Throughout his career, Chris has had opportunities to work with and learn from some of the most effective conservative leaders in Colorado.  Not just in a classroom setting, but in real life, shoulder-to-shoulder, in business and in the political arena.  The fundamental lesson that those leaders have provided Chris is that having principled positions is not about winning or losing.  Rather, having principled positions is about holding to those positions regardless of the outcome or the pressure to compromise.  Indeed, the legislative process is often described as the "art of compromise."  The question, therefore, is whether there are any positions to which a politician will hold and not compromise.


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Chris takes a firm stance when it comes to protecting our borders, language, and culture.  Standing against illegal immigration is a matter of law and national security, not one of race or ethnicity.  In fact, the very nature of our unique United States is one of unprecedented diversity.  Our nation is comprised of generations of people who came to America from somewhere else, from every culture, every race, and every ethnicity.  Standing for the laws of our state and nation is right, not "racist."

2011 Legislative Highlights

Senate Bill 018 to require proof of citizenship for voter registration. Sponsored by Senator Harvey and Representative Holbert, the bill was assigned to the Senate Committee on State, Veteran, and Military Affairs (aka the "Kill Committee") and was killed by Democrats (Senators Heath, Bacon, and Boyd) on a 3-2 party line vote.

House Bill 1252 to allow the Secretary of State to verify proof of citizenship after voter registration. Sponsored by Representative Holbert and Senator Harvey, the bill passed by the House Committee on State, Veteran, and Military Affairs, then by the House Committee on Appropriations. HB-1252 was then approved by the State House with bipartisan support. From there, the bill was assigned to the Senate Committee on State, Veteran, and Military Affairs (aka the "Kill Committee") and was killed by Democrats (Senators Heath, Bacon, and Boyd) on a 3-2 party line vote.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 002 to refer to the ballot a measure to require proof of citizenship for voter registration. Sponsored by Senator Lambert and Representative Holbert, SCR-002 was intended to allow the voters to decide wheather proof of citizenship should be required to register to vote.  The Resolution was assigned to the Senate Committee on State, Veteran, and Military Affairs (aka the "Kill Committee") and was killed by Democrats (Senators Heath, Bacon, and Boyd) on a 3-2 party line vote.

Senate Bill 126 to provide in state tuition rates to persons illegally present in Colorado. The bill was passed by the Democrat-controlled Senate and killed by the House Committee on Education.  As a member of the Education Committee, Representative Holbert was an outspoken opponent to the bill and did not hesitate to vote against the measure. "We must not provide yet another incentive for people to come here illegally," said Holbert.

House Resolution 1009 by Representative Holbert. The Resolution encourages the State Board of Education to work with local school districts to adopt standards by which students graduating from high school in Colorado can demonstrate an aptitude and appreciation for American Exceptionalism. Passed by the Colorado House and sent to Governor Hickenlooper, our seven members of Congress, and the State Board of Education.

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The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

The United States Constitution recognizes first the rights of the People (Individual citizens); second, the power of the participating sovereign States; and lastly, a relative few powers enumerated to the collective United States (federal government).  As a nation, we seem to have lost sight of the rare and precious nature of our Constitution. Many citizens and an alarming number of elected officials consistently position the federal government as the central source of power; followed by the power of the State; and lastly, that of the individual.

Chris understands that the First and Second Amendment of the United States Constitution exist primarily to protect citizens and sovereign States from an overreaching federal government.  As free men and women, as law-abiding citizens, we have the Right to protect our freedom and liberty.  That perspective led Chris to author the words, "Freedom and liberty are made whole when government removes itself from the lives of We the People."


2011 Legislative Highlights

House Bill 1205 to allow law-abiding citizens to carry a handgun concealed without having to first obtain an expensive permit. Sponsored by Representative Holbert and Senator Brophy, HB-1205 was passed by the Colorado House on a vote of 40-25, with seven Democrats joining all 33 Republican members in support.  The bill was a clear statement by those 40 Representatives that they trust YOU the voters more than IT the government.

After passing through the House with bipartisan support, the bill was assigned to the Senate Committee on State, Veteran, and Military Affairs (aka the "Kill Committee") and was killed by Democrats (Senators Heath, Bacon, and Boyd) on a 3-2 party line vote.

Warning: Gun control isn't about guns, it's about control.

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House Bill 1141 an "Economic Stimulus through an Exemption of Business Personal Property Tax" by Representative Holbert and Senator Scheffel.  HB-1141 sought to create a two-year "timeout" period (2012 and 2013), during which businesses could acquire personal property (e.g. desks, computers, software, phone system, vehicles) and gain a permanent exemption for those purchases to the job-killing, growth-stifling business personal property tax.

