Latest news with #Hickenlooper
E&E News
5 days ago
- Business
- E&E News
Outdoor recreation field hearing to focus on tariff impacts
The Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee will hold a hearing in Colorado on Friday focused on the outdoor recreation economy in tough times. Titled 'Beyond the Trailhead: Supporting Outdoor Recreation in an Uncertain Economy,' the hearing will focus on ways Congress can support the outdoor recreation industry, which is valued at more than $1 trillion and has grown significantly since the Covid-19 pandemic. The field hearing, hosted by Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), will hear testimony from three outdoor recreation retailers that have been saddled by the Trump administration's tariff regime. The committee is led by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa). Advertisement In written testimony, Eagle Creek CEO Travis Campbell warns that 'in the wake of newly announced tariffs, it feels as though our country is systematically working against businesses like ours — raising our costs dramatically while fueling consumer anxiety that suppresses demand.'
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Public lands advocates fear for Colorado's national parks under Trump budget proposals
U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper, a Colorado Democrat, speaks at a press conference on protecting public lands alongside U.S. House Assistant Minority Leader Joe Neguse, a Lafayette Democrat, May 28, 2025, at the Lake Estes Marina. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline) After the 2013 Colorado floods devastated communities surrounding Rocky Mountain National Park, locals worked tirelessly to get their businesses back up and running in time for the peak fall season. The federal government shut down for about two weeks shortly after the flood, but U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper, a Democrat who was governor at the time, said Colorado agreed to pay the salaries for every employee in Rocky Mountain National Park so the park could still open to visitors. 'That's the way the state government, the federal government used to work together around public lands, and I think it's worth revisiting that it was a team effort, that everyone was on the same page,' Hickenlooper said. 'The businesses desperately needed that retail period to be open to maximize the largest influx of visitors' to Estes Park, and we got it.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX That spirit of cooperation is a far cry from the threatened cuts to National Park Service staff and funding under President Donald Trump's administration, Hickenlooper and other public lands advocates said in Estes Park Wednesday. Hickenlooper and U.S. House Assistant Minority Leader Joe Neguse, a Lafayette Democrat, called on Congress and Trump to reverse the cuts and maintain protections for the country's public lands. Former Rocky Mountain National Park Superintendent Darla Sidles said national parks have historically 'always enjoyed bipartisan support,' and that she's 'never seen anything like we're seeing today' in terms of threats to public lands and national parks. 'National parks aren't blue. National parks are not red. National parks are for everyone. They transcend political boundaries,' Sidles said. 'The idea of preserving a nation's historical, natural, and cultural heritage and making these places accessible to all has always united people across all the political spectrums.' While public lands have survived budget cuts in the past, Sidles said current staff cuts overwhelm those still working at the parks, who then have to pick up responsibilities from two to three other positions to make up for the staff who left and cannot be replaced due to the hiring freeze. Safety concerns arise, too, when the staff who remain pick up responsibilities they've never had before. Tracy Coppola, Colorado senior program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association, said Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum has ordered park managers to keep trails, campgrounds and visitors open and operating 'even when they believe it's unmanageable.' She said that makes clear that 'protecting parks is no longer the priority, but protecting appearances is.' She and Sidles said existing park staff will do everything they can to give park visitors the best experience despite their continued struggles. 'Depending where you are this year, it might look OK. It might seem OK. It's hard to tell, but I want to emphasize that that is a facade,' Coppola said. 'Under the surface, the administration is forcing a skeleton crew to cobble together basic visitor services, and it's clear that the administration is prioritizing appearances over park resource protection and visitor safety.' The uncertainty of whether NPS staff will continue to have a job is causing 'an incredible amount of stress and anxiety' among staff, Sidles said, as many live in the national parks they work at and could therefore lose their housing, too. Trump's budget proposal calls for a $1.2 billion decrease in the NPS budget, which she said equates to about 40% of the agency's funding. 'Behind the scenes, morale is low. On the surface, you will always see people doing their best and trying their hardest,' Sidles said. 'These are people the parks can't do without: wildlife management, vegetation management, ecosystem management, fire management, veterinary specialists that help when parks have issues with wildlife.' Neguse said cuts to staff whose work protects public lands are 'reckless, shortsighted, and do not put safety first.' He recalled the Cameron Peak Fire, the largest fire in Colorado's history, which burned an estimated 208,913 acres in Larimer County in 2020 and led to the closure of 'multiple access points out of this community,' he said of Estes Park. 'Countless folks employed by the National Park Service, by the Arapaho Roosevelt National Forest, stood up and protected this community when it needed them the most,' Neguse said. 