unifying us in one congressional district would provide us with the opportunity to fight for the issues that adversely affect our communities most deeply. It is beyond time for the Latinx community to have a representative - please give us that in this new 8th congressional district.

My name is Gracia Seeley, and I will be submitting my public comment as a former member of the Durango community and a Coloradan that is genuinely concerned about the proposed redistricting taking place in La Plata and Gunnison County. The proposed split between the two counties is not a positive change for those communities, and will fracture the large population of young people that attend the universities in Gunnison and Durango, a group that is bound by similar interests, experiences, and needs. If the goal of the redistricting project is to create/keep interest groups, the two counties must be kept together. When I lived in Durango, I worked as a Youth Vote Organizer for New Era Colorado. In this role, I spent ample time on the campuses of Fort Lewis College and Western State University. My job was to connect with young people and help them to get engaged in the democratic process and ensure that their needs were reflected in the bodies that govern them. I loved my job. I got to speak with students from all walks of life and at differing levels of engagement in local politics. I felt honored to be a point person that could share information in a non-partisan, unbiased way. My work did not differ greatly from campus to campus. At both WSU and FLC, I was tasked with meeting people where they were at. Many of the students I encountered were shocked to hear about some of the proposed legislation that was on the ballot, and so many were excited about the prospect of casting their first official vote. The similarities between these two communities were clear, a fact that was not particularly shocking to me as a fellow college student myself. College students across the state of Colorado have remarkably similar needs and interests, and WSU and FLC are no different. Not only are their acceptance rates similar, but the in-state tuition cost after financial aid and the graduation rates of both colleges are almost identical. To separate the two counties would have disastrous impacts on local economies and would seriously hinder the ability of young people to have their voices heard. Western Colorado University has a massive impact on the economy of Gunnison county - a 2017 study estimated that the direct and indirect economic impact of the university is more than $70 million. Fort Lewis College is no different, with an estimated combined economic impact of $151 million. These are not insignificant numbers. But still, these two schools are small in comparison to other Colorado universities such as CU and CSU. That is another reason why these two counties need to remain together: When FLC and WSU work together to negotiate higher education funding (which is one of the major budget decisions that gets made by the legislature each year), especially against larger Colorado institutions, they are able to get the support that they need to provide for the thousands of students that attend each school every single year. The economics alone should be enough to convince the redistricting commission to keep these two counties together, but what I see as the most important point is the young people residing in each county. Both La Plata and Gunnison county are home to thousands of young college students that deserve to have the bargaining power that comes from belonging to a singular house district. Bound by similar interests, experiences and beliefs, these communities ought to be represented by one district, not two. If we, as Coloradans, want to ensure a future in which young people have a seat at the table and have the ability to make their voices heard, there should be a new proposal for redistricting that keeps La Plata and Gunnison county together.

Hello, my name is Ingrid Moore. I’m a 26 yr resident of Longmont, residing in current House District 11, which extends to the south-western city limits of Longmont. I oppose the proposed House District 62 map. It divides our SW Longmont suburban neighborhood along Clover Basin Drive and removes the southernmost blocks from Longmont to put them in with Niwot, Gunbarrel and the western mountain communities, which have completely different legislative needs! These neighborhood blocks should be part of the Longmont district. There has been extensive population growth in this area since the last redistricting. We all share community and city parks, bike paths, and the same school district, including four schools. All the children can ride bikes or walk to these schools. The southern boundary should follow the city limits between 75th St. and Hover (95th). The current (old) map’s southern boundary was OK. I also want to stress that Union Reservoir, on the eastern edge of Longmont, MUST remain within the city limits of Longmont and within the new legislative district. Our mayor and city staff spent 2 years negotiating with two oil and gas companies who were planning to establish surface well pads to drill – and frack – under Union Reservoir. The result was that the extraction entities completely withdrew their surface operations from within the Longmont city limits and agreed to close and cap their several existing wells. Union Reservoir is Longmont’s emergency back-up water supply. Because Union Reservoir is an open space managed by Longmont’s Parks and Open Space department, there are few residents living there. There is no benefit at all to removing it from the Longmont legislative district. Union Reservoir must stay with Longmont. I also oppose the proposed Senate map for Longmont. The old Senate map was much better. We have many civic, legislative, commercial, and employment interests in common with Boulder, Lafayette and Louisville, and perhaps Erie. We definitely should NOT be lumped into the communities east of I-25: Dacono, Firestone and Frederick, for Senate representation. They do not share our economic, environmental, health, and transportation goals or, most importantly, air quality concerns. In fact, our economic bases are diametrically opposed. The other concern is traffic. A large part of Longmont’s through traffic comes from the I-25 communities commuting toward Boulder. Longmont is pushing hard for commuter rail, BRE bus service, and other measures to not only mitigate traffic but cut down on harmful emissions and help meet our sustainable energy goals. We have had little, if any, cooperation from Weld County for seeking funding for, planning for, and implementing transit hubs, etc., for mass transit. For the congressional map, I feel very strongly about keeping Boulder County intact within CD2. Our county’s economic livelihood depends on clean industry, small business, and outdoor recreation. In eastern Boulder County, the heavy industrial activities in Weld County CD4 have had extremely detrimental effects on Longmont’s air quality. While I can’t prove it, I believe it has contributed to my adult-onset asthma from 25 years of exposure. The same issues are of concern for me with having western Boulder County lumped into CD3. We Boulder County residents have health and economic goals to preserve natural areas for hiking, camping, and other recreational uses of the public lands than the western slope residents, who are not as economically dependent upon preserving environmental quality in the way they use, and want to develop, these public lands. To put our western county towns in the same legislative district as those on the other side of the continental divide would make representation extremely difficult and pit western slope issues against the eastern slope ones. The watershed on these lands originates, and lies largely within Boulder County, so it’s vital that it be protected from heavy industrial development. Boulder County should remain intact within CD2. Thank you.

