Colorado Democrat Lawmakers' Excessive Legal Defense of Secret Ballot System Costs Taxpayers Over $54,000
Colorado Democrat lawmakers have spent over $54,000 in taxpayer funds to defend their secret ballot system in court, only to be ordered by a judge to cease its use due to violations of the Open Meetings Law.
According to documents obtained by KUNC News through an open records request, the total cost of the case is not final, as there is an expected additional invoice from the attorneys hired by the lawmakers. Suzanne Taheri, the lawyer representing the plaintiff who prevailed in the lawsuit, plans to seek court costs from the legislature as well.
Despite the ruling on January 5, it remains unclear whether lawmakers, including Sen. President Steve Fenberg, D-Boulder, plan to appeal the decision, as their spokesperson did not respond to inquiries from KUNC News.
Taxpayer funds were used to hire two separate law firms to defend the use of quadratic voting in district court.
State Rep. Bob Marshall, D-Highlands Ranch, who was specifically named in the lawsuit, requested his own legal counsel at the expense of taxpayers. He was granted approval to use lawyers from the firm Childs McCune, with records showing that the firm has billed $36,062 for services rendered through November 30.
Other lawmakers involved in the case, including Democratic leaders, hired an attorney from Tierney Lawrence Stiles. The bills from that firm totaled $17,621 through December. Both law firms billed at a rate of $250 per hour for attorney fees and argued in defense of the secret voting system, which Democratic lawmakers have utilized since 2019 to determine the allocation of the state's limited budget.
Judge David Goldberg's ruling on January 5 determined that the secret ballot system violated the Open Meetings Law.
Goldberg stated that lawmakers "did employ a secret ballot to adopt a position, which is precisely the type of activity prohibited by (the Colorado Open Meetings Law)." He emphasized that the public was deprived of the ability to know how their elected representatives voted on important legislation, hindering their ability to hold their representatives accountable.
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REP. EPPS AND REP. MARSHALL REMOVED FROM JUDICIARY COMMITTEE FOR CLASHES AND VIOLATIONS OF DECORUM
Additionally, the conservative group Advance Colorado, which filed the lawsuit against lawmakers over quadratic voting, sought data on individual lawmakers' votes in the secret ballot process. However, Goldberg noted a jurisdictional limitation in ordering the release of the records and acknowledged a dispute over their existence.
The substantial legal expenses incurred by Colorado Democrat lawmakers in defending their secret ballot system raise concerns about the responsible use of taxpayer funds.