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The I-70 Scout & Eastern Colorado News

Category: Colorado News

  • Colorado deer hunters: Keep an eye on your mailbox for mandatory chronic wasting disease testing letter

    Colorado deer hunters: Keep an eye on your mailbox for mandatory chronic wasting disease testing letter

    DENVER – Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) will be conducting mandatory chronic wasting disease (CWD) testing during the 2019 hunting season in specific Game Management Units (GMU) as part of efforts to control the spread of CWD with its Colorado Chronic Wasting Disease Response Plan.

    Beginning in late September, CPW will be sending out letters to Colorado rifle season deer (buck and doe) hunters who have been selected for mandatory CWD testing. Seventy-eight GMUs, including all eastern plains units, are included in the 2019 mandatory sample. Mandatory and voluntary sampling is critical for data collection on this disease that impacts the long-term health of our herds. For a complete list of this year’s mandatory GMUs, see pages 20 – 29 of the 2019 Colorado Big Game Brochure. 

    CWD is a prion disease that affects Colorado’s deer, elk and moose. The disease course generally lasts 2 – 3 years and is always fatal. Although there has been no evidence that CWD has yet been transmitted to humans, the Center for Disease Control, along with CPW, recommend that hunters not eat the meat of a CWD-infected animal.

    Click here for complete CWD Testing and Submission Information, including a list of testing submission sites and their schedule of operations.

    New in 2019

    Temporary CWD Submission Sites
    CPW is implementing temporary CWD submission sites (in mandatory testing units) this year to assist those who are hunting in more remote locations. You can find a complete list of CWD testing submission sites along with hours and locations on CPW’s website: cpw.state.co.us/CWD

    More stringent requirements for CWD processing reimbursement
    As in the past, CPW will reimburse costs incurred from processing CWD-positive animals. The standard rate will be up to $100 for animals non-commercially processed and up to $200 for deer and elk that are commercially processed. The maximum reimbursement for commercial processing moose is $250.

    Please note: the process for reimbursement has become more stringent this year. In order to be reimbursed for processing costs, you must have:
    1. Hunting license showing CID number
    2. CWD Head Tag
    3. Proof of payment:
    a. Credit card slip
    b. Copy of both the front and back of canceled check
    c. Receipt showing cash payment
    d. Itemized invoice (if processor can provide one)

    Other regulations related to CWD samples and CWD-positive test results

    • CPW does not offer a replacement license or refund license fees to hunters that harvest a CWD-positive animal. This is in line with other states’ CWD regulations and helps ensure the testing program maintains adequate funding.
    • Hunters whose deer tests positive for CWD will get a letter mailed to them by CPW explaining what we know about CWD, disposal recommendations, as well as public health information. It will also provide links to online sources for additional information. In addition to this letter, each hunter with a CWD-positive animal will be notified once by phone and email.

     
    Updated information on CWD and the 2019 mandatory sample will be posted on CPW’s website at cpw.state.co.us/CWD.

     

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  • Wyoming forensics lab plays a major role in prosecuting wildlife violations in Colorado

    Wyoming forensics lab plays a major role in prosecuting wildlife violations in Colorado

    LARAMIE, Wyo. — Late August when Colorado Parks and Wildlife officers wanted confirmation if they had captured the offending mountain lion involved in an attack on an eight-year-old boy in Park County, the agency turned to its friends at the Wyoming Game and Fish Wildlife Forensic & Fish Health Laboratory in Laramie.

    DNA samples submitted to the forensics lab proved without a doubt that they had the offending mountain lion.

    “The mountain lion that was guilty in the case had goat and human DNA on its paws,” said Wyoming’s Wildlife Forensic Program Manager Tasha Bauman. “Our numbers on this one were really very high for the likelihood ratio of a match, it was less than one-in-27 billion that its genotype would be reproducible.”

    CPW is contracted with the Wyoming Forensic Lab to conduct its forensic analyses. Colorado is one of 12 states that Wyoming does forensic work for, which soon will bump up to 14, as Utah and Kansas are in the process of formalizing contracts with the lab as well. 

