Max's Minute | Blogspot

Primary elections are personal. People work hard for their candidates. They donate. They walk neighborhoods. They call voters. They put their reputations behind the people they believe are best prepared to lead. Then the votes come in. Some candidates win. Some do not. That is the nature of self-government. I will say plainly that not all of my candidates won this primary. So if you are disappointed today, I understand it. I am in the same boat with many of you. But disappointment cannot become disengagement. The primary is over. The mission is not. Republicans now have a responsibility to look forward, support our nominees, and do the hard work necessary to win in November. Colorado cannot afford another cycle of Democrat control. We cannot afford more inflationary policy, more attacks on parents, more soft-on-crime legislation, more regulatory pressure on small businesses, more hostility toward energy, and more government that treats taxpayers like an endless revenue source. The left...

The 2026 legislative session has ended, but the questions it raised are far from over. Every session produces bills. Some pass. Some fail. Some improve the law. Some make government larger, costlier, and less accountable. But beneath the titles, fiscal notes, amendments, and floor votes, this session asked one deeper question again and again: Who does government trust? Does it trust parents, homeowners, taxpayers, small businesses, law enforcement, local communities, and voters? Or does it trust centralized power in Denver to make more decisions for them? That question shaped nearly every major debate this year. Colorado families entered this session under real pressure. Housing remains unaffordable for too many families. Public safety remains a serious concern. The cost of living keeps rising. Employers continue to face a tax and regulatory climate that makes it harder to invest, hire, and grow. The state budget is strained. Communities like Castle Rock, The Pinery, Castle Pines Villa...

Colorado voters have not yet had their say on Initiative 175. Yet HB26-1430 tries to plan around their answer before they give it. That is the core problem. HB26-1430, called the Colorado Budget Protection Act, is written to take effect only if voters approve a proposed constitutional change that would dedicate more state revenue to road transportation. If that happens, this bill automatically reduces the gasoline excise tax, special fuel excise tax, several vehicle registration fees, and the road usage fee from January 1, 2027, through July 1, 2030. It also creates a new Support Road Transportation Fund to receive revenue dedicated to road transportation and then reroutes that money through a new statutory structure. That may sound technical. It is not. It is a question of whether the legislature should respect the voters or maneuver around them. I voted no because HB26-1430 treats a possible voter-approved constitutional amendment as a problem to be managed before the public has eve...

This week at the Colorado State Capitol, Democrats advanced SB26-135 , a bill that controls how taxpayer dollars are collected, retained, and distributed within Colorado’s budget, particularly in areas tied to education funding. Alongside it, they adopted Amendment L014 , which modifies that funding structure and reshapes how it is presented to the public. You will hear this framed as support for children and families. That is not the full reality of what this policy does. Amendment L014 makes substantive changes. It adjusts how funds are allocated and how programs are defined within the broader budget. But just as important as what it changes is how it is being communicated. The amendment elevates language centered on children. That becomes the focus. That becomes the headline. That is not neutral. That is strategic. SB26-135 is a fiscal mechanism. It governs the movement of money. It creates obligations that taxpayers will carry. It affects priorities across the entire state budget. ...

Colorado lawmakers just cut newer programs to close a budget gap exceeding 1.2 billion dollars. That decision is not routine budgeting. It is evidence of a structural problem that has been building for years. Republicans warned about it. They proposed alternatives. They were dismissed. Now the consequences are visible. The story reported by Colorado Politics confirms what many legislators have been saying for multiple sessions. The state expanded commitments faster than revenue could sustain them. When the downturn arrived, the newest programs became the first casualties. This was predictable. Colorado entered this session facing a shortfall driven by declining revenue growth, expanding eligibility commitments, and rising mandatory spending obligations. Instead of adjusting course earlier, the majority continued approving policies with long-term fiscal exposure. Now, lawmakers are forced to cut recent initiatives to keep the budget balanced. That is not a strategy. That is a correction...

Colorado families deserve honesty about what is happening inside their state government. This year’s budget is not routine. It is not stable. It is not responsible stewardship. It is a warning signal. The legislature is attempting to close a budget hole between 1.2 and 1.5 billion dollars while still advancing expensive policy priorities that expand government commitments beyond what taxpayers can sustain. That is not fiscal discipline. That is a structural imbalance. I supported slowing the process so the public could see what is happening inside this budget. Colorado taxpayers deserve time to understand decisions that will affect their families for years. Here is what is actually happening. Colorado is spending more than it can responsibly sustain The current budget proposal totals roughly 46.8 billion dollars statewide. Medicaid costs alone are driving massive increases in spending and forcing cuts elsewhere across state government. This is not a one-year fluctuation. It is the resu...