'And to think that now, those same individuals are being terminated by the Trump administration. I just can't think of anything more shortsighted.' Neguse and Hickenlooper are both sponsors of the Save Our Forests Act and the Save Our Parks Act, which would reinstate civil servants to their positions within the Park Service and the U.S. Forest Service. Lori Hodges, director of emergency management for Larimer County, started with the county after the 2012 High Park Fire and the 2013 flood to help with recovery efforts and create an emergency management program. Hodges said she's seeing 'a concerning shift in focus' from wildfire prevention and mitigation to response alone. That includes the cancellation of the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities grant program through FEMA, for example. 'That provided vital funding to strengthen our infrastructure like bridges and culverts against those impacts of post-fire flooding,' Hodges said. 'Without that support, we're much more vulnerable.' Loss of funding opportunities, staff shortages, and program cancellations set off a ripple effect 'that reaches far beyond today,' Hodges said. She said visitors may not think of the people who patrol public lands for unintended campfires and other safety concerns, but when they aren't there to do that job, the burden falls on local governments. 'They affect not only how we respond to emergencies now, but how we'll be able to protect our communities for future generations,' Hodges said. 'To truly safeguard our public lands and the people who live near or enjoy them, we need to treat these systems as if they're interconnected, and strengthening one part means strengthening the whole and reducing that risk to everyone.' Hickenlooper said over 6,000 people who work to take care of national parks and national forests across different agencies have either been fired or left their jobs. 'We're going to see more risk this summer and this spring from wildfires, from extreme weather,' Hickenlooper said. 'We're going to see more risks than we've seen before in all … aspects of the droughts we've had and the water we have to use, at a time when we're dramatically diminishing the number of firefighters we're going to have available to fight fires in the West.' Neguse noted that a provision from the Republican budget bill that would have sold public lands in Utah and Nevada was cut before the bill made it to the House floor because of the opposition it garnered. He said public pressure combined with building bipartisan support can lead to more changes like this as additional concerns arise. 'Public feedback matters,' Neguse said. 'There's this temptation for us to believe that our public institutions are impervious to public opinion, and that they will simply ignore the views of the American public. I don't believe that to be the case. I actually think that if enough citizens make their voices heard and that the outcry builds to a sufficient crescendo, that you can potentially influence the course of events in Washington, D.C.' Hickenlooper said people who care about public lands need to use 'social media like we've never used it before' to communicate the reality of how policy proposals will affect them. 'We make sure that our networks of people tell their networks of people what this really means, what this could do when you cripple an outdoor recreation economy that is actually paying for the maintenance of preservation and the access to these incredible public lands,' he said. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hickenlooper says votes for Trump nominees ‘reduced the damage' for Colorado
Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) said he believes he's 'reduced the damage' for his constituents by voting to support 10 of President Trump's Cabinet picks to open up 'direct lines' into executive offices. The Colorado lawmaker said sometimes a vote against a nominee can 'piss people off.' 'You know, the person being nominated, I'm sure they understand it, but at a certain point it irritates them, I'm sure. So, we'll see,' Hickenlooper said during a Tuesday evening appearance on NBC 9's 'Next with Kyle Clark.' 'My hope and my gut is that we will definitely get benefits from it. And whatever bad things happen to us, without those relationships, I think the bad things would have been, will turn out to have been much worse,' he added. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) is the only Democrat to vote 'yes' for more Trump nominees than Hickenlooper. Other Democrats have staunchly opposed the president's policies and announced investigations into agency cuts and closures. Fetterman represents a state won by Trump in last year's presidential election. Former Vice President Kamala Harris won Colorado. Hickenlooper, 73, announced last August that he plans to run for a final term in office in 2026. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
30-04-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Hickenlooper says votes for Trump nominees ‘reduced the damage' for Colorado
Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) said he believes he's 'reduced the damage' for his constituents by voting to support ten of President Trump's Cabinet picks to open up 'direct lines' into executive offices. The Colorado lawmaker said sometimes a vote against a nominee can 'piss people off.' 'You know, the person being nominated, I'm sure they understand it, but at a certain point it irritates them, I'm sure. So, we'll see,' Hickenlooper said during a Tuesday evening appearance on NBC 9's ' Next with Kyle Clark.' 'My hope and my gut is that we will definitely get benefits from it. And whatever bad things happen to us, without those relationships, I think the bad things would have been, will turn out to have been much worse,' he added. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) is the only Democrat to vote 'yes' for more Trump nominees than Hickenlooper. Other Democrats have staunchly opposed the president's policies and announced investigations into agency cuts and closures. Fetterman represents a state won by Trump in last year's presidential election. Vice President Kamala Harris won Colorado. Hickenlooper,73, announced last August that he plans to run for a final term in office in 2026.
