Lora Thomas's Spotlight #25-04

This is a copied from former Commissioner Lora Thomas's Newsletter 25-04

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SPOTLIGHT! on what YOUR DougCo government is doing. . .

Hello!

The Board of County Commissioners seems to always be moving FAST--and often in the shadows out of the light of public scrutiny--on several issues so take a quick look here to see what is going on!

Schedule for the Commissioners this Week

SHADOWS ALERT! Take a look at the schedule for our commissioners for the upcoming week, and you will notice that only ONE of this week's meeting includes a remote link for citizens to listen to their government at work! The process of providing links for public viewing of all commissioner meetings has been in place for years since COVID, so why the change--and what are they hiding?

On Tuesday, Sterling Ranch will once again be asking for taxpayer dollars for two of its projects, Zebulon and Burns Park, with only the Burns project having a remote link. Remember that Zebulon is a multi-million-dollar project slated for 500 acres, and there is NO LINK for citizens to listen. Again, what's the big secret--what don't they want you to know?

After the markedly-reduced transparency that our commissioners are providing to the residents for whom they are supposed to be working, you might get a giggle out of the heading (see below) that is part of the county email with the weekly commissioner schedule - you'll notice that the message indicates that the commission "believes in open and transparent government." It is the ultimate in temerity to drastically reduce resident access to commissioner activities while touting its transparency. They really must think we are stupid.

Actions speak louder than words, and there was absolutely NO TRANSPARENCY on last week's Home Rule announcement.

Cutting Through the "Night and Fog" with a Colorado Open Records Request (CORA)

Last Tuesday I made a CORA request for the following items:

"Morning, Chris (Pratt, deputy county attorney), 1) Please provide a list of the Local Leaders invited to the Luncheon on 3-25-25. 2) Was this luncheon catered? Please provide the contract that includes cost of this event. 3) If i made an error in the date of the Lance Ingalls presentation to the Board about Home Rule when I asked for 2021, I'd like to change that to ANY presentation and/or information provided to the BOCC about Home Rule. 4) Please provide a link for the Elected Officials Meeting on Monday, March 23. Thank you, Lora Thomas"

As a reminder, on Tuesday after the commissioners announced their plan to initiate steps to make Douglas County a "Home Rule County," they hosted an exclusive, closed catered lunch for "Local Leaders," so I requested the list of those "Local Leaders." That list was not provided; the response I received from the county included this sentence, "For those parts of your request that no documents are provided, no responsive records were found."

Although I received no list of Local Leaders who were invited to this catered luncheon, I did receive a copy of the contract with Flying Horse Catering for $1154 for a Luncheon for 60 people. When was the last time you hosted a party for 60 people and did not have a list of the guests you'd invited? SHADOWS ALERT!

Is this what YOU call transparency? It's what I call skullduggery--government conducted in the shadows.

PS--I invite you to go to the Douglas YouTube page and look for the recording of the 10-minute Special Business Meeting on March 25, 2025 when the three commissioners voted to put this important topic to a Special Election that will cost voters $500,000! I was able to listen to this meeting and can tell you that it started 4 minutes late and lasted less than 10 minutes. No citizen comment was requested or permitted.

Although I was unable to obtain the list of "Local Leaders" invited to the catered luncheon on Tuesday, March 25, I did see an email that was sent out by the Chair of the Republican GOP to numerous folks on Monday evening, March 24, before the public was apprised of the Home Rule Agenda the commissioners were proposing. In other words, the fix was in and only the commissioners' inner circle of confidence knew what was going on...

"Our amazing Commissioners are going through with the Home Rule Initiative. I have the slates they have picked to run for the charter (emphasis added) broken out by their district listed below. Please find the invitation to the press conference and luncheon tomorrow at the Douglas County Government offices (100 3rd St, Castle Rock 80104) starting at 11:30, attached.

We will all need 25 signatures on our petitions from within our district to get put on the ballot. It is important to ensure that all of your signatures reside in your district. Their political affiliation does not matter. Please block off the evening of Wednesday, the 26th for a signing party. If everyone can bring 5 friends (or as many as you can) within your district, we can all sign each other's petitions and get our 25 signatures quickly. I will update everyone with the exact time and location of the signing party ASAP."

Below are the 21 names on that list, and you will note that 20 of the 21 names have been or are currently Douglas County elected public officials or officers of the Douglas County Republicans (elected public/GOP officials listed in RED).

