Ethics Watch calls on Commissioner Torres to immediately return the unlawful contribution from Las Animas County Republican Women's Club, which patently exceeds the $400 contribution limit, and immediately rectify his many other filing delinquencies.

The day after Ethics Watch filed a complaint with the Colorado Secretary of State against the Senate Majority Fund LLC (SMF), SMJ adjusted its reports to disclose nearly $100,000 in spending on political ads and mailings.

Ethics Watch, today filed a complaint with the Colorado Secretary of State against the Senate Majority Fund LLC, a political organization registered with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Colorado Secretary of State as a 527, for failure to report thousands of dollars in campaign spending. 

Ethics Watch testified today to the Independent Ethics Commission ("IEC") regarding the IEC's proposed rules.

Ethics Watch petitions to force DA Morrissey to explain refusal to prosecute Senate Minority Leader Andy McElhany

Today, the Colorado Court of Appeals affirmed a precedent-setting ruling that promotes greater transparency in campaign finance spending by affirming that political committees are liable for skirting the law.

When voters approved Amendment 41, they created an ethics commission that is required to be independent from the officials it polices. The Colorado Supreme Court has interpreted this voter mandate to mean that, unlike other state boards and commissions, the Independent Ethics Commission must be “separate and distinct” from both the executive and legislative branches. As a member of the executive branch, the attorney general’s representation of the IEC would nullify that independence.

Colorado Ethics Watch, a nonpartisan, nonprofit legal watchdog group, today released a new report entitled Ethics Roundup: Colorado’s Most Corrupt Public Officials, profiling 11 of Colorado’s most unethical public officials.

The fact that Governor Ritter did the right thing by proactively investigating the misuse of his campaign funds does not abrogate the need for a formal investigation. The question left open is who will handle the matter?

Ethics Watch called on Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey to launch an immediate investigation of former gubernatorial candidate Bob Beauprez.

Colorado Ethics Watch has identified significant blocks of time on the official calendar of Secretary of State Mike Coffman that were either used for meetings with potential funders of his congressional campaign, or are unaccounted for as private appointments and meetings.

Today, the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission announced its nomination of the fifth and final member, Larry Lasha.  Chantell Taylor, director of Colorado Ethics Watch, issued the following statement in response:

Colorado Ethics Watch (Ethics Watch), a non-partisan, non-profit legal watchdog group, has hired three new staff members to help the organization target corruption in state and local government.

Ethics Watch releases statement in response to Supreme Court opinion overturning injuction on Amendment 41.

Today, Colorado Ethics Watch (Ethics Watch) filed a complaint with the Independent Ethics Commission asking it to penalize Secretary of State Mike Coffman for his continued egregious pattern of misconduct. This is the first complaint filed with the Independent Ethics Commission since it was approved by voters in November 2006.

Today, Colorado Ethics Watch (Ethics Watch), a non-partisan, non-profit legal watchdog group, filed an appeal with the Colorado Court of Appeals challenging a recent decision with statewide implications.

Today, Colorado Ethics Watch (Ethics Watch)called on the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission to end the delay and quickly move ahead with oversight of ethical misconduct by government officials. Despite its creation by voter approval in November 2006, the Commission has not made its final appointment, promulgated rules or begun to hear complaints and issue opinions.

DENVER – In response to an audit request submitted by Colorado Ethics Watch (Ethics Watch) in May, the Colorado State Auditor released a performance audit today that reveals pervasive noncompliance and mismanagement. Ethics Watch’s request asked the auditor to determine whether the secretary of state’s office was compliant with state and federal voter registration requirements and whether any employees in that office misused state resources to enrich themselves. The auditor’s office found several areas of noncompliance and concluded that Secretary of State Mike Coffman is responsible for the statutory violations of his employees.

DENVER – Today, Colorado Ethics Watch (Ethics Watch) filed a campaign finance complaint with the Colorado Secretary of State’s office against Lakewood City Council President Cheryl Wise. The complaint stems from comments Councilwoman Wise made during an October 8, 2007 regular meeting of the Lakewood City Council in which she harshly criticized city council candidate Charley Able, urged voters not to vote for him, and praised the only other candidate, Karen Kellen, expressly by name.