skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, February 7, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

January jobs report: Unemployment rate falls to 4%, wages rise more than forecast; Trump signs order imposing sanctions on International Criminal Court over investigations of Israel; Ten Commandments in public schools debate reaches South Dakota; Virginia ranks among worst states for wage theft; Mexican long-nosed bat makes appearance in Arizona.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Attorney General Pam Bondi strikes a Trump tone at the Justice Department, federal workers get more time to consider buyouts, and an unclassified email request from the White House worries CIA vets.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

During Black History Month, a new book shares how a unique partnership built 5,000 schools for Black students, anti-hunger advocates say ag communities would benefit from an expanded SNAP program, and Americans have $90 billion in unpaid medical bills.

Colorado lawmakers eye ways to reduce pollution in vulnerable communities

play audio
Play

Tuesday, April 2, 2024   

In 2021, Colorado lawmakers took a first step toward addressing decades of toxic pollution disproportionately impacting low-income neighborhoods and communities of color by creating an Environmental Justice Action Task Force. They must now decide whether to act on that task force's recommendations in House Bill 24-1338.

Ean Tafoya, Environmental Justice Action Task Force co-chair, said with a projected state budget shortfall of at least $170 million, the future of the measure is uncertain.

"With the looming budget cuts from our economic forecast, we are very concerned that environmental justice legislation like this is going to be on the chopping block," Tafoya said. "And so, we really need people to raise their voices and say that these issues are incredibly important."

HB 24-1338 calls for new research and documentation, known as environmental equity and cumulative impact analyses, in the state's most polluted ZIP codes. Tafoya said the data can help lawmakers make better policy decisions on whether new industries can be located near at-risk communities, and enforce rules for polluters already operating in those neighborhoods.

Tafoya believes all Coloradans have a human right to breathe clean air, drink clean water and plant their gardens in clean soil. But he said decades of policies that prioritized polluters over people have led to a host of negative health outcomes, including cancers and premature death.

As Tafoya described it, "Moms waking in the middle of the night with their children gasping for air from asthma attacks. This also happens with elders who have COPD. These are the realities for the people who live closest to toxins, and we have a duty and a responsibility to protect them."

He added lawmakers and representatives from industrial polluters that participated in the task force's work recognize there have been situations in the past that they have gotten wrong, and they would like to see a better future for everyone.

"I think we are in alignment - government, industry and community - about a path forward for environmental justice. HB 24-1338 is not controversial, it's something that we all agree we need to move forward on," he said.

Disclosure: GreenLatinos contributes to our fund for reporting on Climate Change/Air Quality, Environmental Justice, Public Lands/Wilderness, Water. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
Opponents of a South Dakota bill that would require the Ten Commandments be posted in all public school classrooms say it would be an unfunded mandate. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

A South Dakota House committee takes up a controversial bill today that would require all school districts in the state to display the Ten Commandment…


play sound

Virginia ranks third behind only Maryland and Delaware among the worst states for the average amount of back wages companies owe to their workers…

Environment

play sound

Some North Dakota school districts are part of a movement that has embraced electric school buses, but the federal funding shakeup carried out by the …


Florida immigrant advocacy groups are intensifying efforts to help undocumented individuals navigate encounters with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. (David Peinado/Pexels)

Social Issues

play sound

Immigrant advocates in Florida are ramping up efforts to help families navigate President Donald Trump's new immigration orders, which have increased …

Social Issues

play sound

The rate of U.S. high school seniors seeking higher education is on the upswing, according to research from Lumina Foundation. Although Hoosier …

Gov. Kathy Hochul's free community college proposal would apply to people pursuing first-time associate degrees for jobs in high-demand fields, including nursing, teaching, technology and engineering. (Adobe Stock)

play sound

New York State is making historic higher education investments. As part of the 2026 budget proposal, Gov. Kathy Hochul proposes free community …

Social Issues

play sound

Gov. Josh Shapiro's proposed state budget includes a significant increase for public education to address Pennsylvania's school funding issues and …

Social Issues

play sound

Alabama nonprofits are coming together to tackle challenges that may threaten their survival, from declining donor support to shifting federal …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021