May 06, 2015 03:51 PM UTC

Get More Smarter on Wednesday (May 6)

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• by: Colorado Pols

Today is the last day of the 2015 session of the Colorado General Assembly, which means your favorite lawmakers are about to catch up on some sleep. It’s time to Get More Smarter with Colorado Pols. If you think we missed something important, please include the link in the comments below (here’s a good example).

TOP OF MIND TODAY…

► The Colorado legislative session ends today, but we’re no closer to a solution to the “Gordian knot” that is the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). As the Colorado Springs Gazette’s Megan Schrader reports:

Senate President Bill Cadman, R-Colorado Springs, introduced Senate Bill 1 on the first day of session to address how TABOR refunds are given. It died Tuesday in the House.

House Speaker Dickey Lee Hullinghorst, D-Boulder, introduced House Bill 1389 last week to avoid giving TABOR refunds by moving state revenue out of the general fund. It too died Tuesday in the Senate…

The issue will likely be taken up next session with greater urgency.

In other words, the status quo prevails–and the state’s looming future needs are left unmet.

► Rep. Patrick Neville, one half of the father-son legislative duo we’ve affectionately branded the “Neville Nutters,” at least has a sense of humor. He sent us this photo today to prove it!

Well played, young Rep. Neville. Well played.

► Elizabeth Warren is still not running for President.

► But Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina are, at least for vanity purposes.

► Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton is still answering questions about emails, even though the polls say voters don’t really care.

Get even more smarter after the jump…

SHOULD YOU FIND YOURSELF STANDING NEAR A WATER COOLER…

► Morgan Carroll is pondering a run for Congress, a fact to which Mike Coffman had better pay attention.

► Michael Hancock cruises to victory in the Denver mayoral race, while Chris Nevitt unexpectedly loses the city auditor’s race.

► The killing of Bill Cadman’s fetal homicide Personhood bill continues to reverberate.

► Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg might get big subsidy checks from the government, but he’ll be damned if you can fill a bucket with rain water and water your garden.

► One of the last unresolved battles in this year’s legislative session: will the Office of Consumer Counsel be stripped of its authority in telecom rate cases?

► When the dust settles, urban renewal tax incentives in Colorado are going to look different.

► Also, Colorado public officials are ridiculously underpaid, and it’s way past time to do something about it. Fortunately, they are.

► Unfortunately, greedy lending lobbyists are getting a piece of the last-minute action too.

OTHER LINKS YOU SHOULD CLICK

► It’s gonna keep raining for days. Don’t get depressed.

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