The Stockley family has lived and worked in Colorado for generations. From them I’ve learned that our agricultural traditions offer insights for the future as well as a source of pride in the past. Those who came to northern Colorado more than a century ago to farm, like those who had been here for centuries, learned that you have to work with the land to make it grow.

Our Economy – Investing in Ourselves is Sound Business Practice

The economic numbers in our region of Colorado may be ahead of most of the nation, but I still see so many folks struggling right now. Too many of our neighbors are unemployed.

Job growth for northern Colorado needs to be based on sound business practices: investments in capital, and investments in people.

We need to look at how state dollars spent on new energy technologies like wind, solar, and biomass can produce jobs that sustain families as well as the environment. Investing in ourselves is sound business practice. We can offer tax incentives, or we can directly subsidize promising programs, but we have to keep Colorado’s working folks in mind.

If we’re going to make investments as a state, we should help to grow our small businesses. They are the principal engine of our local economy, and they will generate jobs and capital that will stick around.

If we’re going to make investments as a state, it should be in companies that will create primary jobs in northern Colorado. Folks need a good paying job, with benefits and a respectable wage.




Protecting Our Natural Resources -- Standing Up for Our Lands

As Coloradoans we enjoy a wonderful quality of life. We export a lot of things, but our Rocky Mountain scenery is what keeps folks coming back. This land is OUR land, and we have a duty to take care of it.

Businesses embrace Colorado because our quality of life is a big draw that brings quality employees. Whether it’s riding the prairie of the eastern plains, skiing Colorado’s high peaks, or mountain biking the western slope, folks know there’s life after work in Colorado!

For many of the same reasons, tourism is also a big draw to our state, and we need to keep folks coming back if we’re going to thrive as a state. Tourism brings in billions of dollars every year, and keeps many businesses growing.

But there is value in our lands, too. Colorado’s rich natural resources – water, oil, timber, and natural gas – are highly sought after commodities.

A lot of folks like to put these two things in conflict, saying it’s one, or the other. I know it doesn’t have to be that way. If the market really wants these commodities, those who want to extract them will find a way to pay for them without ruining our land, and our beautiful state.

We Coloradoans are the ones who pay, in the end, whether the cost is a little higher at the lumberyard or fuel pump, or the loss of our favorite fishing spots or hunting grounds. Our policies should reflect the value we as Coloradoans put on our land, and our quality of life.

That’s why I believe I stand with all Coloradoans when I say that I will support extraction of our natural resources with the emphasis on keeping Colorado beautiful for future generations. We simply must care for what makes Colorado special.


Powertech Centennial Uranium Mine – Short-sighted Opportunity

We need good jobs in northern Colorado, but not at the expense of the lands that support and nourish the rest of us. That’s why I am opposed to this proposed in-situ uranium mine located near Nunn in Weld County. Uranium mining of this sort has not been proven safe. In an area where farming and ranching thrive, there is a direct conflict with this type of mining. Risking the health and well being of the citizens and the economic base of northern Colorado for a few jobs seems short-sighted and opportunistic at best.



Northern Integrated Supply Project

I have been against the building of the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP) for a long time. This very complex water project may look good on the surface, but there are hidden costs, and problems. These costs extend into numerous communities in northern Colorado. The primary focus of NISP is building the Glade Reservoir north of Ft. Collins. This mega reservoir is 177,000 acre feet, and would supply water to burgeoning suburban developments, many of whom have few water conservation policies in place. The premise on building this reservoir was for anticipated, unbridled future growth for these communities. Currently, the estimated cost is well over $426 million dollars and certain to rise, with many years of high debt and user fees for current and future water users to pay back the bonds for this project. Looking at the current economic realities, I think we can do better than this. We should be looking at a combination of less expensive alternatives to NISP for our water needs here in northern Colorado, solutions we can find at a fraction of the cost. As taxpayers we simply cannot afford this costly water - or the debt that comes with it.