Dubbed the "worst bill of the year" by liberal tax and spend Democrats, HB-1141 would have generated an immediate spike in sales tax revenue and a trailing spike in income tax revenue. Rather than raise taxes or find news ways to tax, Representative Holbert provided an incentive for businesses to start, grow, relocate, retrofit, and prosper. HB-1141 would have helped to establish more companies, which would have employed more people, both of which would have generated more sales and income tax revenues.

HB-1141 passed through the House Committee on Finance, the House Committee on Appropriations, and was passed by the entire House with bipartisan support. The bill was then assigned to the Senate Committee on State, Veteran, and Military Affairs (aka the "Kill Committee") and was killed by Democrats (Senators Heath, Bacon, and Boyd) on a 3-2 party line vote.

During the 2011 general session, State House Republicans passed a budget that actually cut government spending.  Chris believes that, just like a family or business budget, government must learn to operate on less revenue during a recession.  Meanwhile, those who love big government are working to increase taxes.

In 2005, those who love big government claimed that Referendum C wasn't a tax increase. Later, they claimed that Governor Ritter freezing the mill levy wasn't a tax increase.  In 2009, they claimed that raising license plate renewal fees wasn't a tax increase, even though the "fee" was used to indirectly fund another source, which is the definition of a tax!  In 2010, they told us that removing tax exemptions (aka the "Dirty Dozen") so that businesses would pay more tax were, somehow, not tax increases. Now in 2011, they're actually pushing a tax increase!

Chris honors the Colorado Taxpayers Bill of Rights (TABOR), which is intended to prohibit the legislature from increasing taxes. Under TABOR, those decisions are made by voters.  Chris believes that in order to abide by our state Constitution and to honor TABOR, we must be open to allowing such questions to be placed on a ballot so that voters can make those decisions.

The Colorado Constitution also requires that the state operate on a balanced budget. While a "balanced budget" is better than the deficit spending that occurs in Washington, DC, it does allow big-government liberals to spend 100% of state revenue every year. Thus, if the voters were to approve a tax increase, our state government would continue to spend 100% of whatever higher amount of tax revenue might be generated.

Chris reminds us that government will never have enough money or power unless and until it is made to operate on LESS than 100% of revenue. Click here to view Chris' Colorado Union of Taxpayers pledge to honor and uphold TABOR.

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Government regulation of business is three things: 1) higher costs for those who prove themselves ethical and law-abiding; 2) more rules for rule-keepers; and, 3) the justification for government to grow.  Regulation should not be confused with law enforcement.  In fact, regulation is rather the opposite of law enforcement in that regulators focus primarily on those who can prove themselves good, while law enforcement focuses primarily on those who prove themselves bad.

 

If you practice a regulated profession in Colorado, then you're almost certainly paying higher fees to the State government for the privilege of investing capital, creating jobs, and driving the economy.  Chances are, you and your colleagues are paying higher costs for application, testing, background checks, and licensing or registration renewals.  In some professions, you may even be required to pay the costs associated with the State auditing or investigating your business.

Meanwhile, regulators continue to issue more rules that those who pay the higher costs are forced to follow.  Those who flaunt the authority of the regulator, particularly those outside the state and thus generally beyond the authority of the regulator, often go unnoticed or unpunished.  Given this nearly unavoidable reality, government chronically continues to charge and demand more, while failing to solve the problems that originally justified the implementation of regulation.  At that point, government generally calls for more money to pay for more ineffective regulation, which, in turn, drives the growth of government.

 

Working from the fundamental knowledge that prosperity does not come from government, Representative Holbert works with the business community to correct or abolish costly, over-reaching, and ineffective regulatory schemes.  Lets work together to promote competition, grow business, and prosper our way out of recession, which would ultimately lead to increased tax revenues for Colorado!

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Representative Holbert's earliest memories are grounded in Glenwood Springs Colorado where his family lived from 1961 until 1964.  He and his parents lived the latter part of that time in a log cabin-style home that was located just west of the Grizzly Creek rest stop in Glenwood Canyon.  Bighorn sheep grazed in their yard and the highlight of Chris' day was waving at the California Zephyr as the train roared through the Canyon. At an early age, Chris developed a deep respect and appreciation for the Colorado River and the wild, untamed beauty of western Colorado.

As a State Representative, Chris seeks opportunities to work on a statewide basis to conserve and store our most precious and powerful resource: water.  We on the Front Range must respect the interests of the western slope, while all Coloradans share an interest in meeting our future water and power needs.

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