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Colorado news roundup
The weekday Colorado news roundup is a collection of links to news reports and other resources of interest to the Colorado Center on Law and Policy. Listing does not imply endorsement of the content.

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Other news summaries

Grasscatcher, from the National Conference of State Legislatures

Today's Health News, from The Colorado Trust

Colorado daily news roundup, from Stateline

Daily Health Policy Report, from Kaiser Health News

Health insurance increased 4 percent
in third quarter 2011


Health care
Colorado Springs Business Journal: Health insurance increased 4 percent in third quarter 2011
The cost of health care increased 4 percent in the third quarter of 2011 from the previous year, at least for people with employer-sponsored health insurance. The news come from the Thomson Reuters Healthcare Spending Index for Private Insurers, and also shows a .9 percent increase over the second quarter of 2011.

Aspen Daily News commentary: The dawn of a new day for health care in Aspen
A new day is dawning in health care. Amidst the campaigning and political rhetoric, reality has set in for our country: We have an unaffordable and unsustainable health care system.


Fiscal policy
The Denver Post: Denver City Council extends S. Broadway tax subsidy
The Denver City Council on Monday voted to extend a 20-year-old tax subsidy - first passed to fix up a blighted shopping center - for another five years to pay for nearby drainage and street work.

Pueblo Chieftain: More Lottery funds sought for special districts
Pueblo-area lawmakers will introduce a bill this week that would give special districts, including Pueblo West and Colorado City, the same level of Lottery support for parks and recreation that cities and counties enjoy.

Colorado Springs Business Journal: Big tax breaks for big companies a big problem, say small businesses
Small business owners say corporate tax loopholes give the nation's biggest companies an unfair business advantage.


Jobs and economic security
Durango Herald editorial: Jobs, factories and politics
In his State of the Union speech, President Obama advocated tax policy changes to boost U.S. manufacturing. The idea is to create and keep well-paying manufacturing jobs in this country. It is a worthy goal, but one that may be appealing to a flawed understanding of the situation.


Miscellaneous
Pueblo Chieftain editorial: A time out
We had urged caution in the mad dash to privatize Pinnacol Assurance, the state's largest carrier of workers' compensation policies and the insurer of last resort.


The national scene
The Washington Post: Congressional earmarks sometimes used to fund projects near lawmakers' properties
The Post analyzed public records on the holdings of all 535 members and compared them with earmarks members had sought for pet projects, most of them since 2008. The process uncovered appropriations for work in close proximity to commercial and residential real estate owned by the lawmakers or their family members. The review also found 16 lawmakers who sent tax dollars to companies, colleges or community programs where their spouses, children or parents work as salaried employees or serve on boards.

Kaiser Health News: Nowhere To Go But Up For The Poor Lacking Insurance, Says Study
A third of low-income Americans (under 133 percent of poverty, or $29,726 for a family of four) have lacked insurance for at least two years-10 times the rate of higher earners (over 400 percent of poverty, or $89,400 for a family of four).


Think tanks
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: House Spending-Cap Bills Would Enact Radical Ryan Budget Into Law
The House may soon consider two bills (H.R. 3576 and H.R. 3580) that would limit federal spending to levels similar to those in the House-passed budget resolution, authored by Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI).  These bills are part of a package of ten bills that Chairman Ryan and other committee members recently introduced to alter the federal budget process.

The Urban Institute: Boomers' Retirement Income Prospects
The lackluster economy, eroding traditional pensions, and volatile stock market suggest that baby boomers - those born between 1945 and 1965 - face increasingly uncertain retirements. Our projections show that lower - and moderate-income boomers will continue to rely on Social Security for most of their retirement income. While the projections reflect some good news - women will reap the rewards of working and earning more than previous generations - they also raise alarms. Between 30 and 40 percent of boomers will not have enough income at age 70 to replace 75 percent of their preretirement earnings, a common standard for measuring retirement income adequacy.

The Commonwealth Fund: The Income Divide in Health Care: How the Affordable Care Act Will Help Restore Fairness to the U.S. Health System
The new Commonwealth Fund Health Insurance Tracking Survey of U.S. Adults finds nearly three of five adults in families earning less than 133 percent of the federal poverty level were uninsured for a time in 2011.