DENVER — All eight members of Colorado’s U.S. House delegation participated in a panel discussion Tuesday, focusing on how major federal legislation could shape Colorado’s future.
A central topic was President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill," one of the most consequential bills Congress has passed recently, which has sparked major debate among Colorado’s lawmakers.
There’s a sharp partisan divide on the bill: Democrats oppose it, while Republicans support it, setting the stage for a friendly debate.
One Republican member seemed concerned with certain aspects of the bill this year as it was making its way through Congress.
Congressman Jeff Hurd of Colorado’s 3rd District was among a group of moderate Republicans who sent letters to House leadership, sharing concerns about potential cuts to Medicaid. In the end, though, Hurd and nearly every Republican voted in favor of the bill.
On Tuesday, Denver7 was finally able to catch up with him to ask him why he supported it.
"I voted in favor of the ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ not because it's perfect, but because, on balance, I thought it was good for my district, for our state and for our country,” Hurd said. “There's tremendous economic value that we're going to get from this bill. It's helping middle-class, working-class families in my district and across the country."
Democrats like Congressman Jason Crow, who represents Colorado's 6th Congressional District, said hospitals are in danger because of the new law.
"There are seven hospitals that are at severe risk of going under and closing their doors, mainly rural, as a result of this bill, three of which might go under next year," Crow said. "That's going to be a major, major problem for all of us, as the families, as our employees and as others navigate this and try to figure out how do they live their lives going forward under this new reality."
Hurd said he rejected claims that the law would force hospitals, in particular rural hospitals, to close next year.
“I don't think that's a fair statement,” Hurd said. “We're talking about the provider fee decrease of one-half of 1% that starts in fiscal year 2028. That's several years down the road.”
Hurd also said the law will give Colorado an opportunity to improve its healthcare system. He compared the healthcare system to a car engine leaking oil.
“I don't think the solution is to just pour more oil, more money, into this engine, expecting that it's going to turn out better. We need to fix the engine, the healthcare engine, and I think that's what this legislation has done is it's giving us an opportunity to make sure that our healthcare delivery is more effective,” Hurd said.
The law will get rid of clean energy tax credits passed under the Biden administration. That sparked some more disagreement between Congress members.
“What this Trump bill does is it eliminates that all-of-the-above approach, and it goes into only one type of industry,” said Congresswoman Diana DeGette, a Democrat who represents Colorado’s 1st Congressional District, which includes almost all of Denver. “It’s going to take away more than $11 billion in clean renewable energy and wind energy, and this is going to impact Colorado businesses and businesses all around the country."
Congresswoman Lauren Boebert, a Republican who represents Colorado’s 4th Congressional District, disagreed.
"What we're doing here is we are creating more of a balance, because it's not the government choosing winners and losers in the industry,” Boebert said. “We are no longer subsidizing to the degree that we were wind and solar."
“I think it's going to have a devastating impact in terms of domestic alternative sources of energy production, solar, wind,” said Congressman Joe Neguse, a Democrat who represents Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District.
The panel discussion was cordial, with members respectfully disagreeing on occasion. While they disagreed on Trump's mega bill, they also highlighted areas where they agreed.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have expressed support for keeping the Space Command headquarters in Colorado.
Congressman Jeff Crank, a Republican who represents Colorado’s 5th Congressional District, said he worked with Crow on legislation to help veterans with traumatic brain injuries.
The lawmakers also said they work together to make sure each one of their districts has the federal resources they need for fighting wildfires and addressing other natural disasters.
There’s also bipartisan agreement on the need for Congress to regulate artificial intelligence (AI), instead of relying on the states to pass their own laws.
“We know that a patchwork approach is impossible for companies to navigate,” said Congresswoman Brittany Pettersen, a Democrat who represents Colorado’s 7th Congressional District. “So, it's very important we do this at the federal level.”
“I agree with Brittany that this should be an issue that we regulate on the federal level,” said Hurd. “AI does not stop at the state borders, and the risk when we have one state doing something different from the other state is we inhibit the competitive advantage, the innovation, and the commercial advantage that comes with AI.”
While it’s rare for the public to see all of the House members together, they said they do meet regularly to discuss federal issues that impact Colorado.
“We do have a breakfast that we get together at, and the turnout has been excellent,” said Neguse. “It's a great way for all of us, Republicans, Democrats, and our two Democratic senators, to get together and talk about issues in Colorado and where we can work together.”