Note that there are no "regular citizens" on this list. All but one are politicians or highly-placed in the DougCo Republican leadership. As far as I can tell, there are no Democrats or unaffiliated electors--who make up a MAJORITY of registered voters in this county--included on this list.

District 1:

Darren Weekly Douglas County Sheriff

Jeff Toborg former Parker Mayor and Council member

Dave Weaver former Douglas County Sheriff and Commissioner

Laura Hefta Parker Council Member

Jack Hilbert former Parker Council member & Douglas County Commissioner

Toby Damisch Douglas County Assessor

District 2:

Dave Gill Douglas County Treasurer

George Brauchler 23rd Judicial District (which includes Douglas County) Attorney

Max Brooks Castle Rock Council Member & State Rep. for HD 45

Deb Mulvey Castle Pines Council Member

Darcy Kofol Assistant 23rd Judicial District Attorney

Jennifer Green former Castle Rock Mayor

District 3:

Robin Webb Chair- Douglas County Republicans

Raeanne Brown Douglas County Coroner

Ted Harvey former State Rep. and Senator (Highlands Ranch)

Frank McNulty former Speaker of the Colorado House (Highlands Ranch)

Steve Collier former Vice-Chair - Douglas County Republicans

Monica Wasden Director - Highlands Ranch Community Association

At Large:

Kevin VanWinkle Douglas County Commissioner

George Teal Douglas County Commissioner

Abe Laydon Douglas County Commissioner

Remember: Home Rule can ONLY change STRUCTURE. It CANNOT ignore/circumvent state laws!

Blatant, and likely deliberate, disinformation is being promulgated by Commissioners that adoption of home rule county status for Douglas County will permit DougCo to just opt-out of any state law or regulation with which it disagrees or disfavors. These assertions are fictitious and grossly MISLEADING. Just last month, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled in a case against the Weld County Commissioners, saying,

"Although home rule counties enjoy autonomy in determining their internal organization, they remain bound to perform mandatory functions prescribed by state law."

--League of Women Voters v. Weld County Board of Commissioners, 25 CO 8 (2025)

Click here to read the case

I dislike the many unconstitutional and intrusive laws passed by the Dem-dominated state legislature, but promising voters an easy-but-phony panacea to curry support for Home Rule isn't just wrong; it's cheap, slimy and unethical!

Ask all of the public Elected Officials above--hand-picked in the dark of night by commissioners to serve on the 21 citizen Charter Commission--if they will each pledge to limit their terms of office to the statutory TWO terms and will not support a Charter that allows longer terms and larger salaries than currently permitted by state law, as happened in the case of home-rule Weld County. (Current state salary for county commissioner is $150,000 annually + benefits)

I am still researching the Home Rule statutes along with many concerned citizens in an effort to fully understand all the implications of this process that our commissioners prepared in the dark and sprang on us all at the last-minute, an obvious effort to prevent a thorough and organized opposition.

Here is some information that's been found so far:

(18)

Counties may purchase water rights.

To purchase water and water rights for the purpose of supplying counties and the inhabitants thereof with water. When deemed necessary and proper, the governing body of a county may purchase and hold the lands with which said water right is connected, whether the same is within or beyond the corporate limits thereof.

See! There's a lot to understand in the next 3 months before the Special Home Rule Election on June 24 that will cost $500,000!

So I suggest that when you receive slick campaign mailers on the eve of the special election in June telling you to vote for the hand-picked slate of folks named above, that you very carefully research the "Committee" and its donors that funded the mailer. . .and don't be surprised if it tracks back to the investors of RWR--the water scam of big-money special interests to export water from the San Luis Valley!

Ross Kaminsky - KOA Radio - 850AM

Last week, Commissioner Kevin Van Winkle was on the Ross Kaminsky show on KOA Radio hyping Home Rule. At one point, Ross asked Van Winkle to stop reading from a prepared statement/talking-points and just directly answer his questions about this proposal. Click here to hear the exchange.

I know Ross Kaminsky to be a fair-minded Libertarian from listening to his show for years. I've reached out to Ross, and he has graciously allowed me to be on his program Monday at 11:04AM to clear-up some of the disinformation being disseminated and to explain that Home Rule only allows counties to change STRUCTURE and not to ignore state law.