    The forensic lab is used as a tool in investigations over poaching cases and for positive identification in wildlife attacks on humans. 

    CPW’s current contract is a five-year deal with Wyoming, running from 2017 through 2021. From June 1, 2018 through May 31, 2019, CPW sent 14 law enforcement cases up north that resulted in 99 forensic samples and 3,086 analytical tests being run off of those. 

    Wyoming is in the process of gaining its international accreditation issued by the International Organization for Standardization. 

    As it currently stands, there are only four wildlife facilities in the world that have the international accreditation known as ISO 17205 – the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Forensic Laboratory in Ashland, Ore., Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Wildlife Forensic Lab in San Marcos, one at the University of California, Davis and the fourth is the UK Wildlife DNA Forensics Laboratory located in Scotland. 

    Just last summer, Wyoming opened a new state-of-the-art facility in Laramie.

    “We already follow the Society for Wildlife Forensic Science standards and guidelines and we follow the ISO 17205 guidelines, so we are working at that standard already, just don’t have the official accreditation,” Bauman said. “We are working towards accreditation with this new building. We were not able to meet the requirements of accreditation previously with our lab that used to be on the University of Wyoming campus.

    “[This lab] was set up in the manner where we can run everything through in a timely matter, but keep everything separated by space,” she added. “Forensics requires all your tests to be separated by time and or space, with space being ideal, so we set it up for that. We also set it up so we can store everything long-term. The lab space is amazing.”

    There are only 28 certified wildlife forensic scientists world-wide, and two of them operate out of the Wyoming facility. Bauman is one of the two, and she works closely with Colorado Parks and Wildlife, not just on the cases CPW sends to the lab, but she also holds an annual training with wildlife officers on the proper steps to follow when submitting samples for forensic analysis.

    “Colorado has been on as long as I think we have been open,” Bauman said. “Colorado generally sends the most cases into the forensic lab out of all the states we have contracts with. They are very receptive to our trainings and their wildlife officers do a very good job of sending in forensically useful samples.”

    The Wyoming lab sees 70-80 cases a year from all the states they are contracted with and of those 5-10 are from wildlife attacks on humans. 

    “I have worked 74 bear and mountain lion attack cases in my career,” said Bauman, who is in her 12th year with Wyoming Game and Fish. “I’ve worked approximately 800 total wildlife cases from all the states we work for and the bulk of those come from Wyoming, Montana and Colorado.”

    The tests the laboratory run are a crucial component in investigations. Serious violations of wildlife laws can be successfully prosecuted off of its results.

    “The testing we run is not really subjective,” Bauman said. “It is ‘yes this is a match, or no it is not.’ “

    Most cases the Wyoming lab works on come directly from wildlife law enforcement officers from the states it contracts with. When the lab is ready to do the sub-sampling, they identify the most forensically-useful sample for testing. 

    “We will run it through species identification using protein analysis,” Bauman said. “We will test for specific proteins to determine what species it is. If it is a sample that is not protein heavy, like a bone sample or a sample that is producing weird results on our protein test, we’ll run it through DNA sequencing. 

    “Once we have all of our species figured out, we’ll extract the DNA and then we can set up sex ID and microsattelite matching, where we can match two items together, like a gut pile in the field to the meat in a freezer, or to the head on somebodies wall.”

    The Wyoming lab can process forensic analysis on 13 species of wildlife – elk, moose, mule deer, whitetail deer, bighorn sheep, mountain goats, black bears, pronghorn, bobcats, mountain lions, grizzly bears, turkey and sage grouse.

    They keep regional database samples on the various species to help with case work.

    “For our database samples when we run DNA matching cases we have to have a statistic likelihood ratio to say how likely the animal we tested is to be reproduced in the wild,” Bauman said. “We look at our regional database, look at the different alleles in those databases for each one of those animals and then we run some math to say an animal is less than one in a hundred billion to be reproduced in that population. It just gives a statistical weight to the match that we have made.”

    Illegal poaching activities may require special efforts to detect, deter and prosecute. CPW also employs forensics services from other agencies. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation conducts bullet examination and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has forensic capabilities as well – the Federal lab specializing in endangered or federally protected species.

