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Volume 10 Issue 40
In This Issue:
October 9, 2019
* Page 2 * Page 4
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Weld County Master Gardener Program Proposition CC Continued
Members of Sheriff’s Office Honored For Lifesaving Actions
WELD COUNTY, CO — This week, a packed board room applauded one citizen and 11 members of the Weld County Sheriff’s Office as they were honored by Undersheriff Donnie Patch, the Board of County Commissioners and the Colorado State Patrol (CSP) for their heroic actions in saving the lives of Weld County residents. “It’s an honor and privilege to have you standing here before us,” Commissioner Chair Barbara Kirkmeyer said during the presentation. “We truly believe in you. We stand behind you, and we have your backs in everything we do as county commissioners. You’re the folks that are there for us when we really need you.” Deputies Brandon Stupka and Aaron Walker In August, deputies Stupka and Walker responded to a stalled vehicle that caught fire on the side of the road near Greeley. A man locked himself inside the burning vehicle. Stupka and Walker broke a window, pulling the driver out of the vehicle and saving his life. “These deputies went above and beyond the call of duty to help that individual,” said Ian Whittington, CSP Commander of their efforts. “I admire everyone in the Weld County Sheriff’s Office. Thank you for your service.” Deputies Nicolas Thompson and Leslie Kinner Two deputies were commended for their efforts in February. After an inmate suffered a seizure, deputies Thompson and Kinner administered chest compressions while waiting for paramedics to arrive and continued compressions in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.
Deputies Christian Nix, Everardo Bretado-Pena and Bruce Sunada On two separate days, deputies intervened when inmates tried to commit suicide. Deputy Nix with the assistance of deputy Bretado-Pena stopped two inmates who had formed a suicide pact. Deputy Sunada also prevented an inmate from harming himself after Sunada noticed a change in the inmate’s behavior. Deputies David Badley, Allan Coltrain, Arlyn Liftin and Tyler Hishinuma The Weld County Sheriff’s Posse was conducting their spring training in May, when one of the horses shied causing its rider to fall off the animal and sustain serious injuries to her arm. Deputies Badley, Allan, Liftin and Hishinuma worked together to apply a tourniquet and keep her as comfortable as possible while waiting for paramedics. Weld County Resident Nick Maki A Citizen Certificate of Merit was given to Nick Maki for his quick actions in April when he arrived at a business to deliver a package and noticed an employee bleeding profusely after accidentally shooting himself in the leg. Maki applied a tourniquet to the victim and called paramedics, who transported the victim to the hospital. For more information about the Sheriff’s Office, visit www.weldsheriff. com.
Now We Know How Much Money is at Stake on the 2019 Ballot with Proposition CC and TABOR Refunds in Colorado
New economic forecasts show the state may refund as much as $1.7 billion to taxpayers in the next three fiscal years -- but not all will benefit the same John Frank - The Colorado Sun — On the November ballot, Colorado voters will decide a question potentially worth as much as $1.7 billion. Proposition CC asks voters for permission to end the cap on state tax revenue outlined in the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. If the answer is yes, the state plans to spend the money on schools, higher education and transportation projects. If the answer is no, the money would get returned to taxpayers as a refund — mostly to benefit seniors and disabled veterans. Just how much money is at stake became clearer Friday, as state economists released the latest economic projections to inform the ballot question The tax revenue is estimated to exceed the TABOR caps by $541.7 million to $1.7 billion total in the next three fiscal years through 2022, according to forecasts from legislative economists and Gov. Jared Polis’ budget office. If the state’s economy continues to prosper, the total would continue to grow in future years. House Speaker KC Becker, D-Boulder, said the numbers show how much Colorado voters can do to address priority spending areas in the $30 billion state budget if Prop. CC is approved. “Colorado continues to have significant unfunded needs in education and transportation, and Prop. CC helps to address that without increasing taxes beyond what Coloradans pay today,” she said in an interview. Cont. on Page 4, See Proposition CC
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T H E T R I B U TA R Y
Weld County Master Gardener Spring Program Application Due Nov. 8
Applications are now being accepted for the 2020 Weld County Colorado Master Gardener spring training program. Classes will occur from January 24th through April 10th on Fridays from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm and will be located at the Larimer County Fairgrounds (The Ranch) in Loveland. Applications are due by Friday, November 8, 2019 for the spring training classes. Colorado Master Gardener Volunteers assist CSU Extension staff in delivering knowledgebased home gardening information to the public. The Colorado Master Gardener (CMG), audience is exclusively home and community gardeners. CMG volunteers serve the public by answering questions from citizens of Weld County about home gardening, staffing diagnostic clinics, teaching gardening classes, writing newspaper articles, and mentoring gardening and community