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11/21/2011	Douglas Bruce to commissioners: ‘I want my money back’
Bruce told the current board of commissioners last week – at a time during regular meetings when anyone from the public can raise any issue with commissioners — he’s noticed that commissioners who have not attended recent meetings have not been fined for their absences.
09/15/2011	AG quotes Simon and Garfunkel in response to Bruce
Bruce said the lyrics are a signal that Melito has no real case against him.“If the state’s case is so weak that it will quote Simon and Garfunkel song lyrics from 41 years ago as its legal authority, I guess we can next expect them to quote those eminent legal jurists, Laurel and Hardy,� said Bruce.
09/14/2011	Colorado Tax Limitation: The Power of 1 and a Few More
When Amendment 1 won in 1992 Doug called me saying, “How does it feel to live in the freest state in America?� It felt good. But it was just the beginning. Six years later not only are Colorado citizens in control of their tax increases and government spending.
01/21/2011	A Deep Freeze Overtakes Colorado’s Petition Process
In Colorado, one provision of a malicious 2009 law, House Bill 1326, has resulted in such a deep freeze that it may put an end to the state’s citizen initiative process entirely. Already two victims of HB 1326 are faced with losing their homes to pay for their defense against false and ridiculous allegations of ‘fraud.’
01/21/2011	Sisyphus in Boulder City
Public officials cannot simply throw dissenters into a gulag and govern by decree. But the city governors in Boulder City, Nevada, have found the next best thing. Sue the people. Regularly and repeatedly.
01/01/2011	Reality Checks from New Jersey, Illinois
Amendment 61 was a clear warning to CO voters about borrowing and spending. Now the chickens will come home to roost.
12/11/2010	Douglas Bruce’s subpoena dodging was justified
And, it turns out that Bruce was correct in insisting that who funds or supports a ballot issue is none of the public’s business. So says the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, in a decision handed down just days after the November 2nd vote.
09/20/2010	Tax Cuts on Colorado Ballot Stir Alarm
“We need tax relief, tax reform, tax justice,� Natalie Menten, campaign coordinator for the COtaxreforms.com group, wrote in an e-mail. “The establishment fears our grass-roots petitions because they benefit everyone, not just the insiders.�
02/07/2010	Residents choose DIY city services over tax hike
Tired of indiscriminate spending, questionable officials and unnecessary expenditures, the residents of one Colorado city have decided to end the era of big government in their municipality, even if it means mowing the grass at the local park themselves.
12/15/2009	How local government scorned the U.S. Bill of Rights
Today is the 218th anniversary of the adoption of the Bill of Rights. Our city government recently showed how little it respects the freedoms listed there.
10/03/2009	City leaders make Bruce look heroic
Today, The Gazette receives mail from Douglas Bruce fans, thanking him for defending them from city officials. Incredibly, city officials have done the impossible. Through an endless series of buffoonery, they have made Bruce look like a pillar of competence and truth.
09/24/2009	Trespass for me, but not for thee
It seems odd that a trespass case, tossed by a judge, would become the subject of a discussion between the mayor, the city attorney, the police chief and council members. Hente agrees. This high-level concern about a questionable misdemeanor charge, for a crime Hente has committed routinely, smacks of malicious political prosecution of Bruce.
08/26/2009	Mr. TABOR is Mr. Quote Machine
Call Douglas Bruce what you want. But in my line of work, the former El Paso County commissioner and author of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights is what is known as a quote machine.
08/14/2009	Plan to collect overdue stormwater fees leaking
“This (fee) is neither a tax nor an assessment. They can’t use the property tax system to collect parking tickets or overdue electric bills, and they can’t use it for this either.�
08/13/2009	Bruce calls on county to resist collecting stormwater fees
Anti-tax advocate Douglas Bruce urged El Paso County commissioners Thursday not to aid the city of Colorado Springs in collecting delinquent stormwater fees by attaching it to property tax bills.
05/17/2009	THE STORY OF A REMNANT
There are prophets - like Douglas Bruce - telling us what is to come… warning us and trying to do something about it. They work in impenetrable darkness… the darkness of not being able to see how what they do will impact the world. They do what they do because it is right.
04/06/2009	Douglas Bruce`s impact on the region
His supporters and detractors will agree: No living person has had a greater effect on the day-to-day functioning of local government than Douglas Bruce.
01/12/2009	Justice for one is justice for all
The appellate court agreed with Bruce that the state rule doesn`t apply to municipal issues: "If the constitutional single subject rule were intended to apply to municipal ballot initiatives, it would be inadequate and confusing in that it refers only to the review process applicable to statewide measures."
