State Senator John Kefalas will be hosting a non-partisan Community Conversation on April 21 at the Momo Lolo Coffee House in Fort Collins. The event will run between 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.
Kefalas said he enjoys bringing legislative discussion to the public and tries to do just that with his Community Conversations.
Kefalas stated he usually hosts conversations once per month that are open to the public and free of charge. His selected location is accessible to persons with disabilities.
Kefalas also said this is an important event for the public due to the upcoming end of the legislative session.
“We will engage in meaningful conversations about topics of interest and the upcoming 2018 legislative session,” according to Kefalas’ website calendar.
During an interview with the Rocky Mountain Collegian, Kefalas said he plans on discussing Senate Bill 200, which applies directly to school teachers and state classified employees.
This bill concerns changes to the public employees’ retirement association, which prevents unfunded liability specific to state employees, whether that be through school districts or governmental and public entities.
In addition, Kefalas said he is “fully prepared” to discuss the state budget of $29.9 billion, $10.9 billion of which comes from taxpayers dollars, and the rest of which is funded by federal dollars, general funds and cash funds.
Kefalas stressed that he is open to any discussion the public so chooses.
“It’s really (about) what people want me to talk about,” Kefalas said. “Whether that be issues related to budget, PERA reform or anything else.”
It’s really (about) what people want me to talk about, Whether that be issues related to budget, PERA reform or anything else.” -Senator John Kefalas
Kefalas said he prefers these conversations be informal and are typically smaller groups.
He said he hopes for Colorado State University students to attend, what with the upcoming election. According to Kefalas, these changes are especially relevant to people seeking an education.
“Yesterday, hundreds of school teachers came to the capitol,” Kefalas said. “It was pretty amazing to watch, teachers are expressing their voices.”
Kefalas said he would like to see the same motivation in college students and that the teachers were a great example of what students ought to be doing.
Kefalas is currently serving his first year of his second term as Senator of District 14 in Colorado. He served as a State Representative for five years prior, according to his website.
His focal issues include the Climate Action Plan, human trafficking prevention, employment opportunities for disabled persons and creating jobs for the improvement of the Colorado economy.
In addition to his work as a State Senator, Kefalas teaches a second year graduate course on public policy at CSU during the fall semester.
Kefalas said he looks forward to engaging in public policy conversations with the public at this event.
Collegian reporter Audrey Weiss can be reached at news@collegian.com or on Twitter @audkward.
