This week’s show falls on the 30th Anniversary of Denver International Airport opening, so I decided to start off our conversation around the impact of DIA, or DEN as it’s now referred to, plus, Westword Editor Patty Calhoun brought some show & tell, a key chain of the mustang sculpture outside the airport known as Blucifer (and the key chain doll’s eyes even light up bright red like the real thing). Despite Blucifer’s image problems, magnified by David Kopel of the Independence Institute saying “Blucifer is the portal through which demons enter the city,” Denver’s airport is the state’s largest economic engine. Here’s a look at what was discussed on Colorado Inside Out, which started with all things DIA and the conversation ‘took off’ from there.

DIA: Colorado’s Largest Economic Engine:
Denver International Airport contributed an estimated $47.2 billion to the Colorado economy during 2023, as reported by the Colorado Department of Transportation’s Division of Aeronautics.

• 3rd busiest airport in the United States
• 6th busiest airport in the world
• 82 million passengers in 2024
• Patty Calhoun recounted how the airport opened on February 28, 1995, later than anticipated: “That was just one of the disasters leading into the opening of Denver International Airport. Originally, people scoffed when Denver Mayor Federico Peña said, ‘let’s put it out in Adams County…’ the original architect had to be fired… we had the baggage claim system that ate suitcases… we had Continental Airlines pulling out right before the airport did finally open… it was disaster after disaster but then, against all odds, the airport really seems to have taken off.”
• Ed Sealover, VP of Strategic Initiatives at the Colorado Chamber of Commerce and Editor of The Sum & Substance: “When a company is looking to relocate or possibly expand to Colorado, there are a couple of things that they always look at like labor costs and the cost of doing business and cost of living here… Colorado is not doing well in any of those. Yet, companies also say ease of transportation throughout the country and to the world. And that is what DIA offers to us.”

Colorado’s Budget Shortfall: Medicaid, TABOR, and Potential Solutions:
The state faces a $1.2 billion budget shortfall, exacerbated by rising Medicaid costs. Speaking of Medicaid, Colorado is currently disputing a federal report that the state paid insurance companies for Medicaid care to patients who are no longer living. That report this week led CD4 Representative Lauren Boebert to post on X: “Who’s ready for Colorado DOGE??” To that David Kopel, Research Director at the Independence Institute, said: “I think probably that most taxpayers in the state are ready for a careful line by line review of the Colorado state budget, but it shouldn’t be done like DOGE, which is in the Silicon Valley-mode of ‘move fast and break things.’”

• The Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) was heavily debated on this week’s Colorado Inside Out. David Kopel had a pro-TABOR perspective: “Of the money that’s spent in the state budget annually, $40 billion, now $10 billion more than when Governor Polis took office, half of that is already exempt from TABOR. TABOR says unless the voters consent, the size of government increase should be at the rate of population increase plus inflation. If we’d stuck to that when we had a $6 or $7 billion budget the year before TABOR was enacted, we would have a $26 billion budget today. Instead, it’s a $40 billion budget, 61% higher.” Former State House Representative and State Senator Penfield Tate countered: “The real problem is the straitjacket we have placed on ourselves with TABOR. We’ve created limitations on using the money we have based on the current tax structure… at some point, we need to wake up and say, ‘none of this stuff makes sense.’ We need to get rid of TABOR… and when money is short, reduce the budget and when money’s there, address needs and invest for the future.”
• At a time when hospitals are losing money with an increase in Medicaid patients and patients with no insurance at all, Ed Sealover mentioned HB-1174 being considered at the state capitol, which calls for limiting how much hospitals can charge for treating small group insurance plan holders and state employees. The plan aims to save money for the state and small businesses, but Ed mentioned the idea is terrifying hospitals.

Nuclear Energy Receives Bi-Partisan Support for the 1st Time at State Capitol:
HB 1040 bill signals a potential shift in bipartisan support for nuclear energy as a means of achieving emission reduction goals. Republican Sen. Larry Liston of Colorado Springs has been a leading advocate for reclassifying nuclear energy for years. Democratic Rep. Alex Valdez of Denver, a solar industry executive, got on board with the idea this year and that’s led to a more open dialogue.

• Ed Sealover: “Republicans are saying ‘we want nuclear energy’ and just to be clear, this isn’t going to bring nuclear here next year. It’s just going to open people up to consider nuclear more. Assuming you figure out the waste disposal and storage piece, it’s worth examining because we know we’re going to have ongoing needs for power generation. And maybe this is one of the solutions. There are a bunch of smart scientists out there.”
• David Kopel pointed out how 28 American states utilize nuclear energy and that France gets the vast majority of its power from nuclear: “The environmental footprint of a nuclear plant is much smaller than that from wind and solar.”
• Patty Calhoun: “This is definitely a sea change. It’s not a surprise that Chris Wright, our new energy secretary who’s from Denver, is talking about it, but the fact the Colorado legislature is now looking at it, and that people like Congresswoman Diana DeGette are saying this is something we have to explore just shows things have changed.”

Colorado Small Business & Possible Relocation of Denver’s SBA regional headquarters:
In 2024, Colorado had over 715,000 small businesses, and this week, SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler announced plans on “relocating regional offices out of sanctuary cities.” The Denver office covers Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, North Dakota and South Dakota.

• Penfield Tate: “If you had experience with small businesses, you wouldn’t move the office that services small businesses to some remote place away from the population centers…. you need to set some of the ancillary political doctrine aside. I’d like them (the SBA) to spend time talking to small businesses and ask, ‘what can we do to make your lives better and easier?’”
• Panelists suggested if the Denver office were to move, it should move into Lakewood federal offices being vacated because of Trump Administration lay-offs.
• On a side note: legislation was discussed that some say would disproportionately impact small businesses owners. House Bill 1239 would allow victims of discrimination based on disability to sue for monetary compensation. Ed Sealover: “This is particularly a bill that worries small businesses because large businesses often have human resources people and legal counsel who can tell you exactly how you have to make your business successful. Small restaurants, small shops don’t.”

We started the show reminiscing about the 1st day for DIA, so in line with other firsts, here’s a shout out for a new first for the Denver area. The Denver Onyx is Denver’s first professional Women’s Elite Rugby (WER) team. They’re currently practicing in Glendale ahead of the start of their season next month.