12/27/2008	Getting to the bottom of things on Iron Horse
Bruce`s take: The cops were there just to generate revenue for the city. He asserted if the city was really concerned about safety in the construction area — where major stormwater work will be done for the next two months — it would have barricaded Iron Horse or stationed a cop there to direct traffic.
10/09/2008	Showdown Between Bruce, School Board Postponed
A hearing scheduled for today that pits anti-tax crusader Douglas Bruce against Colorado Springs School District 11 has been pushed back until after the election. No date has been set.
08/14/2008	The Return of Douglas Bruce
Bruce has also masterminded an array of lawsuits and ballot issues designed to put the power of government in the hands of the governed. To the genuine freeman, Bruce is a living legend.
06/21/2008	Republican Party must return to roots
I did not spend the past 33 years as a conservative to start voting for liberals. Please join me today in supporting and promoting what should be the real message of the Republican Party in 2008 and beyond. Send the message to the party leadership that we no longer support any further erosion of this party`s principles!
05/27/2008	City`s claim against Bruce pure harassment
Doug Bruce has never cared much about being liked, but he isn`t running for prom queen. Local and state officials should stop the ad hominem attacks. Still, it`s too bad they won`t be pressing their case. It would be fun to see city officials defend window peeping in a court of law.
04/09/2008	It’s hard to call stormwater fee anything except a tax
But you know, if Dave Derryberry had been in Boston Harbor in December 1773, he probably would have been one of those guys dumping tea into the water. Meanwhile, our city officials would have been standing on the dock, composing a letter to King George about the colonials’ latest unspeakable outrage.
04/02/2008	BRUCE`S FLIERS RAISE EYEBROWS IN THE HOUSE
Bruce pointed out that legislators hang fliers from their past campaigns and plaster their cars with campaign bumper stickers. “This is a very political place. How can you prevent people from saying things political?� Bruce said.
01/11/2008	BRUCE PACKS FOR TRIP TO STATEHOUSE
In running for the District 2 seat on the county commission, Bruce promised to never vote for increased taxes, for government debt or for the removal of tax refunds, goals he had previously attained through state constitutional amendments.
12/18/2007	COUNTY LOWERS ‘08 PROPERTY TAX RATE
Rarely do the words “tax� and “yes� go together in county Commissioner Douglas Bruce’s lexicon. But throw the word “cut� in there, like it was Monday, and it can happen.
11/30/2007	Mr. Mayor goes to Paris — but don’t expect a souvenir
If he flies out of the Colorado Springs Airport, maybe Rivera can use his VIP parking pass. The airport recently asked Commissioner Douglas Bruce to return his VIP pass, since he might be leaving office to fill an unexpired state lawmaker term. Bruce responded, “Maybe the mayor can use (it). I tore it up when I received it. I do not take bribes, freebies, amenities or other gifts because of my status as an elected official. I retain this quaint notion that the citizens are the important people, and that we are public servants here to serve, not to rule.�
11/09/2007	FURLOUGHS A REALITY FOR COUNTY
The cuts were passed on a 4-1 vote with Commissioner Douglas Bruce opposed, saying he disliked furloughing employees during the holidays and taking $1.4 million from Department of Transportation funds earmarked for road and bridge improvements.
11/06/2007	BRUCE: FURLOUGH PROPOSAL JUST A SCARE TACTIC
El Paso County’s proposal to close offices and furlough employees is a scare tactic intended to push the public and county workers into supporting a property tax increase next year, Commissioner Douglas Bruce said Monday.
11/02/2007	Don`t be fooled: County is awash with cash
I must protest the one-sided pity piece in Monday’s Gazette (“Why the Cupboard Is Bare,� Metro). It was an editorial posing as a news article. Despite absurd headlines, the county’s “cupboard� is not “bare.� There is no “shortfall� in revenue, only an excess of spending.
10/10/2007	BRUCE WILL REVEAL PLANS 2 WEEKS EARLY
DENVER - El Paso County Commissioner Douglas Bruce has moved up his timetable for announcing his political future by more than two weeks, fueling speculation that he will seek state Rep. Bill Cadman’s likely-to-be-vacant seat.
08/30/2007	A lesson in wasteful spending
In a education course, Bruce lists 42 ways county has squandered taxpayer cash
08/22/2007	Not just another handout
The gifts aren’t for district officials (though some undoubtedly could use a tutorial on the topic): they’re for the kids.
08/21/2007	2 districts don`t care for Bruce’s civic gift
This year, Bruce, an El Paso County commissioner and author of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, decided it’d be an appropriate graduation present for high school students in El Paso County. He ordered 5,500 of them through his nonprofit, Active Citizens Together, to which he contributes his salary as a county commissioner.