    Colorado has seen 49,994 wildlife violation citations issued in the last 10 years (2009-18). Having a tool like the Wyoming Forensics Lab at its disposal to help prosecute the most serious of offenses plays a big part in helping protect and conserve Colorado’s wildlife resource.

     

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  • Colorado Sees One of Nation’s Largest Declines in Children Living in Concentrated Poverty

    Colorado Sees One of Nation’s Largest Declines in Children Living in Concentrated Poverty

    DENVER—The number of children living in concentrated poverty fell faster in Colorado than in almost any other state in the country in recent years, according to “Children Living in High Poverty, Low-Opportunity Neighborhoods,” a new KIDS COUNT® data snapshot released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Using the latest data available from the U.S. Census Bureau, the snapshot examines where concentrated poverty has worsened across the country despite a long period of national economic expansion.

    On average, between 2013 and 2017, 5 percent of Colorado kids lived in areas of concentrated poverty, down from a peak of 9 percent between 2008 and 2012. The number of Colorado kids living in areas of concentrated poverty fell by nearly half between these two time periods; in comparison, the number of children living in concentrated poverty nationwide fell by only 9 percent. Colorado was one of 29 states to see a decrease in the share of children in concentrated poverty. Despite the improvement, nearly 60,000 Colorado kids still lived in an area of concentrated poverty according to the most recent estimates available.

    Growing up in a community of concentrated poverty—a neighborhood where 30 percent or more of the population is living in poverty—is one of the greatest risks to child development. More than 8.5 million U.S. children live in these settings, which is nearly 12 percent of all children in the United States. Children in high-poverty neighborhoods tend to lack access to healthy food and quality medical care and they often face greater exposure to environmental hazards, such as poor air quality, and toxins such as lead. Financial hardships and fear of violence can cause chronic stress linked to diabetes, heart disease and stroke. And when these children grow up, they are more likely to have lower incomes than children who have relocated away from communities of concentrated poverty

    “Every child deserves to grow up in a community with great schools, safe places to play, reliable transportation and good job opportunities for their parents,” said Sarah Hughes, Vice President of Research at the Colorado Children’s Campaign. “But with 60,000 Colorado kids still living in high-poverty, low-opportunity communities, it’s clear that we have more work to do to ensure that every child can grow up in a community with the resources needed to help them and their families thrive.”

    The Census Bureau also released data today from the American Community Survey that shows overall child poverty in Colorado remained flat at 11.9 percent in 2017, which was not a statistically significant increase from 12 percent in 2018.

    The “Children Living in Concentrated Poverty, Low-Opportunity Neighborhoods” snapshot shows that leaders still need to confront the far-reaching effects of racial inequities and inequality. Children of color and children in immigrant families in Colorado are much more likely to live in a community of concentrated poverty than their peers as a result of legacies of racial and ethnic oppression as well as present-day laws, practices and stereotypes that disproportionately affect people of color. American Indian children and black or African-American children in Colorado are most likely to live in concentrated poverty, with 12 percent of all American Indian children and 11 percent of all black or African-American children living in a high-poverty, low-opportunity neighborhood, compared to 2 percent of white children.

    “These inequities show that historical policies and practices designed to segregate neighborhoods and create barriers to wealth for communities of color are still having an enormous impact on the opportunities available to children of color today,” Hughes said. “If we want all of our children to reach their full potential, we have to work harder to create a state where a child’s race doesn’t predict the type of neighborhood she lives in or the opportunities available to her outside her front door.”

    Other key national findings from the snapshot include:

    ●        Overall, urban areas have both the largest number and share of children living in concentrated poverty: 5.4 million, or 23 percent of all kids in cities. About 11 percent of kids (1.2 million) in rural areas live in poor communities, while 5 percent of suburban kids (2 million) do.

    ●        States in the South and West tend to have high rates of children living in concentrated poverty, making up 17 of 25 states with rates of 10 percent and above.

    ●        African American and American Indian children are seven times more likely to live in poor neighborhoods than white children and Latino children are nearly five times more likely, largely as a result of legacies of racial and ethnic oppression as well as present-day laws, practices and stereotypes that disproportionately affect people of color.