Coloradans believe in something simple and important. The people who live in a community should help decide what that community becomes. That principle is called local control. It is not a technical concept. It is a promise. It means your neighborhood is shaped by the people who live there, raise families there, and invest their lives there. That promise is being tested at the State Capitol. In recent sessions, the legislature has passed and proposed a series of housing bills that override local zoning authority across Colorado. These include mandates eliminating local parking standards, forcing higher density development near transit corridors, requiring approval pathways for housing on church and school property, and allowing certain housing developments to bypass local zoning entirely. More recently, the HOME Act allows public institutions, transit agencies, housing authorities, and nonprofits to construct housing projects on qualifying land regardless of local zoning rules. These p...

For decades, Colorado has maintained a careful balance between the right of workers to organize and the right of individuals to control their own paycheck. That balance is embodied in the Labor Peace Act, a law that has governed labor relations in our state for more than eighty years. Unfortunately, legislation moving through  the Colorado General Assembly would dismantle one of the most important safeguards in that law. Under current law, workers must approve two separate votes before unions can collect mandatory dues or fees from every employee in a workplace. The first vote determines whether employees want union representation. The second vote determines whether that union can require every worker to financially support it. That second vote is not a technicality. It is a protection. If a union wishes to compel financial support from every employee in the workplace, it should have to demonstrate strong and clear support from the workforce. The Labor Peace Act recognizes this sim...

There is something deeply wrong and deeply dangerous about a mayor using the machinery of city government to place law enforcement in tension with law enforcement. That is exactly what is happening in Denver. Let me be clear. I am 100 percent pro-law enforcement. I support the men and women who put on the badge, take the oath, and step into danger so the rest of us can live in peace. That includes local police. It includes deputies. It includes state officers. It includes federal officers. A civilized republic cannot survive without respect for lawful authority and the officers charged with carrying it out. What it cannot survive is political leadership that deliberately pits one branch of law enforcement against another for ideological theater. Mayor Mike Johnston has crossed into reckless territory. His Executive Order 152 does not read like the work of a mayor focused on public safety. It reads like the work of a politician determined to obstruct, posture, and inflame. It bars ...

Colorado is no longer drifting. It is being driven - deliberately - down a path that is less affordable, less safe, and less free than the state generations before us built. The data confirms what families already feel. Colorado now ranks among the most expensive states in the nation. Housing affordability is near the bottom. Regulation is among the highest. Property crime, auto theft, and human trafficking are near the top. These are not partisan talking points. They are measurable outcomes of policy choices made under prolonged one-party control. This is not the Colorado we deserve. For several years, legislators like House Minority Leader Jarvis Caldwell and Assistant Minority Leader Ty Winter have been sounding the alarm. Their work has consistently highlighted a pattern: more spending without discipline, more regulation without results, and more centralized control at the expense of local communities and working families. The press coverage is clear. The warning signs are unmistak...

The term "special" would seem to indicate an event that happens outside of the norm, perhaps better or more important than usual, or distinguished by some sort of unique quality.  Colorado’s latest “special” session wasn’t special at all - it was a scripted, six‑day tax‑and‑spend spree that left small businesses reeling, taxpayers paying more, and the state’s budget hole untouched. The call from the Governor to form a special session even dripped with progressive rhetoric, seeking to blame the passage of HR1 for Colorado's ongoing financial woes.  One stated intent of the majority party was to "raise revenue", which we all know means to simply "raise taxes". Lawmakers gutted tax breaks for small businesses and insurance companies, wiped out incentives for entrepreneurs, and operated in open defiance of the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR). Take, for instance, the elimination of the vendor fee. This was a modest compensation to retailers to help offset t...

When I first ran for office, I made a promise to represent the people of Douglas County with clarity, courage, and a fierce commitment to preserving what makes our community exceptional. That commitment led me to become a vocal supporter of the Douglas County Home Rule Charter. This initiative was never about rebellion. It was about resilience. Each legislative session at the State Capitol brings a new round of policies that pull authority away from local communities and concentrate it in Denver under the gold dome. From statewide zoning mandates that strip your elected county commissioners of land use authority, to top-down education reforms that disregard the values of local families, we are watching the slow but deliberate erosion of local control. Home Rule offered Douglas County the opportunity to push back intelligently, constitutionally, and proactively. Let me be clear: Home Rule is not a silver bullet. It doesn't give a county the power to defy state law or rewrite the Con...

