DENVER – During his State of the State address Thursday, Gov. John Hickenlooper outlined efforts to avoid future catastrophic incidents such as the Gold King Mine spill.
“When we recognize a threat to our natural environment, we need to take action,” Hickenlooper told a joint session of the Colorado House and Senate during remarks that lasted just over 40 minutes. “Last summer’s Gold King Mine spill showed us what can happen when abandoned mines with environmental or safety issues are not properly remediated.”
The Environmental Protection Agency acknowledged fault in the Aug. 5 incident, in which an estimated 3 million gallons of orange mining sludge poured into the Animas River. The river initially tested for spikes in heavy metals, including lead and copper.
At least 23,000 inactive mines have been identified in Colorado.
With iconic images of an orange Animas plastered across the world, policymakers have turned their attention to thousands of inactive mines, not only in Colorado, but across the nation.
In Colorado, Hickenlooper said his administration is developing a statewide inventory of leaking mines to prioritize cleanup efforts. But the governor said Congress needs to act to minimize liability concerns associated with reclamation. Proposals in Congress would create a “good Samaritan” program, allowing private entities and state and local governments to clean up inactive mines without liability fears.
“Tackling watershed contamination presents a challenge because of federal laws that prevent cleanup efforts that fail to meet anything less than these national standards,” Hickenlooper said.
Rep. J. Paul Brown, R-Ignacio, applauded the governor for underscoring the mine issue.
“We need to address that and be looking at those areas where those old mines might be dammed up, where there might be a spill like that,” Brown said. “Hopefully we can do it in an economical way. I think there’s a lot of science showing that there may be some new techniques to clean up water that won’t be as expensive as a Superfund.”
While the governor’s address hit on serious issues, he also allowed for some lighter moments, cheering the Denver Broncos as the team heads into the playoffs, and pointing to his fiancée, Robin Pringle, who the governor will marry on Saturday.
As Hickenlooper concluded remarks, members of the Legislature showered the governor and Pringle with rice to celebrate their engagement and upcoming wedding.
“The rosy glow and spring in my step you may have noticed as I entered the chamber today isn’t just due to my recent engagement. ...” Hickenlooper told lawmakers. “I’m a very lucky man.”
Shifting gears, Hickenlooper addressed a growing housing crisis, another issue that has impacted mountain communities such as Durango.
Durango city officials are examining ways to encourage housing development, including protecting developers from defect lawsuits. Developers need to build between 560 to 790 new housing units each year until 2035 to meet demand, according to projections by the Regional Housing Alliance of La Plata County.
State lawmakers attempted to address the issue last legislative session by making it more difficult to file defects lawsuits against developers. But the legislation failed. Hickenlooper called on the Legislature to tackle the issue again. He also backed a proposal to extend low-income housing tax credits.
“Demand and rents have skyrocketed ...” the governor said. “Let’s revisit the area that we do have control over to make home ownership at least a little more attainable.”
But in the end, Hickenlooper pointed out that all state efforts require money. He has proposed restructuring a hospital-provider fee as an enterprise fund, or government-owned business. The fee is expected to generate $756 million in revenue this fiscal year.
The move would take the revenue out of a calculation under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, or TABOR, thereby lowering refunds set aside in the general fund to free up money.
Hickenlooper’s budget writers have proposed $373 million in cuts to balance the budget.
“If we can’t make this very reasonable change ... then what choice do we have but to re-examine TABOR,” Hickenlooper challenged legislators.
Senate President Bill Cadman, R-Colorado Springs, has led efforts opposing the governor’s proposal. Cadman highlights a nonpartisan legislative legal memo that states that the move to enterprise would be unconstitutional.
The governor on Thursday responded: “Lawyers are going to disagree. That’s what they do. We believe there is a way forward that doesn’t violate the constitution.”
Cadman quickly countered after the governor’s address, stating: “This sort of reminds me of Christmas.
“What is it that every kid wants when they go for the Christmas tree?” Cadman asked. “The next package. As soon as they open one, it’s behind them, and it doesn’t really matter what’s in it; they’re headed to the next package. This is the shiny object of this money.”
pmarcus@durangoherald.com