    The Colorado Children’s Campaign joins the Casey Foundation in calling on national, state and local stakeholders to act now to help families lift themselves out of these circumstances. Policies at the community, county and state level can have a significant impact on the lives of children in struggling families. In Colorado, policy recommendations for improving housing security were recently outlined in a report from the Colorado Health Institute 

    The Colorado Children’s Campaign is a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy organization committed since 1985 to realizing every chance for every child in Colorado. We advocate for the development and implementation of data-driven public policies that improve child well-being in health, education and early childhood. We do this by providing Coloradans with trusted data and research on child well-being and organizing an extensive state-wide network of dedicated child advocates. For more information, please visit www.coloradokids.org.

    The Annie E. Casey Foundation creates a brighter future for the nation’s children by developing solutions to strengthen families, build paths to economic opportunity and transform struggling communities into safer and healthier places to live, work and grow. For more information, visit www.aecf.org. KIDS COUNT® is a registered trademark of the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

     

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  • PUC opens proceeding to collect information pursuant to Colorado Transmission Coordination Act

    PUC opens proceeding to collect information pursuant to Colorado Transmission Coordination Act

    DENVER – The Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) today opened a proceeding to gather input from stakeholders on the potential advantages and disadvantages of regional market participation by electric utilities.

    The Colorado Transmission Coordination Act, passed by the legislature this spring, directed the PUC to open a proceeding by Jan. 1, 2020, to investigate the costs and benefits to electric utilities, other generators, and Colorado electric utility customers resulting from electric utility participation in energy imbalance markets, regional transmission organizations, power pools, or joint tariffs. As part of the investigation, the PUC must determine under what conditions the costs, benefits and consequences materialize, and whether such participation is in the public interest.

    Commissioner Frances Koncilja was designated as Hearing Commissioner and will work with PUC staff, stakeholders and other interested participants to collect and organize information, conduct public comment hearings or workshops, and make recommendations to the full Commission as to the next steps in conducting the investigation required by the statute.

    The PUC is requesting initial written comments related to the proceeding by Nov. 15, and reply comments by Dec. 15.

    Interested persons may submit written comments by using the PUC’s on-line comment form at www.dora.state.co.us/pacific/puc/puccomments under proceeding number 19M-0495E.

    Visit https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/dora/puc_legislation_implementation for updates on PUC proceedings related to 2019 legislation.

     

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  • Dog off leash area at Cherry Creek State Park to temporarily close for maintenance, Oct. 14-17

    Dog off leash area at Cherry Creek State Park to temporarily close for maintenance, Oct. 14-17

    AURORA, Colo. — The heavily used dog off leash area at Cherry Creek State Park – a popular spot for dog owners that sees over one million visitors of the two- and four-legged kind a year – will be temporarily closing Oct. 14-17 so park staff can conduct needed maintenance work. 

    This is the first time the dog off leash area will be closed for a short period of time, but park staff feel it is necessary to do to sustain what is one of the most popular attractions at any of Colorado’s 41 state parks. 

    “We are reinvesting into the dog off leash area to give users the experience they want,” said Park Manager Jason Trujillo. “It has gotten to the point it is so busy down there we can’t get any work done without interrupting experiences of visitors and this maintenance work cannot be conducted safely while the area is open.”

    Last year the dog off leash area surpassed one million visitors by the week of Thanksgiving and if you break it down to visitors by hour, looking roughly at a 12-hour time frame as hours of operation, the area sees 228 people an hour.

    “It is hard to have a sustainable resource when it is so heavily used,” Trujillo said. “The work we are doing will be a balance of resource protection and preservation. We appreciate the patience of our users for the brief period the dog off leash area will close.”

    One of the most noticeable improvements users will see, and see it right away, is a new entrance and exit bullpen. As it sits now, dogs and their owners enter and exit at the same location, which creates congestion and the possibility for confrontations between tired dogs leaving the park and the energetic dogs entering.

