Politigab: McInnis sets up campaign committee

Scott McInnis, former congressman and Colorado House member, has created a campaign committee in his bid for governor.

The move means McInnis can now begin raising funds. His first contribution came frm Harold Piper, a Rifle small businessman, McInnis said in a news release.

The Grand Junction Republican said his campaign website - www.ScottMcinnisForGovernor.com - launched this week.

Sen. Mark Udall has opened a Colorado Springs office at the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department, 2880 International Circle.

Udall will pay Regional Building less than $1,000 a month for 550 square feet of space on the first floor, El Paso County Commission Chairman Jim Bensberg said.

Bensberg, who serves on the Regional Building Board of Directors, said the building was built with extra space. "We always had a plan to rent space out," he said.

Colorado rated a "D" grade for financial disclosure of state legislative members in a study by the Center for Public Integrity, but the study got at least one thing wrong.

It graded Colorado down for not charging less than 50 cents per page for public records. But that's not true. An amendment to state law, advanced by former State Sen. Andy McElhaney and approved by the Legislature, limits the charge to 25 cents per page.

Colorado ranked 28th among the 50 states, lower than its 25th placing in 2006 and 12 slots below its 16th-place ranking in 1999.

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For more, go to The Gazette's Data Geek blog, http://datageek.freedomblogging.com/, or the center's site, http://www.publicintegrity.org/investigations/states_of_disclosure/

Send Politigab items to pam.zubeck@gazette.com or dean.toda@gazette.com