Until this past week, it had been a long while since I was stayed up until 3 a.m. I rarely make it to midnight on New Year’s Eve anymore. But, I was reminded of my younger days when I thought there was a good enough reason to stay up past 10 p.m. when, as a member of the House Finance Committee, we were assigned to hear a package of bills that would significantly change Colorado tax policy. Specifically, the bills cut some of the state’s existing tax credits, add new taxes and remove some business exemptions.

It’s been an extremely busy week. I had the honor of speaking at the Colorado Water Congress annual legislative breakfast. I joined many representatives from the House but was the only Senator in attendance.