The Colorado General Assembly has passed Senate Bill 25-276 , a piece of legislation that directly violates federal law, obstructs the work of law enforcement, and threatens the safety of every community in our state. As someone who has sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution and protect Coloradans, I opposed this bill in the strongest terms possible. SB25-276 prohibits state and local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities, including in cases where individuals have been charged with or convicted of serious crimes. It creates bureaucratic “no-go zones” for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and shields illegal immigrants, including those with violent records, from lawful deportation efforts. This is not speculation. The Justice Department has already filed suit against the State of Colorado for this flagrant disregard of federal immigration law. And let me be clear: they are right to do so. SB25-276 is a direct affront to the Supremacy Clause of...

As my first legislative session in the Colorado House of Representatives draws to a close, I’ve taken time to reflect on what this experience has revealed - both about the process of governance and the state of leadership in our Capitol. I came here with resolve, determined to serve the people of House District 45 with integrity, to bring forward thoughtful legislation, and to defend the values we hold dear. While I remain committed to that mission, this first session has been a sobering introduction to the dysfunction and deep partisanship that now pervade the People's House. There have been moments of genuine collaboration - instances where members across the aisle worked together to pass good legislation that will serve Colorado well. But those moments have been tragically few. More often, I’ve witnessed partisanship strangle commonsense bills, smothering solutions that could have eased burdens on families, safeguarded constitutional rights, and addressed real problems.  I’ve al...

On April 23, Governor Jared Polis raised the Mexican flag over the Colorado State Capitol. Just weeks earlier, on March 15, he raised the Canadian flag in the same place. These weren’t spontaneous gestures - they were the centerpieces of official proclamations declaring “Colorado-Mexico Friendship Day” and “Colorado-Canada Friendship Day.” But while the governor parades foreign flags above the people’s Capitol, Coloradans are drowning under rising costs, tax burdens, and constitutional infringements. Instead of focusing on the crises at home, Governor Polis is playing diplomat, using the Capitol - not as a symbol of the people’s sovereignty - but as a billboard for his personal political aspirations. Let’s call it what it is: a campaign stunt. While everyday Coloradans are worried about affording groceries, paying their property taxes, or holding onto their Second Amendment rights, the governor is busy setting the stage for his next political act - flirting with federal-level ambitions...

Let’s call HJR25-1023 what it really is - a backdoor attempt to erase the Taxpayer Bill of Rights and overturn the will of the voters through the courts. TABOR has been upheld by Colorado voters time and again, and no resolution - however cleverly worded - should be used to nullify their voice.” This is the plain truth behind House Joint Resolution 25-1023, now under consideration at the Capitol. While its sponsors dress it up as a neutral legal inquiry into constitutionality, what it really seeks is permission from the courts to dismantle the very structure that protects Coloradans from unchecked government growth: the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, or TABOR. Let’s be clear - this resolution isn’t about clarity. It’s not about good government. It’s about eliminating accountability and handing the State of Colorado a blank check. And that check will be drawn from the budgets of working families who are already living under the pressure of inflation, tax layering, and a cost of living that ke...

“Voters’ choice.” You’ve probably heard that phrase used over and over in this session to justify sweeping, top-down legislation at the State Capitol. But here’s the truth: the majority party only defends “voters’ choice” when it advances their agenda. When it comes to parental rights and local control, those same voices are quick to override the will of voters and communities across Colorado. Two bills this session - HB25-1309 and HB25-1312 - are clear and dangerous examples of how the Legislature is dismantling parental authority and local autonomy under the guise of progress. HB25-1309: Stripping Away Parents’ Say in School Curricula This bill effectively eliminates school board discretion over how comprehensive sexual education is taught in classrooms and cuts parents out of the conversation. It mandates what must be taught and how it must be taught and shuts down school districts that might want to reflect the values of their local communities. In Douglas County and Castle Rock,...

Governor Jared Polis has officially signed HB25-1003 into law, a bipartisan measure I was proud to co-sponsor alongside Representative Rebekah Stewart of Lakewood. This legislation represents a meaningful step forward in how Colorado supports children with complex medical needs and their families. HB25-1003 consolidates and simplifies two existing Medicaid waiver programs - the Children with Life-Limiting Illness (CLLI) Waiver and the Children’s Extensive Support (CES) Waiver - into a single streamlined waiver for children with complex health needs. This new waiver will provide continuous, coordinated care to children facing significant medical challenges while also reducing bureaucratic overlap and easing the burden on families navigating the system. Why It Matters Families caring for medically complex children already face a heavy emotional and financial load. Between juggling doctor visits, specialized therapies, medications, and in-home support, they often spend more time figh...