Per Ross, people can listen online at koacolorado.com/listen or they can use the iHeartRadio app or they can tell their smart speaker to "play KOA on iHeartRadio" or dial in the old-fashioned way at 850 AM or 94.1 FM.

Think about this: The US Constitution requires every state to provide its citizens with a republican form of government. We are the sovereign State of Colorado. If "home rule" meant what its proponents claim, we would not be the sovereign State of Colorado, but rather the Colorado Confederation of Cities and Counties!

I'd like to thank the numerous folks who reached out to me about the Home Rule proposal - keep those questions/concerns/ideas coming! This is one that I received from a subscriber that is rooted in logic and history:

All three sitting County Commissioners have announced plans to run for the Home Rule Charter Commission. This creates a scenario that contradicts fundamental conservative governance values:

1. Self-serving government design: Commissioners would be drafting the very charter that defines their own authority, powers, and compensation—essentially writing their own job descriptions.

Commissioners setting their own authority, compensation, and responsibilities is like CEOs writing their own performance reviews. As fiscal conservatives, we'd never accept that in business—why accept it in government?

2. Concentration of power: Our founding fathers warned against officials holding multiple positions of influence, yet we face a situation where the same individuals could control both current county operations AND design its future structure.

Smaller, more accountable government starts with independent citizens designing the framework—not current officeholders preserving their influence.

3. Lack of citizen oversight: True conservative governance demands government of, by, and for the people—not a system where politicians design their own authority structures without independent oversight.

Our county deserves the same wisdom our nation's founders showed—separating the powers of government and ensuring those who hold authority don't also design the rules. This time-tested principle protects liberty.

COMMISSIONERS VOTE TO MAKE DOUGLAS COUNTY "HOME RULE"...BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN WHAT YOU MIGHT THINK!

By Lora Thomas, former Douglas County Commissioner

On Tuesday, Douglas County Commissioners Abe Laydon, George Teal and Kevin Van Winkle voted unanimously at a Special Business meeting to put in motion the process for Douglas County to become Colorado’s third home rule county.

The vote came as a complete surprise to county residents, as it turns out the three commissioners and other Douglas County elected officials have only discussed this proposal in closed executive session. No Townhalls were held to explore the concept with citizens. No survey of residents was done to gauge community sentiment. The first hint outside of the commissioners’ “circle of confidence” about this issue came on Monday, at 12:37PM when an email from Douglas County was sent out announcing the Special Business meeting, barely within the 24-hour state meeting notice requirement.

The process to make Douglas County a home rule county is an attempt to join two other counties—Weld and Pitkin—as the only home rule counties out of 64 Colorado counties, with Denver and Broomfield officially operating as combined home rule cities-and-counties.

The home rule county discussions in Douglas County started in 2021, when George Teal began his first term as a County Commissioner. Teal, who came to Douglas County from home-rule Weld County, made it clear that he wanted Douglas County to join Weld as a home rule county. The only other county in recent memory to flirt with the home rule process was Eagle County, where the idea was never adopted.

Following Teal's request, then-County Attorney Lance Ingalls provided the Douglas County commissioner board with an extensive explanation about the county home rule process/requirements, and very pointedly explained that home rule for municipalities is quite different than home rule for counties. (https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/2018_local_government_handbook_with_cover_0.pdf page 9).

Essentially, while home rule municipalities may create their own legal codes/laws and courts, home rule counties can only deviate from state-established structure of the local government, e.g. make certain county positions such as coroner or treasurer appointed rather than elected, and set/increase term-limits and/or pay for county officials. However, unlike home rule municipalities, home rule counties cannot operate autonomously from state laws and requirements, nor may they ignore or choose not to follow/comply with state law.

But in public comments, Teal has sold home-rule as a way to shield Republican Douglas County from actions by the Democrat-controlled state government, or circumvent them altogether.

In the home rule county process, six citizens would be elected from each of the three DougCo commissioner districts, and 3 citizens are elected at-large, for a total of 21 charter commission members to draft the home rule charter to govern the operations of the county going forward.

After the Charter is drafted, a second election will be held on November 4, 2025, to determine if the voters of Douglas County want to accept this charter and officially become a home rule county.

Tuesday’s resolution introduced by Teal calls for an “election to establish a Home Rule Charter Commission" "no later than June 24"—less than three months away.

