Good Morning, Colorado, and welcome to the Daily Sun-Up. It’s Tuesday October 13th, and even though there’s a lot of turmoil in the world, we’re feeling lucky to start the day with you. Join us daily for an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. Today, we’re discussing Proposition EE, which we at the Sun have done a lot of reporting on, and more specifically how it would actually reduce the taxes on modified-risk tobacco products.

But before we begin, let’s take a look at what happened on this day in Colorado history - adapted from Derek R Everett’s book “Colorado Day by Day”:

Today, we take you back to October 13th, 1900 when The Rio Grande, Pagosa & Northern Railroad (or RGP&N) first laid tracks. This came at a time when early Colorado towns longed for a railroad connection to the wider world.

Now, our feature story. 

When Coloradans fill out their ballots over the next three weeks and vote on Proposition EE, they will decide whether to significantly raise taxes on cigarettes and other tobacco and nicotine products. 

That is, with one big exception. 

The ballot question, if passed, would actually reduce the taxes -- at least for the next six years -- on one special subset of items, called modified-risk tobacco products. 

There aren’t many products with the designation, But one notable company is behind a third of the items on the list: Altria. 

Colorado Sun reporter Jesse Paul is here with the full story.

Thanks Jesse, and thanks for listening. Before we go here are a few stories you should know about today:

A Utah-based mobile home park operator must repay metro-Denver-area residents nearly $150,000 in wrongly withheld security deposits, arbitrary fees and improperly charged attorneys fees as the result of a settlement reached with the Colorado attorney general’s office last week.

Months after the federal Paycheck Protection Program stopped taking applications for forgivable small business loans, banks and lenders are still unclear on how to forgive them. The new form, released Friday, is supposed to make it less complicated for those who borrowed.

Covid-19 Cases in Denver are now at their highest point since May, and Denver’s Mayor and local public health officials are warning residents that the city could move backwards and impose more restrictions. What this means for Denver Public Schools’ phased reopening remains to be seen.

Cory Gardner has been a top recipient of NRA money in recent years, but Democrat John Hickenlooper’s record on policies tightening firearm regulations includes some asterisks.

Finally, Starting Monday, citizens can watch live 24-hour camera footage from the room where Denver ballots are received and counted at Denvervotes.org

For more information on all of these stories, visit our website, www.coloradosun.com. 

We also want to invite you to join our virtual forum on voting and election security at noon this Wednesday, Oct. 14, featuring Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold and a panel of experts. 

The event, called "It's Time to Vote," is part of our public service mission to get voters engaged and informed ahead of the 2020 election. For more information, visit coloradosun.com or search for "It's Time to Vote" on Eventbrite.

And remember - you can stay on top of Colorado news by signing up for free newsletters at coloradosun.com/newsletters. You can also join our Sun community by becoming a member, starting at just $5 a month. Thanks again for starting your morning with us and remember to tune in again tomorrow.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Good Morning, Colorado, and welcome to the Daily Sun-Up. It&rsquo;s Tuesday October 13th, and even though there&rsquo;s a lot of turmoil in the world, we&rsquo;re feeling lucky to start the day with you. Join us daily for an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. Today, we&rsquo;re discussing Proposition EE, which we at the Sun have done a lot of reporting on, and more specifically how it would actually reduce the taxes on modified-risk tobacco products.
But before we begin, let&rsquo;s take a look at what happened on this day in Colorado history - adapted from Derek R Everett&rsquo;s book &ldquo;Colorado Day by Day&rdquo;:
Today, we take you back to October 13th, 1900 when The Rio Grande, Pagosa &amp; Northern Railroad (or RGP&amp;N) first laid tracks. This came at a time when early Colorado towns longed for a railroad connection to the wider world.
Now, our feature story.&nbsp;
When Coloradans fill out their ballots over the next three weeks and vote on Proposition EE, they will decide whether to significantly raise taxes on cigarettes and other tobacco and nicotine products.&nbsp;
That is, with one big exception.&nbsp;
The ballot question, if passed, would actually reduce the taxes -- at least for the next six years -- on one special subset of items, called modified-risk tobacco products.&nbsp;
There aren&rsquo;t many products with the designation, But one notable company is behind a third of the items on the list: Altria.&nbsp;
Colorado Sun reporter Jesse Paul is here with the full story.
Thanks Jesse, and thanks for listening. Before we go here are a few stories you should know about today:
A Utah-based mobile home park operator must repay metro-Denver-area residents nearly $150,000 in wrongly withheld security deposits, arbitrary fees and improperly charged attorneys fees as the result of a settlement reached with the Colorado attorney general&rsquo;s office last week.
Months after the federal Paycheck Protection Program stopped taking applications for forgivable small business loans, banks and lenders are still unclear on how to forgive them. The new <a href="https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/2020-10/PPP%20Loan%20Forgiveness%20Application%20Form%203508S.pdf">form</a>, released Friday, is supposed to make it less complicated for those who borrowed.
Covid-19 Cases in Denver are now at their highest point since May, and Denver&rsquo;s Mayor and local public health officials are warning residents that the city could move backwards and impose more restrictions. What this means for Denver Public Schools&rsquo; phased reopening remains to be seen.
Cory Gardner has been a top recipient of NRA money in recent years, but Democrat John Hickenlooper&rsquo;s record on policies tightening firearm regulations includes some asterisks.
Finally, Starting Monday, citizens can watch live 24-hour camera footage from the room where Denver ballots are received and counted at Denvervotes.org
For more information on all of these stories, visit our website,<a href="http://www.coloradosun.com/"> www.coloradosun.com</a>.&nbsp;
We also want to invite you to join our virtual forum on voting and election security at noon this Wednesday, Oct. 14, featuring Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold and a panel of experts.&nbsp;
The event, called "It's Time to Vote," is part of our public service mission to get voters engaged and informed ahead of the 2020 election. For more information, visit<a href="http://coloradosun.com/"> coloradosun.com</a> or search for "It's Time to Vote" on Eventbrite.
And remember - you can stay on top of Colorado news by signing up for free newsletters at<a href="http://coloradosun.com/newsletters"> coloradosun.com/newsletters</a>. You can also join our Sun community by becoming a member, starting at just $5 a month. Thanks again for starting your morning with us and remember to tune in again tomorrow.See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.

Welcome to The Colorado Sun's daily podcast, The Daily Sun-Up. Every day we’re sharing an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. For more visit us at https://coloradosun.com/.

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