Jobs & Education
I believe in a just economy built on bold public investment, strong worker protections, and support for local businesses, co-ops, and worker-owned enterprises. That means raising the minimum wage, strengthening equal pay laws, and ensuring fair access to state contracts for businesses owned by people of color. We must also lead in building a green economy with good-paying, union-protected renewable energy jobs that meet high labor and safety standards.
Workers deserve safe, fair workplaces, free from harassment, misclassification, and threats to their right to organize. Closing loopholes, enforcing protections, and defending these rights are essential for economic justice.
A strong future also depends on fully funding public schools, reducing class sizes, raising teacher pay, supporting educators, and recruiting diverse teachers from the communities they serve. Education equity means preparing students for life beyond high school through expanded apprenticeships, free community college, income-based tuition, and aligning curricula with the needs of a changing economy.
Every student deserves a safe, affirming environment, which requires cultural competency, anti-bullying measures, and ending the school-to-prison pipeline. To fund this vision for our economy and schools, we must dismantle outdated fiscal restraints like TABOR and Gallagher.
Featured Legislation:
This bill requires greater accountability over and better outcomes data for the Temporary Assistance Needy Families (TANF) program, which helps Colorado’s poorest kids, often in families making less than $14k a year, and will ensure taxpayer dollars are being used appropriately and that funds are actually going to services and families who need them. HB22-1279
Fought to honor the dedication of Colorado’s wildlife and parks officers, certified by the Peace Officers Standards and Training Board as state troopers, by ensuring they receive the same retirement benefits as other troopers, recognizing their service in protecting our lands, wildlife, and communities, and making the necessary appropriation to support it. SB23-163