Colorado Chamber Office Hours

With Colorado’s primary election taking place tomorrow, we are breaking down key business issues with legislative candidates from both sides of the aisle. Host Ed Sealover first sits down with Taylor Voss, a Democrat from Pueblo running for Senate District 3. Voss discusses the importance of small business in his district, workforce development and what an energy transition could look like in Pueb...

This week for a special episode of Colorado Chamber Office Hours, we are sitting down with Colorado’s other Democratic candidate for governor, U.S. Senator from Colorado, Michael Bennet. Host Ed Sealover and Bennet kick off the conversation by discussing the general state of Colorado’s business environment and the effect of overregulation. They then pivot to discuss the emerging technologies that...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, host Ed Sealover sits down with Colorado Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Phil Weiser to discuss the issues shaping Colorado’s business climate.  The conversation covers regulatory reform, workforce development, Colorado’s tax system, the Labor Peace Act and the state’s growing energy needs as data centers consider site development opportunit...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, we are discussing how a streamlined workforce development system would help employers form partnerships to develop talent across the state.  Host Ed Sealover sits down with Bobbie Wolfe, senior consultant for sector partnerships and industry at the Colorado Workforce Development Office, who provides an overview of the work already underway and how the st...

Now that the 2026 legislative session has officially concluded, Colorado Chamber Office Hours is taking a look back at the biggest bills from the session businesses need to know about. Host Ed Sealover is joined by Meghan Dollar, SVP of governmental affairs and political operations for the Colorado Chamber of Commerce, to break down the policies that will support the state’s economy and the defeat...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours' final in-session episode before the the Colorado legislative session comes to a close, we break down legislation tied to a proposed ballot initiative that would reshape how Colorado funds transportation infrastructure. House Bill 1430 would temporarily reduce fuel taxes, vehicle registration fees and other transportation related charges if voters app...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, we take a closer look at legislation aimed at addressing the use of artificial intelligence and reducing potential adverse outcomes for consumers. The bill would establish disclosure requirements for AI systems that use personal data to make consequential decisions like loan eligibility, insurance pricing or purchasing a home. It would also give consumer...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, we sit down with personal injury attorney Kyle Bachus to break down legislation aimed at restricting nonlawyer involvement in the legal industry. Advanced by an unlikely partnership between the Colorado Chamber and the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, House Bill 1421 would prohibit nonlawyers from entering into financial arrangements that allow them t...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, host Ed Sealover explores several bills aimed at increasing the affordability and availability of housing in the state, which currently faces a shortage of over 106,000 homes.  Ted Leighty, CEO of the Colorado Association of Homebuilders, breaks down the reasons behind the state’s housing shortage and outlines how minimum lot sizes can affect a housing m...

Colorado Lawmakers are considering a series of bills that could bring significant changes to the state’s tax code and increase the tax burden on the business community by more than $500 million per year.  Host Ed Sealover sits down with policy and tax experts to break down a package of four bills proposing numerous changes, including decoupling Colorado’s tax code from certain federal provisions,...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, we are breaking down a proposal aimed at streamlining Colorado's workforce development system.  House Bill 1317 would create a more unified approach to talent development and establish a transition plan to better align the state’s workforce programs with employer needs.  Host Ed Sealover sits down with ​Colorado Speaker of the House Julie McCluskie,...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, we break down a bill that would make significant changes to Colorado’s arbitration process and that could change key aspects of the state’s legal environment. House Bill 1236 would prohibit certain provisions in arbitration agreements, establish new requirements for who may serve as an arbitrator and set standards for employer payment of arbitration awar...

Colorado lawmakers are considering legislation aimed at increasing transparency and consistency in the rule review process for state agencies. SB 137 would create more robust standards and criteria for how state agencies review their current regulations, including assessing which rules are outdated, duplicative, cost effective or overly burdensome.  Host Ed Sealover is joined by Colorado Senate Pr...

