Rep. Meghan Lukens called this year’s legislative session a “breakthrough for education,” while pointing to bills passed that support small business, affordable housing and child care access in first term.
Democratic Colorado House Rep. Meghan Lukens says the economy is one of the top issues she is hearing from voters as she travels around the communities of House District 26 and that addressing affordability will continue to be a priority for her if reelected in November.
Lukens, who is running for her second term against Republican Nathan Butler, a former Craig City Council member, pointed to a number of bills she has helped pass in the past two years to address affordability, improve access to child care, support small business and support the development of affordable housing.
Another key affordability measure was passed during the legislature’s special session last month, Lukens said, a move that reduced property taxes in a bipartisan deal to get conservative groups to remove ballot measures that Lukens said would have devastated the state budget.
“All of these issues make an impact on people’s pocketbooks. It all starts to add up, so addressing these issues that impact how much money people are having to pay and cost of living helps the greater picture,” Lukens said. “I think there is also room to grow looking forward, thinking critically about the rising costs of homeowners insurance and what we can do there, and always looking at opportunities to decrease costs of healthcare and prescription drugs.”
In an interview with The Yampa Valley Bugle earlier this month, Lukens said she has delivered on key issues for House District 26, which includes Moffat, Rio Blanco, Eagle and Routt counties. Lukens, who grew up and lives in Steamboat Springs where she still teaches a civics class at Steamboat Mountain School, said the previous legislative session was a “breakthrough for education” in particular.
She highlighted the elimination of the budget stabilization factor, increase in school funding and an updated school funding formula that makes special consideration for rural districts. Lukens said all seven school districts in House District 26 will receive additional funding because of changes made this year.
“Myself and my rural colleagues were dedicated to ensuring that rural schools get that fair share of that funding, and that there is a rural factor in the funding formula,” Lukens said. “In 2022, I ran on that we need more teachers in the state legislature and I am proud to say I was able to deliver.”
Lukens said she has traveled to all 21 towns in House District 26 where she has connected with community leaders, attended many of the biggest local events and made sure to be at each county’s fair. Being present in the district has helped her represent everyone, Lukens said, whether they voted for her or not.
While every town may have its own culture, Lukens said the district’s communities have more similarities than they do differences. Lukens pointed to issues like water and protecting the natural environment as an issue that particularly brings together Northwest Colorado.
“I have my constituents top of mind, at all times, and that means all constituents,” Lukens said. “[I’m] touching base with community leaders about these key issues that bring us all together and then recognizing the nuances and the differences between the towns is an essential part of the job.”
Property taxes are another issue Lukens said she has been hearing from constituents. Lukens supported the measure passed during the legislatures special session that lowered property taxes in a package designed to remove ballot measures she said would have “devastated the state budget.”
“Our state budget pays for a lot of important things, like public education,” Lukens said. “We wanted to ensure that property taxes were decreased, while we also ensure that our schools, our fire districts, our healthcare districts, our library districts, our water districts have the money that they need to survive.”
Lukens said she would be voting to approve Initiative 89 this fall, an amendment to the Colorado Constitution to protect access to abortion. The measure requires 55% of the vote to pass.
“I think it’s a hugely important step for our state to take,” Lukens said. “Colorado remains a beacon of hope to ensuring women have access to reproductive care. I believe a women’s healthcare decisions should be between her and her doctor and politicians should not be infringing on that right.”
On affordable housing, Lukens pointed to a bill she sponsored with Democratic Sen. Dylan Roberts in 2023, that allowed housing to be built on state-owned land through public private partnerships. On child care, Lukens pointed to a bill she sponsored this session that created a grant program to help local governments with the capital costs of building more centers.
Lukens said she supports and “all of the above” energy strategy and has worked to support parts of the district that are impacted by Colorado’s effort to phase out coal-fired power plants, mentioning two bills specifically. One bill, passed in 2023, required the Colorado Energy Office to study the potential for “advanced energy solutions” in rural Colorado.
“We know that energy is central to our coal transitioning communities — it’s central to their culture,” Lukens said. “We still need reliable affordable energy. … We passed this study bill in order to support those communities in determining what are the next steps and what are the next directions for the energy transition.”
The second bill Lukens mentioned passed this year hopes to support coal transitioning communities with incentives to use certain fright rail lines and tax credits for maintenance and improvement of some rail lines. Lukens said not only does this support businesses that currently use rail lines, but it ensures rail infrastructure is maintained.
“It’s one of the pieces of the puzzle for our grand vision for passenger rail to connect Craig, Hayden and Steamboat,” Lukens said. “Maintaining that infrastructure is essential to eventually transitioning to passenger rail.”
When asked what she thought of Butler, her Republican opponent for House District 26, Lukens declined to comment. Instead, she emphasized that she has worked to pass bipartisan legislation, build relationships across the isle and that she is proud of the work she has done in her first term.
“I am proud of the work I have done over the past two years, but there is certainly more work to do,” Lukens said.
Top Photo Caption: Meghan Lukens poses for a photo. (Meghan Lukens/Courtesy)