GREELEY, COLO. – Officials in eight
northern Colorado counties united in opposition to the state's new gun
control laws and oil and gas regulations are reportedly considering
forming a 51st U.S. state called North Colorado.
The Denver Post reports that a proposal to separate Weld, Morgan,
Logan, Sedgwick, Phillips, Washington, Yuma and Kit Carson counties from
the rest of the state was hatched at a meeting of county commissioners
last week.
Weld County commissioners Sean Conway, Mike Freeman and Doug
Rademacher said they will conduct public meetings and decide whether to
draft a ballot measure by Aug. 1., according to a report in The Greeley
Tribune.
The U.S. Constitution requires that Legislatures must first approve any state that is to be created within its jurisdiction.
Commissioners said Thursday that failed legislative efforts to crack
down on oil and gas, as well as increases in rural renewable energy
standards were "the straws that broke the camel's back."
Conway told the Tribune that Weld County's main economic drivers,
agriculture and energy, are under attack, even though those sectors
contribute significantly to the state's economy. He said the county's
return on its financial contributions to the state are minimal.
Commissioners are also concerned about the lack of funding for
infrastructure and education and believe the split would allow them to
leverage financial investments from energy companies in the region, the
newspaper reported.
Rep. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., whose district would be included in the
split, said in a statement last week that he is sympathetic to the
commissioners' concerns and doesn't blame them for wanting to form a new
state, The Tribune reported.
"The people of rural Colorado are mad, and they have every right to
be," Gardner said. "The governor and his Democrat colleagues in the
statehouse have assaulted our way of life, and I don't blame these
people one bit for feeling attacked and unrepresented by the leaders of
our state."
Gov. John Hickenlooper's spokesman Eric Brown said in a statement
obtained by the paper that "background checks on gun sales, increasing
renewable energy and supporting responsible development of oil and gas
are popular with rural and urban voters."
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