The Colorado legislature is considering two proposals that could raise taxes and fees on alcohol producers across the state. Sen. Judy Amabile (D - SD 18), a sponsor of both bills, explains the goals behind the policy and how she believes the additional funding could support addiction treatment and prevention efforts. Shawnee Adelson, executive director of the Colorado Brewers Guild explains the i...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, host Ed Sealover dives into proposed legislation aimed at developing standard protocols for managing extreme heat and cold in the workplace. HB 1272 would require the state to track temperature related workplace injuries and develop model prevention plans outlining how employers should address extreme temperature conditions on the job.  Representative Me...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, Ed Sealover sits down the Cole Wist, attorney and former state representative, and Rep. Elizabeth Velasco (D-57), to discuss legislation aimed at overhauling Colorado's worker protection system.  HB 1054 would create a state-level enforcement process for violations of both federal OSHA and state workplace health and safety standards. However, the pro...

In this episode of Colorado Chamber Office Hours, we dig into HB 1012, a bill aimed at expanding consumer pricing protections in Colorado. Supporters say it increases transparency and accountability, while opponents raise concerns about regulatory overreach and unintended consequences for Colorado businesses. We sit down with Rep. Yara Zokaie (D-52), a primary sponsor of the bill, and Rep. Anthony...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, host Ed Sealover sits down with Nicole Riehl, president and CEO of Executives Partnering to Invest in Children (EPIC), and Sen. Mark Baisley, to discuss the state’s role in child care.  Riehl outlines the benefits of legislation aiming to expand the access and affordability of child care through strategies like deregulation and tax incentives. Sen. Baisl...

This week on Colorado Chamber Office Hours, host Ed Sealover dives into House Bill 1036, a contentious bill proposing a tax on Colorado homes left vacant for extended periods of time. We hear from Kevin Bommer, executive director of the Colorado Municipal League, who supports the bill and Brian Tanner, vice president of public policy at the Colorado Association of Realtors, who opposes it. Tune in...

In this episode of Colorado Chamber Office Hours, we break down House Bill 1005, which proposes changes to Colorado’s Labor Peace Act. HB 1005 would reshape collective bargaining rules and modify how union agreements are negotiated under state law. We talk with Rep. Javier Mabrey, a proponent of the bill, and Rep. Chris Richardson, who opposes it, for a full look at both sides of the debate and wh...

In a special bonus episode this week, host Ed Sealover sits down with Colorado Senate Minority Leader Cleave Simpson to discuss the Republican Party’s plans for the session. Sen. Simpson details the importance of a balance between energy costs and sustainability, differences between Colorado’s urban and rural districts and Colorado’s efforts to regulate artificial intelligence. 

We spoke with Colorado Speaker of the House Julie McCluskie to discuss her party’s approach to the legislative session and the issues most relevant to employers. Speaker McCluskie outlines plans to address affordability, manage the risks of artificial intelligence discrimination, and strike a balance between protecting Coloradans and growing the state’s economy. She also discusses strengthening Co...

As Colorado’s legislative session heats up, we sit down with Meghan Dollar, the Colorado Chamber’s SVP of governmental affairs and political operations, to break down which legislative issues matter most to employers. Meghan covers key bills to watch out for this session involving Colorado’s regulatory climate, artificial intelligence, clean energy, the state's budget and more. 

The Colorado 2026 legislative session begins this week, and we sat down with Colorado House Minority Leader Jarvis Caldwell to talk about what it means to lead the minority party, and how his caucus plans to approach major business issues this session. Caldwell details how Republicans will try to bring down costs of living, how they’ll look to balance clean-energy goals with feasibility and why th...

With one week left until the state's legislative session is set to kick off, Senate President Coleman discusses what issues to anticipate that could impact the Colorado business community. The top Democrat in the state senate described his party’s plans for the coming session, how he plans to ease the growing regulatory burden on business, how the state is attempting to tackle the issue of art...