We also reached out 10 days ago to many of the candidates who are running for state and national offices. (We haven't written to all candidates, and we apologize to any who didn't get a chance to respond.) Below we've listed the responses we've received to date, so you can consider their responses and responsiveness as you consider who you'll support in the election.
The list of folks we've reached out to includes at the State Governor level John Hickenlooper and Bob Beauprez; at the US Senate level, we've written to Mark Udall and Cory Gardner; at the US House level, we've written to Ken Buck and Vic Meyers; and at the state house level (district #44), we've reached out to Karen Jae Smith, Kim Ransom and Halt the Power Line activist and Rowley Downs resident Lily Williams.
Their answers or summaries of our interaction with them follows in reverse alpha order by office. Some answers are cobbled together from responses to Halt the Power lines and those sent to HTPL supporters.
Candidates for Colorado House Seat #44:
Lily Williams (Resident of Rowley Downs and active supporter of Halt the Power Lines)"I am a long time resident of Rowley Downs. I am the Libertarian candidate for HD44. I have been involved in the grassroots halt the power line project in our community and went to the PUC public comment meeting in Parker to express my opposition to Xcel's proposal to install ultra high power lines cross the very dense residential areas. The residents have legitimate concerns about the health impacts and property values but they are not adequately addressed. I hope PUC judge will delay the project and order Xcel to work with us to come up with a better solution. People's voices need to be heard. ...You can find out more details about me on my campaign site: www.lily4liberty.com or FB: Lily4Liberty. I am the only candidate for State House lives in Parker."
Karen Jae Smith
No Response
Kim Ransom
"I've done some reading about potential health risks of high voltage transmission lines, although I was made aware of the Xcel proposal you've described just this week. Research exists that goes back 30 years, and at least some of the results include recommendations that certain power lines be buried. There are other options as well, such as re-routing. More homework is needed on my part before I can provide a definitive opinion or answer to your question. I can certainly commit to doing my homework and listening to both sides.
"I reviewed the website you provided: www.haltthepowerlines.org. It appears somewhat outdated, so I'm hoping to get a current project status once the site is updated. The most recent post is from July. I'm not aware of any pending legislation, either local or state-wide, that would change existing regulations. I've not been notified of any scheduled hearings, nor whether a permit has been applied for.
"In general, I support local control wherever possible, allowing cities, counties, and municipalities to choose a level of regulation that works well in their specific area. I'd like to research whether regulations in Parker differ from those in unincorporated Douglas County. Zoning regulations may require a USR, but as I mentioned, I've heard about this very recently."
Candidates for US House:
Vic Meyers:
Question: "At this point, what do you believe you could do as a representative of the people to mostly effectively influence the final outcome of this proposal and ensure it meets the needs of Colorado neighborhoods? A: A primary issue in my campaign is for us to fight for investment in a 21st Century infrastructure. Part of this infrastructure investment needs to be in a new, 21st Century smart grid for electricity transmission. The lines you describe in your email reflect 20th century technology. We need new lines that allow for two-way transmission, large enough to carry today's power needs and buried. By replacing our current grid with a buried system we cut down on power losses due to mother nature. We also give ourselves the capability to simultaneously install the infrastructure for digital communications to every corner of the country. This investment will create jobs that pay well and are long lasting. If we don't start paying for it today, our future generations will have to pay significantly more when they do it. As a Congressman, I'll be working with other future-looking members of Congress, Republican and Democrat, to make these investments."
"I will be your congressman, not a corporate congressman. But I'm underfunded (Washington Dems haven't been helping me) and an underdog in this race. If you want a Congressman who puts you ahead of corporate sponsors then please share this message with your friends on Facebook, Twitter and email.
"For more information about me and my positions, please go to my website www.vicmeyersforcongress.com. I am personally answering this email, you're not hearing from a staff member. I answer all emails that come to this email address. Feel free to send more questions. I am grateful to anybody who wants to go to my website, www.vicmeyersforcongress.com, and make a contribution to help me get radio and mail advertising in these final days of the campaign."
Ken Buck:
No response.
Candidates for Senate:
Mark Udall:Automatic email response only.
Cory Gardner:
We wrote to the congressman earlier as Rowley Downs HOA. His office called for details. We presented our concerns on the phone and then made comments and provided background material directly to him during a meeting sponsored by IREA. We have received no response since.
Candidates for Governor
Govenor Hickenlooper:He did not respond to our most recent query, however his office did respond to an earlier:
"Thank you for taking the time to contact Governor Hickenlooper's office. We understand your concerns with children health and the possible dangers of the power lines. Unfortunately, the Governor cannot intervene in changing the plan for Xcel, that is controlled by the Public Utilities Commission. As you said, you have already sent them your concerns which is what we would highly recommend you to do."
An email following up their response went unanswered.
Bob Beauprez:
"Thank you for contacting our campaign. Bob has asked me to help with the large volume of mail we have received.
"We have received several letters from your organization. As you well know we are 20 days out from election day and our candidate is completely booked, as is our policy consultant. We would like to more fully research this proposed project and then give you an informed opinion.
"May I offer this, would you like to come to our office at 4201 East Yale, Suite 130, Denver, 80026, bring your information and sit down with me."
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