Douglas Bruce plans a late start in house

DENVER - Douglas Bruce said he does not want to be sworn into office as a state representative until after the legislative session starts.

The delay would give him more time on the El Paso County Commission and let him serve two more years before he’d be term-limited out of the statehouse, assuming voters keep electing him.

Bruce’s plan, however, has angered members of both parties who question why he would not want to be in place with the other 99 legislators when the session begins Jan. 9. House Majority Leader Alice Madden, D-Boulder, suggested that Bruce’s tardiness may keep him from being able to introduce as many bills as other representatives, while Mi- nority Leader Mike May, R-Parker, said Bruce should not have taken a job that he doesn’t want to start on time.

A Republican committee chose Bruce on Saturday to fill the soon-to-be-vacant House District 15 seat of GOP Rep. Bill Cadman. Cadman will be sworn in Tuesday as the replacement for recently retired Sen. Ron May.

Bruce said he would like to continue serving on the County Commission through the Jan. 10 meeting, which would mean he would have held the seat for three years. Doing so would allow him to vote on the new commission chairman and the annual code of ethics, he said.

Also, Bruce wants to start his term in the Legislature after the halfway mark of Cadman’s unexpired term, a date that the Secretary of State’s Office has set at Jan. 13. Starting earlier would mean Bruce could run for only three more two-year terms, while starting after the halfway mark means that he could run for four full terms and be termlimited at the same time Cadman must step down from his Senate seat.

Holding off on his swearingin would mean that no District 15 representative would be in place Jan. 9, when legislative leaders give speeches to open the session. Gov. Bill Ritter is scheduled to give his State of the State speech the next day, and legislators are scheduled to hold their first big slate of committee meetings Jan. 14.

Bruce said he will tape the speeches and watch them at home and participate in orientation training and other legislative preparation activities before the session begins.

Being there for three days worth of speeches would cost him a potential two years of service, and that is not a worthwhile trade-off despite the criticism, he said.

“They’re going to object no matter what I do,” Bruce said. “They’re going to be gunning for me.”

Madden said that if Bruce is sworn in Jan. 14, he would be coming in on the deadline for all members to file the final two of their allotted five bills.

While new members often have some leeway to get around deadlines and file all five, Bruce’s personal choice to delay his entry would make it more unlikely that leadership would grant him any breaks, she said.

May, when asked about Bruce’s plans, expressed frustration. Republican leaders are about to give out committee assignments for the coming year and “I guess he’ll get whatever’s left over,” May said.

“I think he should show up for work and represent his district or he shouldn’t have taken the job,” May said Tuesday. “That’s what all the other citizens in his district do.”

Rep. Kent Lambert, a Colorado Springs Republican and longtime Bruce ally, showed more sympathy, saying he did not believe that Bruce would miss any serious work if he delayed his swearing in until Jan. 14.

Bruce said he has no plans to try to hold his commission seat and legislative seat simultaneously.

CONTACT THE WRITER: (303) 837-0613 or ed.sealover@gazette.com