Thank you to the commission and the staff for coming to Southwest Colorado this weekend to conduct a public hearing. As was shared at the meeting, Southwest Colorado is a unique part of the State and has a identity all of its own and we appreciate your understanding of that fact. We urge the commission to strongly consider adding San Juan County into the proposed House District 52 because of its geographic and economic ties to La Plata County and the rest of Southwest Colorado. A proposed map that features this alignment has been attached. Please note that, based on the commission's 2020 Census projections, is would not be necessary to split Delta County. Furthermore, much testimony was given about the importance of Archuleta County being linked to La Plata, Montezuma, San Juan, and Dolores Counties in the proposed Senate District 7. Because of the many connections to the communities to the West including health services, economic and employment considerations, transportation, water and governmental ties we would request the commission align Archuleta County into Senate District 7 and not with communities of the San Luis Valley. Your effort and consideration is appreciated. Thank you.

My name is Caitlin Trent and I am here tonight as a CIRC Action Board Member, to lift up the voices of members of the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, as well as someone who has been a part of the Colorado community my entire life. CIRC fights for a more just and welcoming Colorado for all. It creates change by building a better society through immigrant leadership. Our work for a more just Colorado is driven and led by immigrant leaders who decide the direction of our advocacy efforts, campaigns, and legal services. Through our programs and campaigns, our coalition continues to win key victories for immigrants in Colorado, ensuring that every immigrant in our state has a voice in our fight for justice. This redistricting process is no different. Many immigrants become citizens with the right to vote. This past election, CIRC supported 105 citizens through the naturalization process who voted. 6% of all eligible voters in the state are immigrants and 42% of immigrants in the state are eligible to vote according to Pew Research. However, and especially given Congressional Redistricting commissioner Bill Leone’s recent statements on excluded undocumented Coloradoans in this process, CIRC is here tonight to remind the commission that immigrants are included in the definition of persons under the constitution and are entitled to representation at every level. Regardless of citizenship privilege, they are part of the societal fabric and Colorado community, and are therefore both legally and practically integral to the redistricting process and deserve fair representation, as does any other community. Understanding the unique needs and support that immigrants and New Americans need in Colorado is a fundamental priority of the state, reflected in the recent legislation to create an office of New Americans within the Department of Labor and Employment. We hope the redistricting commission equally values the contributions of our immigrant and New American communities--in the tourism, construction, front line workers, and countless other industries that make this state what it is. Ensuring that this commission takes into consideration the pockets of the state where CIRC‘s members reside is essential to building communities of interest. Those areas include the Western Slope, Mountains, Northern Colorado, Southern Colorado, and the Denver-metro region. I am here today to ask you to draw maps that are fair to immigrants and other communities of color across the state in their respective communities. CIRC has significant concerns with the first staff state legislative map and strongly supports the state legislative maps that were announced today by CLLARO. CLLARO’s maps more adequately represent historically recognized communities in San Luis Valley and Pueblo, similar to how the Roaring Fork Valley district more closely resembles the district that our Latino communities requested in your Carbondale hearing. The CLLARO maps submitted for Denver also do a better job of maintaining districts that currently have majority-minority representation and adjust others to adapt to the rapid gentrification of Denver. Basically, the hard earned power that’s been built by communities of color throughout the years is being diluted and stripped by the state legislative map proposal. The good news is it can be rectified with CLLARO’s proposed maps.

Currently all counties in Colorado face issues with drought, climate change, diminishing access to water and rising costs for housing. But Routt County stands unique. For one, the politics of Routt County are far more closely aligned with other mountain resort communities and parts of the front range than with other NW Colorado counties. Routt county is predominantly driven by tourism and the resort industry, not gas/oil extraction, ranching or agriculture. It is tourism and the resort industries, the construction industry as it relates to both and the healthcare and education industries that support and employ the many tourist industry related workers living throughout Routt County including Hayden, Oak Creek, and other smaller communities in the greater North and South Routt areas as well as Steamboat Springs. To isolate Routt County from other similar mountain resort communities would not serve the county or its residents well. For these reasons we strongly urge the redistricting committees to support Routt County's continued alignment with Eagle County and other Colorado mountain resort communities. Thank you for your hard work on this extremely important issue as it relates to Colorado and Routt County's future.

The methodology being considered for assessing competitiveness is not valid for this use. Please read: https://www.constellationpolitical.com/blog/how-republicans-will-lose-2020-reapportionment/ Apologies for the glib tone, but you know what gets attention these days...