From First to Worst: The Polis Economy

In a detailed and comprehensive expose, Ben Murrey of Colorado’s Independence Institute outlines the myriad of failures of Governor Dear Leader Jared Polis that have led to the Colorado economy going from one of the best in the nation to one of the worst.

A mere four years ago, Colorado had the nation’s lowest unemployment rate. Now the state is roughly 37th.

Murrey notes that national media has focused on Colorado’s Senate Bill 19-085 – the so-called Equal Pay for Equal Work Act – which requires employers to disclose salary ranges on job listings and has shut out Colorado workers from remote work being offered to workers from every other state in the union. The website coloradoexcluded.com lists the job listings that are off-limits to Colorado workers.

Among the failures chronicled by Murrey:

Paying Coloradoans not to work. Polis determined what jobs/industries are essential, and literally ordered those in non-essential professions to stop working and accept government handouts.

Severe damage to Colorado’s energy sector. This happened through the transformation of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (Colorado’s energy regulatory body) into an organization committed to forcing fossil fuels out of the state. According to Murrey, “It [the changes] transformed the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission from a regulatory body to an anti-fossil-fuel activist organization.”

Minimum wage hikes kicking in. Colorado has the 6th highest minimum wage in the country ($12.32 an hour), and businesses are being forced to lay off employees. Low to no skill employees are refused employment because they can’t yet produce enough valuable work to make it worth hiring them.

Proposition 118. This new law establishes a very expensive payroll tax for paid family and medical leave, the cost of which will be picked up by Colorado businesses. Prop 118 was passed as a ballot referendum, but Polis allies lobbied heavily for it and he remained silent about the damaging consequences of its passage.

Interference in agriculture. The so-called Farmworker Bill of Rights passed at the end of the 2021 session, which repealed the overtime exemptions necessary for Colorado’s seasonal agricultural industry and will force farms to cut back on the long hours required to make the season profitable.

Out-of-control taxes and fees. The Colorado legislature passed (and Polis signed) 45 tax and fee increases, dodging the Colorado constitution’s requirement for voter approval of tax increases by calling them “fees.”

Coloradoans are realizing that elections have consequences.

Read Murrey’s entire article at National Review here.