    With separate entrance and exit locations, that traffic will be diminished and it will also help disperse the amount of dog urine excreted upon entry in a concentrated area, thus lessening the dog urine aroma. Pea gravel will also be installed to allow urine to be soaked into the ground versus the cement that paves the ground in the current entrance/exit bullpen.

    Other work that will take place includes erosion control improvements in the northwest corner of the park, vegetation sustainability management (seeding and weed management), trail improvements and the main parking lot will be relined to create a one-way traffic flow. 

    The trail work will consist of park staff adding road base and then a layer of crusher fine gravel to elevate the trail and assist with erosion control concerns. 

    In the northwest corner where the erosion work will be taking place, that is part of a multi-phase project. This will assist trails over drainages so they do not get washed out during significant rain events and it will allow vegetation to improve. 

    Native grasses will be seeded in areas to re-establish native vegetation and park staff will be spraying noxious weeds so that visitors will continue to have access to all areas of the DOLA while protecting native grasses and vegetation.

    Park staff will be looking at this type of major maintenance work twice a year – once in the fall and once in the spring. If anyone wishes to volunteer to help with this project, they can contact the park by calling 303-766-6562.

     

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  • 2019 Bike Your Park Day- Colorado State Park Trails Await

    2019 Bike Your Park Day- Colorado State Park Trails Await

    DENVER — Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) invites people of all ages and backgrounds to join in the celebration of Bike Your Park Day on Saturday, Sept. 28. The global event, hosted annually by the Adventure Cycling Association, motivates people to live life outside by biking the trails in parks and public lands. Rides can be registered in advance and are tracked on a worldwide map. Last year, 15,337 people in all 50 states and 11 different countries participated in over 1,600 rides.

    This year, 21 rides and counting have been registered for the event at Colorado State Parks alone. Barr Lake, Chatfield, Eleven Mile, Golden Gate Canyon and St. Vrain State Parks will all be hosting public rides on Sept. 28, providing unique opportunities to learn more about the outdoors, enjoy the fall colors and celebrate our state’s amazing public spaces with others. Lake Pueblo State Park will have Steel City Cycling Club bike to the park to complete a service project, and the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area will be celebrating an early Bike Your Park Day by hosting a public ride on Sept. 27. More information can be found on the CPW website and calendar.

    In addition to the state park organized rides, independently organized rides will be taking place across more than nine Colorado state parks including Boyd Lake, Cherry Creek, Cheyenne Mountain, James M. Robb Colorado River, Lake Pueblo, Staunton, and Stagecoach. Cyclists can choose to join any of the open rides on the Adventure Cycling Association website.

    Whether you love serene lake views or braving the rugged alpine terrain, Colorado’s 41 state parks offer over 700 miles of trails for cyclists of all skill levels to enjoy. If a ride has yet to be registered at your favorite park, CPW encourages you to create one of your own on the Adventure Cycling Association website. All official registrants for the event receive a sticker and are eligible to win a new, Co-Op Cycles ADV 3.1 adventure touring bicycle.

    For more information about Bike Your Park Day events, or to find an event near you, visit the Adventure Cycling Association. To begin planning your next cycling trip in one of Colorado’s 41 state parks, visit the CPW website.

    Please check the local forecast and park conditions ahead of your bike ride.

     

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  • CPW Wildlife Rehabilitation Grant Program application period begins Oct. 1, 2019

    CPW Wildlife Rehabilitation Grant Program application period begins Oct. 1, 2019

    DENVER — Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) is announcing the application period for Wildlife Rehabilitation Grants will begin on Tuesday, Oct. 1.

    Wildlife Rehabilitation Grants are offered by CPW to support wildlife rehabilitation efforts across the state. Grant amounts are for a minimum of $1,000 and are awarded with the goal of maximizing wildlife rehabilitation efforts in Colorado. All applications must be submitted by Nov. 4, 2019.

    Eight grants were awarded in the first year of the program in 2018. Awards ranged from $1,000 to $3,000 and supported a flight cage renovation, new wildlife recovery enclosures, an intensive care unit, food, medical supplies and other rehabilitation center needs.  

    Click here for a list of Wildlife Rehabilitation Grants awarded in 2018.