With the announcement and vote, many in Douglas County still seem confused regarding the actual nature and scope of what a home rule county really is, with the term “local control” being repeated by those favorably receiving the news. But not all welcomed the news. One Douglas County Republican District Captain sent out an email to the party central committee:

“The [home rule] charter could make wide-ranging changes in County government, including making some positions (eg, Sheriff) appointed by the Commissioners that presently are elected by the people. The charter could also change the number of Commissioners. …If this goes wrong, this could easily lead to Democrat control of our County.”

Confusion about the actual nature of a home rule county was only compounded by erroneous information on the Douglas County website that indicates that the County could “tailor government to meet our unique needs” by “appointing our own judges.”

Per Amendment 3, a constitutional amendment approved by Colorado voters in 1966, judges with jurisdiction over state law are appointed by the Governor in all counties except Denver, which is technically not part of the state judicial system.

Just last month, the Colorado Supreme Court reminded home-rule Weld County Commissioners, who refused to follow state requirements on drawing commissioner districts, that home rule for counties does not mean unfettered autonomy. "Although home rule counties enjoy autonomy in determining their internal organization, they remain bound to perform mandatory functions prescribed by state law." League of Women Voters v. Weld County Board of Commissioners, 25 CO 8 (2025)

If you or someone you know would like to subscribe to this SPOTLIGHT, please email me at Lora@LoraThomas.org to be added as a subscriber.

Ask Miss Information

Dear Readers,

Gertie and I have been around for a long time, and we are well aware of the excellent and professional service that Wendy Holmes, the former Douglas County Director of Public Affairs, provided for us for over 20 years. But we realized that we hadn't seen Wendy or her good work in a while, and we decided that we needed to find out why.

Our Public Records Request (where any ol' citizen can ask for records maintained by the government) to the county revealed that Wendy had indeed left the county's service in January and had received a severance package (indicating that her departure was not entirely voluntary on her part). So we know why we haven't seen/heard from her, but that still left a lot of questions...

Gertie and I KNOW that Wendy was a consummate professional and her absence from the Douglas County public communications team is a true loss to the public. Anyone who was around Wendy Holmes for any period of time knew that her mantra was, "Is it in the public's interest?" Every story or presentation she worked on was based in serving the public as well as protecting the reputation of Douglas County.

So why is Wendy gone? It took two Public Records Requests to Douglas County, but we finally got hold of a contract (Click here for contract.) for the Hudson Firm LLC. Who/what is that? Well, it's Roger Hudson, a Castle Pines Council member and close associate and vacation buddy of Mr. and Mrs. George Teal who accompanied them on two recent cruises, according to several Facebook photos! I think Lora Thomas would call this a two-fer...a SHADOW ALERT and a CRONY ALERT!

More detective work reveals that Hudson and Abe Laydon were in the news a while back when they were censured together by the Colorado Republican Party for interjecting themselves into a rift with the Montana state house involving a transgender lawmaker's behavior and ensuing discipline. Click here for the story.

Yet another story we located about Roger Hudson from a year ago involved his association with a website, "The Lobby," that contained aggregated news stories. According to a Colorado Times Recorder story, "Editors for both the Colorado Springs and Denver Gazette papers and Colorado Politics conglomerate as well as the Colorado Sun say they asked Hudson to stop using their reporters’ material as the basis for his site’s content, both in phone conversations and via formal legal requests." Click here for the entire story. It was around the same time as this controversy that Hudson ceased his position as a former deputy chief of staff for the Colorado House Republicans.

Awful interesting, especially since, if you download Hudson's contract, on Page 9 you will see, "Insurance Requirements Waived!" Kiddies, I'm no lawyer, but even I know this type of "waiver" leaves our county's backside hangin' in the liability breeze--especially given this character's history of questionable antics! I've been snooping around government forever, and I've never seen a government tell an outside contractor that he doesn't need to provide insurance. I'd like to say I'm shocked, but knowing the long and ugly history of the Teal Crony Gravy Train, how can I be?

I shouldn't have to tell y'all that it's time to get out your Sherlock Holmes magnifying glass, give your specs a good, thorough cleanin' and keep a sharp eye on these commissioners, and what they are doing for their cronies!

In the meantime,

Don't forget, and like I always say. . .

GET--AND STAY--INFORMED and vocal. . .or keep paying the price of apathy!!