News Sheet

Colorado’s Energy Plan: Mandates, Myths, and Missed Opportunities

Written by Scott K. James

Mandates are choking Colorado’s energy future. Forget common sense—our leaders prefer subsidies, solar dreams, and a bonfire of rate hikes. Weld County has cleaner, cheaper fuel underfoot—but sanity’s not on the ballot.

The Colorado Sun is back at it again, this time with a flaming love letter to renewable energy—and a polite panic about soaring electricity bills. The article breaks down how coal- and gas-fired plants are getting revived just to keep the lights on in Colorado (gasp!). Of course, they blame outdated systems while tiptoeing around the state-created disaster called “green energy mandates.”

Look, I don’t doubt their math – this is exactly what my banker-buddy, Chris, was texting me about the other day. But their omission of natural gas is frustrating – they act like there are only two paths: coal or renewables – and that’s just not the case.

The Bullet Point Brief

  • Looks like green dreams are now powered by good ol’ coal and gas—ironic twist no one saw coming except everyone.
  • Colorado’s electricity rates are climbing faster than a woke intern’s Twitter rants.
  • The Sun cries foul on coal use but buries the lede: we’ve got clean-burning natural gas sitting untapped in Weld County.
  • Guv Polis and his merry band of eco-commandos would rather bankroll windmills over market-based solutions that actually work.
  • Nuclear? That word ain’t even whispered. It’s easier to ban plastic bags than lift red tape off real baseload options.

My Bottom Line

You gotta hand it to these political wizards—we’re paying more for energy while sitting on top of an ocean of clean-burning natural gas here in Weld County. But instead of unleashing that goldmine with smart regulation and sane policy, we get ideological mandates duct-taped together by people whose only qualification is tweeting about climate justice during brunch. This isn’t an energy plan—it’s economic vandalism dressed up as virtue signaling.

I’m all for an “all of the above” strategy—the kind where the free market picks winners based on what actually works, not what makes some committee feel fuzzy inside. Get your boot off fossil fuels long enough for us to stabilize baseload demand. Oh, and let’s talk nuclear for once without acting like it’s Frankenstein’s pet project. We have modern tech held hostage by decades of bureaucratic constipation. If we want to grow Colorado without bankrupting every family between Greeley and Grand Junction, we need more power production that actually produces power. Take the politics out and let common sense breathe for once.

About the author

Scott K. James

A 4th generation Northern Colorado native, Scott K. James is a veteran broadcaster, professional communicator, and principled leader. Widely recognized for his thoughtful, common-sense approach to addressing issues that affect families, businesses, and communities, Scott, his wife, Julie, and son, Jack, call Johnstown, Colorado, home. A former mayor of Johnstown, James is a staunch defender of the Constitution and the rule of law, the free market, and the power of the individual. Scott has delighted in a lifetime of public service and continues that service as a Weld County Commissioner representing District 2.