08/09/2007	El Paso County officials give no "amnesty" to feds
The commissioners voted unanimously to accept the money, with a grinning Bruce casting a vote of "Si."
04/13/2007	County questions stormwater fees
“The city is attempting to impose this de facto tax or charge on the county, school districts and other independent local governments, the state itself and even the federal government,� Bruce said. “I think that’s illegal, unconstitutional, reckless and reprehensible.�
03/08/2007	Bruce against the machine
During a Feb. 22 commission meeting, Bruce grew outraged as his colleagues prepared to make their "single worst decision" he has seen � "bar none."
11/03/2006	County board signs off on budget
Commissioner Douglas Bruce, who voted against the budget, said it violates the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights by raising the mill levy to 7.71 mills from 7.67 mills without voter approval.
11/02/2006	Officials should apologize for negative comments
I want to register my dismay and disgust with the recent actions of Vice Mayor Larry Small, City Manager Lorne Kramer and County Attorney Bill Louis, regarding their public attacks on El Paso County Commissioner Douglas Bruce.
10/26/2006	The Bruce-busters: Fear and loathing in Colorado Springs
So intimidated are they, in fact, that City Manager Lorne Kramer, a former cop who evidently still thinks like one, approved putting out an all-points-bulletin for Bruce, ordering that he be shadowed by security if he came on city property. Who knows what he might be up to, after all — he could be there to deliver petition signatures, or trying to force city officials to put the accurate wording on mail-out ballots!
10/22/2006	"Write off" of Welfare Fraud
I was very surprised to find out that the fraud unit suddenly decided to drop the case. I asked if they needed any more proof (I had supplied everything they asked for) or anything else from me. Nope. They admitted that it was an open and shut case and that this person had illegally collected over $1,000.
10/22/2006	Local bureaucrats should butt out of policy debates
Twice last week, senior local bureaucrats launched outrageously over-the-top, ad-hominem attacks on a prominent elected official and citizen — attacks that are being tolerated by other local “leaders” only because the target was smaller-government gadfly Douglas Bruce. City Manager Lorne Kramer and County Attorney Bill Louis should be reprimanded, if not fired, for their actions.
10/22/2006	Love him or hate him, Bruce plays critical role
As much angst and consternation as he causes, I think we would miss Bruce if he weren’t around. In Colorado Springs, thanks largely to Bruce, we can still have these kinds of arguments — debates that were long ago settled in other cities, where government travels a steady trajectory toward complete dominance and few people have the will to resist it.
10/20/2006	Commissioners OK Greene
Bruce said he doesn’t think the county needs an administrator. If the county must have one, a search should be conducted, he said.
10/20/2006	County attorney calls Bruce a `sociopath`
El Paso County Attorney Bill Louis lashed out at County Commissioner Douglas Bruce on Thursday, calling him a narcissist, sociopath and crackpot enabler for pushing an initiative that would make it easier to petition measures onto the ballot.
10/19/2006	Administrator`s successor raises questions
The El Paso County Board of Commissioners is set to accept the resignation of longtime County Administrator Terry Harris today and replace him with protege Jeff Greene, raising questions about whether the county insider should get the top job without a national search.
09/26/2006	Bruce: County spending leading to tax increase
All the worries about a shortfall in the El Paso County general fund budget are simply laying the groundwork for a major tax increase.
09/01/2006	Falcon Fire District election - cause for alarm?
ON AUGUST 25TH, COMMISSIONER DOUGLAS BRUCE WAS EXONERATED OF ALL CHARGES BY THE STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL, WHO CITED A COMPLETE LACK OF EVIDENCE OF ANY WRONGDOING. COMMISSIONER BRUCE IS NOW CONSIDERING A SUIT AGAINST THE FALCON FIRE DISTRICT AND ITS BOARD MEMBER FOR LIBEL. HE HAS ALSO REFERRED TO THE ATTORNEY GENERAL AN UNSOLICITED AND INDEPENDENT CITIZEN COMPLAINT THAT A UNIFORMED FFD EMPLOYEE WAS IN THE VOTER LINE AT THE ELECTION, URGING PEOPLE TO VOTE FOR THE TWO TAX INCREASES!
08/31/2006	Bruce cleared of poll place claim
The Colorado attorney general`s office has found insufficient evidence to charge El Paso County Com mis sioner Douglas Bruce with a crime stemming from his conduct during a May 2 Falcon Fire Protection District election.
08/29/2006	Bruce cleared of campaign breach
Bruce received a letter sent last Friday from the state Attorney General’s Office clearing him of wrongdoing in the Falcon Fire Protection District election in May for allegedly campaigning within 100 feet of a polling place, a violation of state law. “I have been exonerated,” Bruce said Monday. “It was totally trumped up from the beginning.”
