Good morning everyone! I'm excited to present my second State of the State address. You can follow along with this thread or watch it live on my Facebook page: facebook.com/jaredpolis/vid…
#copolitics #coleg
#copolitics #coleg
Working together last year, we lowered health care costs, lowered taxes for small businesses, provided more affordable housing, made the largest-ever state investment in transportation, and delivered universal free Full Day Kindergarten for all! #copolitics #coleg
95% of the bills that I signed into law last year were passed with Republican and Democratic votes! We should not take this cooperative spirit for granted. Because the notion that we’re all in this together is a much better approach to solving problems than trying to go it alone.
It's our job to build a state that will allow Coloradans to reach the mountaintop - by saving families money, protecting the natural wonders that grace every corner of our state, & widening the pathway to prosperity, instead of leaving folks feeling like they’re running in place.
That pathway to prosperity often starts with a great education. Last year at this podium, I asked legislators to take the bold step of providing free full-day kindergarten for every kid in Colorado. And we delivered!
Because of free full-day kindergarten, Samantha Hosmer, a mother of two from Erie, Colorado, is saving over $300 dollars a month, and Samantha was able to return to full-time work as a special ed paraprofessional.
Now it’s time to take the next step: In my budget this year, we’re proposing to fund preschool for an additional 6,000 children, which for the first time will bring coverage to half of all eligible kids in Colorado.
We can and we must do better, which is why I’m committed to achieving universal access to quality preschool for 4-year-olds by the end of my first term.
Our teachers, making up one of the most important professions in our society, shouldn’t have to work a 2nd or 3rd job just to make ends meet.
Because of our fiscal rules, the state spends far too much backfilling some of the wealthiest school districts in the state. That is truly at the root of our school funding issues. Together, we can fix this systemic problem and finally raise pay for our hardworking educators.
Our work on education is incredibly important. But we can’t fulfill our promise of a better future for our kids if we don’t do a better job of keeping them safe when they walk through the schoolhouse door.
One of the most difficult days of my administration was responding to the STEM school shooting in Highlands Ranch. 8 students were injured, and Kendrick Castillo lost his life heroically preventing more bloodshed. Kendrick’s parents, John and Maria, are here with us today
Every child deserves a safe opportunity to learn, make friends, create memories, grow up, graduate, and move on to a successful life.
Thanks to new legislation enacted last year, we are putting $100 into a college savings account for every single Colorado child born or adopted beginning January 1st of this year.
I also want to highlight the next important affordability effort: The “Get On Your Feet” loan forgiveness plan. It would provide debt relief to Coloradans who graduate from 2- or 4-year colleges on an income-based repayment program, helping them transition into the workforce.
We need to keep our economy strong, but more importantly — we need to make sure our economy works for everyone.
Here we believe your future should not be pre-determined by the color of your skin, your parents’ income, your religion, your age, your disability status, where you live in our great state, where you were born, who you love, your gender identity. We believe in a Colorado For All.
In the face of unprecedented hostility from this White House toward our immigrant communities, we say loudly and proudly that we stand with DREAMers and refugees!
We don’t build walls of exclusion in Colorado — we build ladders of opportunity!
This year, due to our strong economy and a bipartisan deal from 2005, every Coloradan will receive real tax relief as our Colorado income taxes go down to a historic low of 4.5%. This tax cut applies to all taxpayers, including individuals, corporations, and every small business.
We also delivered a tax cut for 144,000 small businesses in Colorado by cutting wasteful subsidies to big-box retailers, and we still had money left over to invest in affordable housing and improving health care.
As we work to broaden our tax base and lower the rate, we must start today on saving more for a rainy day. We have an obligation to save during prosperous times like these so we can weather the next storm whenever it comes.
There is one issue that continues to reign over all when it comes to affordability: the high cost of health care. 13% of Americans -- 1 out of every 8 people who live in this country -- said they knew someone who died because they could not afford treatment. This. Must. Change.
The cost of health care is starting to change for the better, thanks to bipartisan work -- and the work of our tremendous @LTGovofCO Dianne Primavera who is heading up our Office of Saving People Money on Health Care.
@LtGovofCO Perhaps the biggest accomplishment in health care last year was our reinsurance program -- a bipartisan effort led by Representatives @McCluskieforCO and Janice Rich and Senators @KerryDonovanSD5 and Bob Rankin.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 Thanks to reinsurance, health care rates on the individual market are going down by an average of 20%! And the savings are greatest in the Eastern Plains, Southern Colorado, and the Western Slope!
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 We know that health care costs won’t magically go down on their own. We need to keep working. This year I’m supporting legislation to require prescription drug price transparency & provide Coloradans a public option to increase freedom & choice in the health care marketplace.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 Special interests are going to fight legislation that will bring some sanity to the pricing. But we don’t represent the special interests -- we represent the people. And the people are crying out for relief from high health care costs.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 Reducing costs in our health care system will also help us tackle one of our most pressing problems — our state’s mental health and addiction crisis.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 We need to find a way to enact paid family and medical leave for more Coloradans. The Federal Family and Medical Leave Act allows for unpaid leave, but that still forces families to choose between getting a paycheck and caring for a newborn child, an aging parent, or themselves.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 I’m hopeful we can construct a unique Colorado solution that provides paid time off to many more Coloradans as soon as possible, without straining state resources or forcing taxpayers to bear the financial risk.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 Our majestic lands define our state and power our economy by making us an international destination for tourism and outdoor recreation.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 We are asking the Legislature for a one-time infusion from the General Fund to make important capacity improvements across our state parks system. This money will also go towards opening our newest state park — Fishers Peak!
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 We’re spending more and more time sitting in traffic, which means less and less time with our loved ones. Thanks to good-faith bipartisan legislative work, the state was able to make a historic multi-year investment in transportation infrastructure.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 We are never going to solve climate change or air quality issues if everyone looks at the person next to them and says 'YOU do something about the climate.’
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 The states and countries that embrace the renewable energy future will reap the economic rewards. That’s why we have taken bold action to put us on the path to achieving 100% renewable energy by 2040.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 Here's what the renewable energy future looks like: innovating, growing jobs, growing opportunity, saving people money, and doing our part to reduce the harmful effects of climate change and local air pollution in the process.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 Colorado has always been a state of trailblazers. Ours is a state of can-do people. We don’t back down from a challenge, and we don’t quit when the going gets tough.
@LtGovofCO @McCluskieforCO @KerryDonovanSD5 The state of our state is strong. It is forward-thinking. It is dynamic. It is bold. And it is courageous.