    To be eligible for the Wildlife Rehabilitation Grants, applicants must meet the following criteria:

    • Applicants must be a wildlife rehabilitator currently licensed by CPW
    • In general, grant funds can only be used for species authorized under the applicable wildlife rehabilitation license
    • Per the authorizing statute, the minimum grant award is $1,000. Please note, the total funding estimate for 2019 is $19,000.

    This grant program was created through House Bill 17-1250. This update to Colorado law replaced the Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Cash Fund with the Colorado Nongame Conservation and Wildlife Restoration Cash Fund. Funding for Wildlife Rehabilitation Grants is primarily from the nongame tax check-off program, along with fines from nongame wildlife-based offenses and interest income. For the first $250,000 raised annually through the nongame check-off, 10 percent is allocated to the Wildlife Rehabilitation Grant program, which aims to provide funding specifically for wildlife rehabilitation centers.

    .A board established by HB 17-1250 reviews applications and sets funding recommendations. The board is comprised of seven members, each appointed by the CPW Director, who serve staggered three-year terms. Board members serve at the pleasure of the Director, and serve until a successor is appointed, but no longer than six years.

    To facilitate wildlife rehabilitation in Colorado, CPW will expend funds in accordance with the recommendations of the Board. Regular operational expenses and capital improvements are both eligible for funding. Rehabilitation of both game and nongame species is eligible; exotic species are not. Awardees must execute a contract with CPW to receive a grant, and work done under the grant must be performed or managed by the grantee. Matching funds are not required, and applicants do not have to be a 501(c)(3) organization.

    After funding decisions have been made, CPW will make information on grant recipients, award amounts and grant annual reports available on its website. For more information on the grant program and application materials, please visit the Wildlife Rehabilitation Grants page.

     

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  • Gardner Applauds Final Repeal of WOTUS Rule

    Gardner Applauds Final Repeal of WOTUS Rule

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Washington, D.C. — Senator Cory Gardner (R-CO) released the following statement after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers finalized a rule to repeal the 2015 Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule.

    “Today is a victory for Colorado’s farmers, cattlemen, ranchers, and small business owners,” said Senator Gardner. “This burdensome regulation from the Obama Administration would have been harmful to Colorado’s economy and especially our agriculture community. Today’s announcement is welcome news and finally prevents an unconstitutional takeover of Colorado’s rivers, streams, and local waterways.”

    “The final repeal of the 2015 Waters of the U.S. rule is an important landmark to the farm families of Colorado, as it paves the way for new clearer, concise rules to be put in place,” said Don Shawcroft, President of the Colorado Farm Bureau. “Water is one of our most valuable resources and this decision shows it is possible to have both clean water and sensible rules.”

    “This announcement from EPA is a huge burden lifted off the backs of America’s cattle producers,” said Colin Woodall, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. “The overly burdensome 2015 WOTUS rule would have been one of the largest government land grabs in history, and would have allowed EPA the ability to tell cattlemen and women what they could or could not do on their own land. Cattle producers are a part of the solution when it comes to clean water, so we are thankful this nightmare is over. We look forward to working with EPA to finalize a replacement rule which respects private property rights.”

    Gardner has been a consistent opponent of the WOTUS rule. He denounced the final WOTUS Rule when it was revealed in May of 2015 and applauded the decision by Federal Judge Ralph Erickson to halt the rule’s implementation in 13 states. In September of 2015, he signed on as a cosponsor of the resolution of disapproval authored by Senator Ernst (R-IA), which later passed the Senate with Gardner’s support.

    When the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals halted implementation of WOTUS nationwide in October of 2015, Gardner called it “a victory for agriculture, rural communities, and all Coloradans.” In November of 2015, he voted in favor of the Federal Water Quality Protection Act, which would have forced the Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers to re-write the WOTUS rule with much stronger state and agricultural protections as well as more input from local communities.

    In January of 2016, Gardner voted to override the President’s veto of legislation that would repeal WOTUS, and in April of 2016 he voted in favor of an amendment to the Senate Energy and Water Development appropriations bill that prevents the Army Corps of Engineers from using funding to enforce the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) regulation. 