greening projects. Candidates for the Colorado Master Gardener Program should want to learn more about plants and gardening and be willing to participate in a practical training program followed by the completion of required volunteer hours. The Colorado Gardener Certificate is available for those wanting to obtain education on gardening in Colorado (training occurs with the CMG program). CGC students will not represent Colorado State University Extension as a volunteer following training. However, at the end of training, students will receive a certificate of completion showing that they have undergone the training course. The Colorado Gardener Certificate may be displayed in a place of business and used in business marketing. Participants in this training do not have a volunteer commitment, thus there is a higher fee for this program. If you would like to apply to become a Colorado Master Gardener in Weld County or for more information, call or send an email message to Sunshine Gearhart at (970) 400-2080 or sgearhart@weldgov.com
Gen Schneider Announces Election Bid for Colorado House of Representatives District 63
Dacono, CO---Gen Schneider announced today that she is seeking election to the 63rd District of the Colorado House of Representatives as a Democrat. “Our district needs someone who represents all the people, not just those of one party. My experience as a city council member would serve me well in this position, and I would be very proud to work for all the citizens in House District 63,” said Gen Schneider. “My goals as your Representative would be improving the educational system, prioritizing our aging infrastructure, redirecting oil and gas jobs, revising TABOR, and promoting the health and safety for everyone who lives, works, and plays in Colorado.” Gen Schneider has served a 3 year term on the Dacono City Council and is currently an alternate on the Planning Commission and a member of the Police Action Committee. A certified veterinary technician, who graduated from the Bel-Rea Institute for Animal Technology, Gen Schneider has over 18 years of experience in the animal health care field. After the birth of her twins she decided to go back to school to obtain her bachelors degree from CU-Boulder in 2018. Her dedication to public service has pushed her into running for this Representative seat. Gen Schneider has a rural spirit, and has lived on the Wyoming prairie, in the mountains and plains of Montana, and the rolling hills of Wisconsin. She grew up branding cows and building hay forts. She, her husband Bill, and their children – William and Olivia – have lived in Dacono Colorado for the last 11 years.
October 9, 2019
TRIVIA What do residents of Malta spend - dollars, lira or pounds? POUNDS What leggy songstress drew raves by waxing Where Have Alll the Flowers Gone in German? MARLENE DIETRICH What Italian astronomer and physicist was born three days before Michelangelo died? GALILEO Who wrote the story for Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N. as Retlaw Elias Yensid? WALT DISNEY What TV network used the innovative Skycam for an overhead shot of the 1985 baseball All-Star Game? NBC Did baseball’s Roger Maris hit more than 35 home runs the year before he slammed 61? YES What country is the world’s leading beer producer? THE U.S. What city did the Beach Boys play in on July 4, 1984? WASHINGTON D.C. Did TV’s Robin Leach make the HOllywood Bacheloreetes Association’s 10 Most Exciting Bachelors list? YES Which of Dan Rowan and Dick Martin had been a used-car salesman? DICK MARTIN What two substances make up 99% of colas? CARBONATED WATER AND SUGAR What’s the name of the paddle-wheeler that steams through Disneyland’s Frontierland? THE MARK TWAIN What Arab country is Africa’s leading oil producer? LIBYA What was the heavy-metal community’s proposed answer to Band Aid? HEARING AID What rubber baron’s first two names were Banjamin Franklin? B.F. GOODRICH’S
October 9, 2019
Also on This Day
WORLD WAR II 1940 During the Battle of Britain, the German Luftwaffe launches a heavy nighttime air raid on London. The dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral was pierced by a Nazi bomb, leaving the high altar in ruin. GERMANY 1974 German businessman Oskar Schindler, credited with saving 1,200 Jews from the Holocaust, dies at the age of 66. RUSSIA 1975 Andrei Dmitriyevich Sakharov, the Soviet physicist who helped build the USSR’s first hydrogen bomb, is awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in recognition of his struggle against “the abuse of power and violations of human dignity in all its forms.” COLONIAL AMERICA 1635 Religious dissident Roger Williams is banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony by the General Court of Massachusetts. Williams had spoken out against the right of civil authorities to punish religious dissension and to confiscate Indian land. INVENTIONS & SCIENCE 1936 On October 9, 1936, harnessing the power of the mighty Colorado River, Hoover Dam begins sending electricity over transmission lines spanning 266 miles of mountains and deserts to run the lights, radios, and stoves of Los Angeles. ART, LITERATURE, AND FILM HISTORY 1946 Hailed by many critics as Eugene O’Neill’s finest work, The Iceman Cometh opens at the Martin Beck Theater on October 9, 1946. The play, about desperate tavern bums clinging CRIME 1942 Chicago bootlegger Roger “The Terrible” Touhy escapes from Illinois’ Stateville Prison by climbing the guard’s tower. Touhy, who had been framed for kidnapping by his bootlegging rivals with the help of corrupt Chicago officials, was serving a 99-year sentence for a kidnapping.