Newsweek
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Senator Raises Alarm as Major Lake Mead Water Deadline Looms
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. As the deadline to renegotiate Colorado River water use agreements approaches, Democratic Senator John Hickenlooper says he is "frustrated" with the lack of progress on a consensus between the seven basin states. "Colorado should have a right to keep the water that we have been using the way we've been using it, and I don't think we should compromise that," Hickenlooper said after a roundtable in Glenwood Springs with Western Slope water managers on April 15, according to Aspen Journalism. "But there are a lot of things we could do to give a little to be part of the solution to the Lower Basin and get to a collaborative solution. Again, I'm frustrated by our lack of progress." Why It Matters The Colorado River is a lifeline for the Southwest, supplying water and hydroelectric power across seven states. Its two largest reservoirs, Lake Powell and Lake Mead, have dropped to record lows in recent years due to overuse and drought conditions. New guidelines are needed by 2026 to replace the current set of rules. Federal officials previously released five conceptual alternatives, including a "no action" option required under environmental law, to determine how to allocate dwindling water resources. One proposal emphasizes infrastructure protection and strict limits on water deliveries during shortages, while another promotes expanded conservation and flexible storage solutions, the Hill reported. Without an agreement, a federal management plan would likely be implemented by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, according to Aspen Journalism. What To Know The Colorado River Compact, originally crafted a century ago, is expiring as the region has been confronting the crises of prolonged water scarcity. The states—Arizona, California, and Nevada in the Lower Basin, and Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Wyoming in the Upper Basin—have until the end of May to submit a consensus-based plan. Without agreement, federal officials are expected to begin drafting a unilateral management plan as part of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process. Talks had stalled late last year but have since resumed. Upper Basin negotiators, including Colorado's lead, Becky Mitchell, are pushing for supply-driven management of reservoirs like Lake Powell and Lake Mead "that are resilient across a range of hydrologic conditions experienced in the basin," Aspen Journalism reported. Lower Basin representatives, however, want the Upper Basin to absorb a share of usage cuts during drought years. The outlet noted that upper Basin states say they already suffer approximately 1.3 million acre-feet in annual shortfalls due to limited water availability and have never fully utilized their compact allocation. A ferry passes Rock Island rises on Lake Mead along the Colorado River on March 14, 2025. A ferry passes Rock Island rises on Lake Mead along the Colorado River on March 14, option put forward by the Bureau of Reclamation, described as "federal authorities," would require up to 3.5 million acre-feet in cuts exclusively from the Lower Basin, while preserving Upper Basin allocations and using upstream reservoir releases to maintain hydropower production at Glen Canyon Dam. Complicating matters further is a bleak hydrological outlook. The snowpack in the Upper Basin has fallen to 74 percent of average and may collapse entirely, echoing the severe drought conditions of 2021 and 2022, according to Aspen Journalism. What People Are Saying Lead negotiator for Colorado Becky Mitchell as reported by Aspen Journalism: "The basin states share common goals: we want to avoid litigation, and we want a sustainable solution for reservoir light of these goals, I see the basin states working towards sustainable, supply-driven operations of Lakes Powell and Mead that are resilient across a range of hydrologic conditions experienced in the basin." Andy Mueller, general manager of the Glenwood Springs-based Colorado River Water Conservation District, as reported by Aspen Journalism: "We have to remember that creating your own solution for the consensus is always better than allowing somebody else to create it for you, so we are hopeful that will happen." What Happens Next If consensus fails, the risk isn't only legal paralysis—a failure to reach consensus could trigger federal interventions and potential disruptions to water and energy supplies in the West.