     

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  • Gardner Commends: New North Korea Sanctions Sanctions Were Mandated by Gardner’s 2016 North Korea Sanctions Bill

    Gardner Commends: New North Korea Sanctions Sanctions Were Mandated by Gardner’s 2016 North Korea Sanctions Bill

    Washington, D.C. – Senator Cory Gardner (R-CO), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy, released the following statement today after the United States Treasury announced sanctions targeting three North Korean state-sponsored malicious cyber groups.

    “I welcome the Administration’s fulfillment of these long-overdue sanctions against North Korea-sponsored hacking groups,” said Senator Gardner. “North Korea’s illicit cyber activity was one of the major reasons why I led the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act, which President Obama signed into law in 2016. It was the first standalone legislation to impose mandatory U.S. sanctions against anyone who contributes to Pyongyang’s nuclear proliferation, human rights abuses, and malicious cyber actors, such as the entities designated by Treasury today.”

    Background

    • On February 10, 2016, the Senate approved the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act and on February 12, 2016, the House of Representatives approved the Senate version of the bill. 
    • On February 18, 2016, President Barack Obama signed Gardner’s North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act into law. This legislation received rare, overwhelming bipartisan support, passing the Senate 96-0 and the House of Representatives by 408-2. The bill imposes mandatory sanctions on individuals who contribute to North Korea’s nuclear program and proliferation activities, cyberattacks, censorship of its citizens, and the regime’s continued human rights abuses, and is a drastic new direction away from the Administration’s discretionary sanctions. 
    • On March 8, 2019, Gardner wrote to Secretary of State Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Mnuchin, asking for a firm Administration response to recent reports that hackers linked with the North Korean regime conducted cyberattacks on multiple U.S. and European targets, including banks utilities, and oil and gas companies. He urged the Administration to fully comply with the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act and designate any persons knowingly engaging in activities to undermine cybersecurity on behalf of the Government of North Korea. 

     

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  • Construction Begins on Additional State Hospital Beds

    Construction Begins on Additional State Hospital Beds

    PUEBLO — The Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo (CMHIP) began construction last month on a unit that will add 24 beds to the state’s forensic hospital. Adding beds to the state hospital in Pueblo is part of a coordinated strategy to ensure patients are able to access competency services in a timely manner.

    The 24 beds will be within CMHIP’s High Security Forensic Institute building and are expected to open in November 2020. The project budget is $7 million.

    The 24 beds are part of a total 128 beds being added this summer through December 2021:

    On June 3, the Forensic Services Jail-Based Evaluation and Restoration team opened a second location for jail-based competency evaluation and restoration services, adding 18 beds at the Boulder County Jail. ($2.2 million)

    We are in the process of construction and modifications at CMHIP that will lead to a medium-security restoration to competency unit, increasing CMHIP’s capacity by 42 beds with an estimated opening in December 2019. ($844,000)

    The Colorado Mental Health Institute at Fort Logan’s F2 & F3 Cottages will be renovated to add 44 beds, increasing the hospital’s capacity by almost 50 percent with an estimated completion date of December 2021. The additional beds will be dedicated to restoration, while the hospital’s current 94 beds will remain dedicated to civil patients. ($17.8 million)

    In March, the Department reached an agreement that resolved an eight-year-old federal lawsuit over wait times for court-ordered competency services by expanding community-based services, providing treatment for people in jail waiting for services, and expediting inpatient services for Coloradans experiencing a serious mental health episode.

    “These beds are important to expand the state’s capacity to serve people who are awaiting trial and need inpatient competency services,” said Robert Werthwein, director of the Department’s Office of Behavioral Health, which oversees the mental health institutes. “Adding beds is part of a larger solution that includes an expansion of community-based services in an effort to better serve people in our state.”

    The Department is also working through the Behavioral Health Task Force and the Long Term Competency subcommittee, which was created by Governor Polis, to develop a comprehensive plan for individuals in the criminal justice system who have been found incompetent to proceed, and on future solutions to increase community interventions as a means to reduce demand on forensic solutions to mental health.

     

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