Thieman at Brown Bag Event

LeAnn Thieman is an accomplished author and speaker who will be in Sterling tomorrow to speak during a fundraiser for the Practical Nursing program at Northeastern Junior College. Its from noon to 1 p.m. in Room 230 of the Hays Student Center and open to the public. Bring your won lunch. Cost to hear her speech is $5 for nursing students and $10 for all others. The proceeds from the event go to the Practice Nursing program at NJC to help the students pay for graduation expenses.

Woman Busted on Several Charges Last Saturday

Colorado State Patrol reported that a Fort Morgan woman was arrested last Saturday night on charges of driving while under the influence, possession of a stolen vehicle and driving while license restrained. CSP said 41 year old Bertha Ruiz was stopped on Highway 34 at the west edge of Fort Morgan. When police ran the plate on the truck she was driving, they discovered it stolen out of New Mexico. Ruiz was taken to Morgan County jail and a passenger fled on foot but was caught and released without being charged

BMS Students Could Sacrifice

Core subjects come before electives so students at Brush Middle School could lose out on their electives, without losing grades in those classes or in PE if grades in their core subjects fall. School officials say the sacrifices have to be made so that students keep up grades in the core subjects.

Brother and Sister Busted for Running Drugs

On Monday, a brother and sister were arrested for being drug couriers. Twenty-five year old Jeffrey A Nichols, Jr. and 22 year old Christy Basnett, bot from Columbia, Missouri, were stopped in separate vehicles and charged with possession and distribution of marijuana. They were arrested and taken to the Logan County Jail. They were stopped east of Brush, about two miles and nine minutes apart, and by two different troopers. Neither trooper would explain why, but they were both suspicious of their suspects during the traffic stops. A K-9 hit on marijuana in Basnett's car, and police searched and found 120 pounds of pot. Troopers said Nichols' vehicle was a decoy, that there was only a small amount of marijuana in his car. Police also found radios in the two cars, for the brother and sister to communicate any police in the area.

GOP Rejects Bottle Deposits, Soda Tax

Colorado Republicans were firmly on the side of soft drinks Wednesday, rejecting a bill to add a bottle deposit while voting to repeal sales taxes on soda.

Separate committees in the GOP-led House took up soda-related measures. The proposed 5-cent bottle deposit was rejected after lawmakers heard hours of testimony from trash bag-toting schoolchildren.

Republicans argued the deposits could cost jobs.

And another committee approved a bill to repeal last year's decision to add sales taxes to carbonated beverages, including diet drinks. The Republican sponsor says the 2.9 percent tax is an unfair burden when other unhealthy foods remain tax-free.

The soda tax repeal would save taxpayers some $12.3 million next year.

CU Regents to Remain Neutral on Tuition Bill

The University of Colorado regents plan to remain neutral on legislation that would allow illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition at the state's colleges.

The Daily Camera in Boulder reports that CU Regent Monisha Merchant decided against introducing a resolution at Wednesday's board meeting that would have supported Senate Bill 126. She says other board members wanted to remain neutral on the bill.

A state Senate committee has approved the bill, but it faces more hurdles as it moves through the Legislature, particularly in the Republican-controlled House. The measure would extend in-state tuition to illegal immigrants who meet certain criteria, including attending a Colorado high school for at least three years.

Several CU students voiced support for the bill during the board meeting Tuesday.

Census Shows Front Range Will Gain Political Power

New U.S. Census data shows that Colorado's Front Range will keep accruing political power as fast-growing towns along Interstate 25 far outstrip their rural eastern and western neighbors. The 2010 figures, released yesterday, show that most of Colorado's growth over the last decade occurred along the Front Range. El Paso County surpassed Denver County as Colorado's most populous, while the state's eastern fringes continued to decline. The data will be used to redraw congressional and legislative districts. Colorado didn't grow enough to earn an eighth seat in Congress, but population trends mean lawmakers will have to shift political power away from rural areas.

Yahoo! Blocking Job Alerts From Pikes Peak Workforce

Anyone who's unemployed in Denver, make sure you aren't relying on Yahoo! e-mail to get alerts about job openings. That's because Pikes Peak Workforce Center officials are warning folks on the dole that Yahoo! is blocking its messages concerning those important openings. Try using Google or Hotmail instead.