Standing up for Local Communities

Living in rural Colorado, I understand the unique challenges that our communities face. With sparse populations, large swaths of tax-exempt federal land, a lack of infrastructure, and limited employment opportunities, we often get left behind by Congress and get the short end of the stick. I work hard every day to make sure you are represented well and have a voice.

Some of the important local victories I have secured for the Third District include:

1. I secured 9 important appropriations victories for Colorado that were signed into law. 
2. I led the successful bipartisan effort to keep the western headquarters of Bureau of Land Management and 36 good-paying jobs in Grand Junction to give rural Coloradans a voice in land-use decisions and save taxpayers millions of dollars. 
3. I helped lead the charge to defeat the misguided proposal put forth by Renewable Water Resources to steal seven billion gallons of water per year and dry up 22,667 irrigated acres in perpetuity in the San Luis Valley and pipe the water to the Denver suburbs. The Third Congressional District has fought similar proposals for decades as someone is always trying to steal our water and send it to the Front Range. 
4. I secured $48 million in a legislation signed into law for the U.S. Forest Service to actively manage our forests and address high-priority invasive species and pests like the bark beetle infestations ravaging Colorado and creating deadly wildfire hazards.
5. I stood with our farmers and ranchers and secured $1 million in legislation signed into law for the Wolf Livestock Loss Demonstration Program to compensate farmers and ranchers whose livestock are killed by wolves reintroduced by government programs.
6. I delivered resources to rural communities and secured $515 million in legislation signed into law for the Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILT) Program which compensates local governments for the tax revenue they lose as a result of expansive federal lands in their jurisdictions. Over 90% of federal lands are in the Western United States and more than 55% of Colorado’s Third Congressional District is federal land. All 29 counties in my District benefit from the PILT Program, and the funding I secured will help support rural law enforcement, firefighters, schools, infrastructure, wildfire prevention efforts, and other important local priorities.
7. I fought against a land grab that would have locked up 760,000 acres in my District and successfully got it removed from the National Defense Authorization Act that was signed into law.
8. I stood up for rural healthcare and helped Delta Health secure Sole Community Hospital Provider Status. This designation will help stabilize drug prices, allow Delta Health to remain independent, and secure more healthcare infrastructure for the community.
9. When I-70 was shut down for 16.5 days following a catastrophic mudslide, I was one of the first elected officials to visit the scene and led Colorado’s bipartisan congressional delegation in securing more than $11.6 million dollars to reopen and repair I-70.
10. My commonsense amendment to actively manage our forests and protect energy infrastructure, like powerlines, from wildfires passed the House Committee on Natural Resource with unanimous, bipartisan support.
11. I delivered a victory for the San Luis Valley by getting its new weather radar integrated with the National Weather Service’s system. After a year of bureaucratic delays, I stepped in and got the job done. This improved data will help water districts and farmers manage drought, assist first responders in reacting to emergencies, and help rural communities have more resources and information.

12. In a legislative provision signed into law, I secured $10 million for the Indian Irrigation Fund to address the deferred maintenance backlog and increase water storage projects like the Southern Utes’ Pine River Indian Irrigation Project.

In addition to the above victories, I am continually working on projects that put Colorado first:

I-70 closes far too frequently, and Colorado needs a backup plan. I introduced the I-70 Detour Act to alleviate the burden of I-70 shutdowns on communities surrounding the I-70 corridor and to ensure commerce for the West slope doesn't come to a screeching halt every time I-70 shuts down. Specifically, my bill requires the Secretary of Transportation to identify and prioritize funding for identifying repairs and alternative routes to I-70 in order to reduce traffic, increase safety, and improve rural Colorado’s resilience.

I supported Glenwood Springs in their grant application for South Bridge. This project would establish a new bridge connection that will provide a critical second access between State Highway 82 and the western side of the Roaring Fork River in the south corridor of Glenwood Springs. It would create much needed redundancy in transit infrastructure in the region, and would significantly improve emergency evacuation capacity, emergency service access, and local land use access.  

I am always actively searching for local infrastructure projects to support. I wrote a letter of support for the San Luis Central Railroad Company’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) competitive grant application to support farmers and ranchers in the Valley.

I supported first responders including those in Montezuma County by fighting back against the U.S. Forest Service's proposed regulations to charge users of emergency communication transponders exorbitant fees to continue using preexisting towers to which they already have access. 

I also supported the San Luis Valley Regional Airport’s selection of Denver Air Connection to provide air service to Alamosa. Access to adequate, timely, and reliable air service in and out of the 6-county region is crucial. If successful, this effort will provide an economic boom for business and to

I put rural Colorado first, and I introduced the MORE PILT Act to provide accurate and additional resources to support rural law enforcement, search and rescue operations, wildfire fighting, and quality education.

I also am working to combat western drought by securing funding to remove invasive noxious weeds, salt cedars and Russian olives that waste water. Salt  cedars can consume as much as 200 gallons of water per day per plant. 

I cosponsored the Upper Colorado and San Juan River Basins Recovery Act, bipartisan legislation passed the House and provides Endangered Species Act compliance for approximately 2,200 water projects while helping recover endangered fish.

Since day one, my office has been busy helping constituents who aren’t getting answers from federal agencies, like veterans seeking to get the care they earned from the VA, travelers that need expedited assistance to receive a passport on short notice, taxpayers being harassed by the IRS, and senior citizens having issues with the Social Security Administration or Medicare. My office worked on 1,600 cases for Coloradans and returned $1,420,760.81 to the people of Colorado’s Third Congressional District.  If you are having trouble with a federal agency, please reach out and my office will be happy to help you.

Additionally, I know Colorado’s Third District is huge—trust me, I’ve been everywhere—and driving long distances is challenging for many folks. That’s why my office has been hosting mobile office hours in locations across the District. If you need help with a federal agency or want to express your view on a legislative matter, please come out to one of our mobile office hours and my staff will be happy to assist.

It is the greatest honor of my life to be the Representative for rural Colorado. I encourage you to stay directly engaged with the work I am doing by signing up for updates HERE.

I am here to fight for Colorado’s Third Congressional District, and I fight to win.