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This Day in History - October 9, 1967 Che Guevara is Executed
On October 9, 1967, socialist revolutionary and guerilla leader Che Guevara, age 39, is killed by the Bolivian army. The U.S.-military-backed Bolivian forces captured Guevara on October 8 while battling his band of guerillas in Bolivia and assassinated him the following day. His hands were cut off as proof of death and his body was buried in an unmarked grave. In 1997, Guevara’s remains were found and sent back to Cuba, where they were reburied in a ceremony attended by President Fidel Castro and thousands of Cubans. Ernesto Rafael Guevara de la Serna was born to a well-off family in Argentina in 1928. While studying medicine at the University of Buenos Aires, he took time off to travel around South America on a motorcycle; during this time, he witnessed the poverty and oppression of the lower classes. He received a medical degree in 1953 and continued his travels around Latin America, becoming involved with left-wing organizations. In the mid 1950s, Guevara met up with Fidel Castro and his group of exiled revolutionaries in Mexico. Guevara played a key role in Castro’s seizure of power from Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959 and later served as Castro’s righthand man and minister of industry. Guevara strongly opposed U.S. domination in Latin America and advocated peasant-based revolutions to combat social injustice in Third World countries. Castro later described him as “an artist of revolutionary warfare.” Guevara resigned—some say he was dismissed—from his Cuban government post in April 1965, possibly over differences with Castro about the nation’s economic and foreign policies. Guevara then disappeared from Cuba, traveled to Africa and eventually resurfaced in Bolivia, where he was killed. Following his death, Guevara achieved hero status among people around the world as a symbol of anti-imperialism and revolution. A 1960 photo taken by Alberto Korda of Guevara in a beret became iconic and has since appeared on countless posters and T-shirts. However, not everyone considers Guevara a hero: He is accused, among other things, of ordering the deaths of hundreds of people in Cuban prisons during the revolution.
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T H E T R I B U TA R Y
October 9, 2019
Proposition CC Cont. from Page 1 The latest figures showing the financial impact of Prop. CC are lower than what is printed in the 2019 election guide, known as the Blue Book, mailed to each voter. The ballot guide numbers are based on the June revenue forecasts, but economists revised the estimates to account for slower projected economic growth that may depress tax collections. The new numbers also forecast further into the future. In the latest estimates, the legislative council is estimating the lower end of the range at $541.7 million. The governor’s office is forecasting the higher total excess revenue at $1.7 billion because it is more optimistic about the state’s economy in the future. An additional $428.3 million in TABOR surplus revenue from the current 2019 tax year is not affected by Prop. CC and is expected to be refunded to taxpayers early next year. An estimated $153 million from that total will go to local governments to cover the cost of property tax exemptions for seniors and disabled veterans. The remainder will get returned through a temporary reduction in the income tax to 4.5% from 4.63%. The average tax break ranges from $10 for single filers with adjusted gross income below $40,000 to $629 for those earning $226,000 or more, according to legislative projections. The estimates for joint filers range from $1 to $651 in those respective income brackets. A forecast from Legislative Council economists estimates how much taxpayers will received in refunds for tax year 2019 because revenue exceeded the TABOR caps. These refunds are not currently subject to Proposition CC. (Screenshot) But if the ballot question is approved by voters, Polis and leading Democratic lawmakers are considering potential legislation to allow the state to keep some of the $428.3 million — a move that only adds to the total financial stakes in November. State Sen. Dominick Moreno, a Commerce City Democrat and budget committee chairman, said the state needs the money to cover ongoing obligations. Without it, the state may struggle to pay for human services and corrections programs, among other areas, he said. “If voters do decide to endorse Proposition CC … voters have given us permission to retain the revenue going forward,” he said. But for Republican lawmakers opposed to Prop. CC, the new numbers only reaffirmed their desire to return the money. “The Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights is a huge boon to the taxpayers of our state and it’s their money,” said Rep. Kim Ransom, a Douglas County Republican and state budget writer. “Everytime I see the word refund or rebate I’m glad to hear it. Because we have a budget we can work with, it grows every year and we have room to give taxpayers their money back.” How much taxpayers would get as a refund varies widely Not all Colorado taxpayers will get the same refund if Prop. CC fails at the ballot box, and the two economic estimates vary greatly about how much would get returned in each of the next two years. If the lower estimate by legislative economists is correct, most of the money would get paid to local governments to cover the cost of property tax breaks for seniors and disabled veterans. The remainder would get returned as a sales tax refund to all taxpayers. The estimated rebate is between $20 and $62 for single filers, and double that amount for joint filers. The break would come in tax year 2020 filings made in 2021. A report from the Colorado Legislative Council shows the estimated taxpayer refund if Proposition CC fails at the November ballot. The estimate is lower than projections from the governor’s office and the figures don’t include property tax breaks for seniors and disabled veterans. (Screenshot) But if tax revenues hit the higher projections from the governor’s budget office, the average tax refunds would increase with single-filers receiving $248 and joint filers $638. The refunds would be spread out over three years starting in tax year 2021. A report produced by Gov. Jared Polis’ Office of State Budget and Planning outlines the high end of the average TABOR refunds expected in the 2020-21 fiscal year and beyond if Proposition CC fails in November. (Screenshot) If Prop. CC passes, the tax break for seniors and disabled veterans would remain in law. But the possibility of income and sales tax refunds would be negated. Becker, the House speaker and a chief proponent of Prop. CC, said the measure would give the state more flexibility. “We just feel like we need to invest in good times