US 36 Privatization Town Hall Meeting - Fri Jan 31, 5pm Boulder, Colorado‏

Ed. note: From the response to this post, I'd say there will be a great interest in this town hall.

Impacts of privatization of US 36 and I-70 may include conversion of Colorado highways to partial or full toll roads, rapidly escalating toll fees and the removal of public input in determining Colorado transportation policy.

Please join us at the Friday town hall meeting to call for public review of Colorado highway privatization

Friday January 31, 5pm
Alfalfa's Market (Community Room)
1651 Broadway, Boulder, CO

5:00 pm - refreshments & networking
5:30 pm - presentation and town hall discussion
6:45 pm - refreshments & one-on-one action planning

To ensure enough space, to attend you must RSVP at:
http://www.meetup.com/Network/events/162603242/

Attend a hard hitting town hall meeting organized by the Boulder based Drive SunShine Institute.

The Colorado Senate and House must convene an emergency session to immediately suspend the ability of the HPTE to sign the 50 year US 36 privatization contract to ensure the public interest of Colorado is being met.

"The crown jewels of Colorado infrastructure- our public transportation system including US 36 and I-70- are being stolen. Colorado public highways are being sold off to the private sector in 50 year contracts being signed this week or next. " explains Ken Beitel, co-founder and clean energy analyst with the Drive SunShine Institute.

The Drive SunShine Institute (DSI) supports does not oppose all privatization. DSI believes there must be full public discussion of the merits of public vs private funding options and question of whether 50 years of highway revenue will go to a private corporation or to the State of Colorado.
DSI strongly object to privatization in secret deals organized by CDOT in partnership with Glen Vaad, former house Chair of Transportation and the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).

The US 36 Privatization Contract is due to be signed this week or next. Once the contract is signed it is permanent and binding for the next 50 years.

Beitel explains that the time for action is now. In the face of a public firestorm, the CDOT privatization board, the HPTE, is expected to rush the signing of the US 36 privatization contract in order to silence criticism of its corporate lobbyist influenced actions.

Our only hope for a public review of US 36 privatization is for the Colorado Senate and House to immediately suspend the powers of the state privatization board, the High Performance Transportation Enterprise.

The HPTE and corporate lobbyists from the world's largest toll road developers, Cintra, Macquarie and Plenary have orchestrated the theft of Colorado's crown jewels- our public highway system.

Contract signing authority must be removed from the state privatization board must be removed until a full investigation of the influence of corporate lobbyists on the US 36 and I-70 privatization deals can be investigated and criminal charges pressed if warranted.

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What we know is that for years, former state lawmaker, the House Chair of the Colorado Transportation Committee was meeting behind closed doors with corporate lobbyists from the worlds largest toll road development firms including Cintra and Macquarie at resort hotels from New Orleans to Scottsdale AZ. At these meetings we have rock solid evidence that the lobbyists were drafting legislation to privatize state assets in partnership with Vaad with the goal of having this legislation passed into law in Colorado and state legislatures across the country."

Colorado Senators have repeatedly asked CDOT for the US 36 privatization contract to allow review of the deal and ensure public interest is being met. CDOT has refused the requests, informing the elected officials that they can read the contract in a week or two, after the 50 year binding contract is signed, just like everybody else.

The people of Colorado need to call their house representative and their senator before it is too late. The Drive SunShine Institute anticipates the CDOT and the state privatization board, HPTE will respond to public questioning by rushing to sign the contract behind closed doors.

The Colorado Senate and House must convene an emergency session to immediately suspend the ability of the HPTE to sign the 50 year US 36 privatization contract to ensure the public interest of Colorado is being met.

At this town hall, hosted by the Boulder based Drive SunShine Institute, we'll learn about and discuss the US 36 Privatization

• Join the Call for a 90 Hold on Contract Signing to Allow for Public and Colorado Legislature Review

• Demand Suspension of HPTE Legislation Enabling the Rapid-Fire Privatization of Colorado Highways

For more information visit www.DriveSunShine.org