Yesterday I took my three minutes in front of the state house committee and spoke my piece on HB26-1038. The gavel dropped, the timer lit up, and I did what I came to do, which was to tell them what Weld County voters already told me. The Democrats control the committee eight to three, and the bill moved on a party-line vote. You hear that phrase a lot in the building, party line vote, like a rubber stamp with extra steps. The outcome was never really in doubt. The question was whether anyone in the room would slow down and think about what home rule actually means.
I testified on behalf of the Weld Board of County Commissioners and the citizens of Weld County. I opened simply and directly, because the point here is not drama, it is constitutional local control. As I said in the hearing, “Good afternoon, Chair Willford and members. My name is Scott James, and I am Chairman of the Weld Board of County Commissioners, testifying on behalf of the Board and the citizens of Weld County. We are in an amend position on HB26-1038.” I made it clear that our amendments are on the table and that if the sponsor refuses them, we oppose. Then I put the real question to the people who needed to hear it. “At the heart of this bill is a question bigger than redistricting mechanics. It is a question of constitutional local control.”
Weld County is a home rule county. We are not a footnote or a clever workaround. Our voters petitioned, debated, and voted to adopt a charter. They did that because the Colorado Constitution recognizes the right of counties to govern themselves in matters of local concern. I said it plainly in the room, and I will say it again here, because it matters. “And I want to be clear, county commissioner districting is the ultimate matter of local concern. It touches roads and bridges, land use, public safety coordination, water, and the day-to-day decisions that hit closest to home. We are not talking about an abstract exercise; we are talking about representation.”
Then I asked the question that made a few chairs shift. “Why do non-Weld County legislators believe they know better for the people of Weld County than the people of Weld County? Weld citizens have the right to amend their own charter, on their timeline, through their own vote, without permission slips from Denver. That is not a loophole, that is home rule. It is a constitutional right of Weld County citizens. HB26-1038, as written, does not simply set guardrails. It pulls decision-making away from Weld voters and drags us toward a one-size-fits-all mandate from the Capitol. In practical terms, it diminishes and risks effectively taking away the right of Weld citizens to structure their government through their charter in an area that is local to the bone.”
Inside the committee, I heard the familiar smug move. Some legislators declared that they do not think home rule means what we say it means. Sorry, that is not their call. That is for the courts, not a few confident partisans with a temporary majority. They insisted that county commissioner redistricting is a matter of statewide interest. I disagree. I believe redistricting a county or a municipality is the ultimate matter of local control. But to be clear and fair, neither a state representative nor a county commissioner gets to settle that. The courts do. That is why our amendments matter so much. “They restore the basic home rule promise, the state can set standards, but it should not usurp the authority of local voters where a charter speaks. In short, respect the voters who built our charter.”
Here is the answer that respects both the law and common sense. First, process compliance is not the same as permission to override a charter in a matter of local concern. Second, our Amendment 1 is not a hall pass to misbehave, it is a safe harbor for voter adopted charter provisions. Baseline legal requirements still apply. Equal population, federal protections, those do not vanish. What the amendment prevents is the Legislature silencing local voters on how their county government is structured. Third, our Amendment 2 clarifies the cause of action and channels disputes into Rule 106, which means there is a predictable, timely path to challenge a plan and protect election administration from last minute surprises. That is not limiting access to courts. That is inviting clarity and shutting the door on chaos. It is the adult move.
When the vote came, we got the same script that eats the Capitol every day. On a party-line vote, the Democrats ran the table. I walked out of that wicked place, and I do not use that word lightly. The building feels heavy with something dark. Pray for the people in there, they need it. I hit the door and caught a wall of marijuana smoke. It is thick in the air, like the state traded the smell of pine for the smell of skunk. The buildings around the Capitol are boarded up. The streets are filthy and filled with homelessness, mental illness, and addiction. The people in charge walk past all of it and rush inside to laugh like middle schoolers while they wave their virtue for the cameras. It is not a serious place right now. It is a place that rewards performance and punishes reflection.
So why do I keep driving down there to testify? There is a virtual option. I do not like it. I believe the process and the building still deserve the courtesy of a physical presence, even if the process does not return the courtesy. But after yesterday, I am rethinking how to spend my time left as a Commissioner and my time left in life. After all, it’s my Third Act, and there are far more days behind me than there are ahead. So how I invest my time matters.
Maybe it is wiser to train a farm team. One school board, one planning commission, one town council seat at a time. If the enemy has the high ground in the Capitol for now, then let us win the neighborhoods and the boards and the councils where reality still gets a vote. That is not surrender. That is a strategy. Culture beats statute over time because culture elects the people who write statute.
For anyone who still wonders what I actually said in the room, here are the lines I want you to carry with you. “Why do non-Weld County legislators believe they know better for the people of Weld County than the people of Weld County?” “Weld citizens have the right to amend their own charter, on their timeline, through their own local vote, without the approval or permission of the state legislature.” “This is not an abstract policy exercise. It is representation.” “Either we believe in the Colorado Constitution and local control, or we do not. Adopt our amendments, and we can move forward. If not, we must oppose the bill.” Those are not punches for applause. Those are markers in the ground.
Here is the takeaway. The majority can force a vote, but they cannot make your vote meaningless unless you hand it to them. Home rule is not a trinket. It is the core of how Coloradans said they want to live together, close to the decisions that shape daily life. If Denver wants to set standards, then set them. If Denver wants to bulldoze charters, then say that out loud and let the courts sort out whether the bulldozer has a license. In the meantime, we plant deeper locally. We organize. We mentor young leaders. We build benches. We show up. We fight for home rule where it lives, which is back home.
And yes, I will keep taking my three minutes. Not because I am naive about the current scoreboard, but because I owe the people who elected me the dignity of showing up. Local control over one-size-fits-all solutions. Respect the voters who built our charter. Adopt the amendments, and we can work with you. Refuse, and we will oppose you, in public, on the record, and in the courts if needed. That is not theater. That is self-government.