08/18/2006	Clock purchase takes a licking
They say you can’t buy time, but the El Paso County Commission bought about $38,000 worth Thursday.
08/18/2006	South Tejon striping roils commissioners
Colorado Springs traffic engineers’ plans to repaint stripes on South Tejon Street stalled Thursday after El Paso County commissioners questioned the need for restriping and complained they weren’t consulted about the project.
06/27/2006	Cable TV charges may pay for county channel
El Paso County commissioners deadlocked 2-2 Monday on a cable TV contract that would require Adelphia Cable Communications and Falcon Broadband Inc. to provide the capability for a county public-access channel if they want to continue serving customers in unincorporated areas.
06/23/2006	Bitter feud between Bruce, City Council over ballot initiatives
Two distinct opinions surround the question of whether two initiatives authored by El Paso County Commissioner Douglas Bruce should be decided by Colorado Springs voters, whose city finances would be impacted by the ballot questions.
05/23/2006	WWJD? Pray in private, Bruce tells commission
If it’s good enough for Jesus, it’s good enough for El Paso County Commissioner Douglas Bruce. Monday, the commissioner known for quoting the U.S. Constitution turned instead to the Bible to explain his opposition to prayer at public meetings.
05/21/2006	Ballot box ballet: Council continues to dance around voters
This City Council is stubborn, if nothing else. It also doesn't seem to have a great deal of trust in the judgment of voters. Instead of complying with a judge's finding that it overstepped its authority last year, by knocking two Douglas Bruce-authored measures off the city ballot, and placing those measures before voters this year, the city last week petitioned the judge for a stay in the case, pending an appeal.
05/04/2006	OUR VIEW (1st article): Score one for Bruce
The smirking and gloating is palpable around City Hall on the days a court ruling goes against anti-tax crusader Douglas Bruce, who some on City Council have come to view as a nemesis. If council could erect a scoreboard in Acacia Park to help keep tally of its “wins” and “losses” against Bruce, it probably would, so great has its obsession with battling him become. But those smiles were turned upside down late last week, when a judge ruled that City Council had wrongly bumped two Bruce-authored measures from last fall’s ballot.
04/28/2006	Bruce’s 2 measures on Nov. ballot?
El Paso County Court Judge Larry Schwartz granted Bruce’s motion for summary judgment this week in a lawsuit that was filed against him by the Colorado Springs City Council. Although Senior City Attorney Shane White said the city is still trying to determine what the order means, Bruce said Thursday that it requires a city election.
01/25/2006	County bidding process hurts local businesses
I’d like to refute the Jan. 19 Gazette report, “Bruce accused of aiding backer / Favoritism alleged in copier contract.” It’s hogwash.
09/22/2005	Bruce wants City Council charged over ballot battle
Anti-tax activist Douglas Bruce plans to ask the district attorney’s office today to file criminal charges against Colorado Springs City Council members for refusing to put two of his initiatives on the Nov. 1 ballot. The move follows Bruce’s answer to a city lawsuit against him last week in which he suggested the elected officials should be fined and imprisoned.
09/15/2005	TABOR Goes International !
Prisoner number MX8993, 71-year-old Alfred Ridley, of Towcester, a retired vicar, is languishing in Milton Keynes prison. His crime? Refusing to pay more than an inflation-rate increase on his council tax.
09/12/2005	Bruce is still on a mission
Colorado has the strictest state spending limit in the nation thanks to one man: Douglas Bruce.
09/11/2005	Credit author of TABOR for clarity about C and D
One doesn’t have to agree with Douglas Bruce and his particular vision of government to credit the guy with this much: The relatively newly minted El Paso county commissioner, longtime anti-tax crusader, author of the Taxpayers Bill of Rights and general anti-government agitator at least has the courage of his convictions.
08/24/2005	City sues over Bruce initiatives
Colorado Springs City Council members are filing a legal challenge today to keep Douglas Bruce’s tax-cutting and debt-limiting initiatives off the Nov. 1 ballot. Bruce, an anti-tax crusader and El Paso County commissioner, immediately promised Tuesday that he will seek an injunction in federal court requiring that the election go forward.
08/23/2005	Council may fight Bruce`s initiatives
City Council members are considering challenging the legality of two taxcutting measures by Douglas Bruce in an effort to keep them off the Nov. 1 ballot. The council went into closed session after its informal meeting Monday to discuss the legality of the measures, City Manager Lorne Kramer said. He said members had earlier asked City Attorney Patricia Kelly to examine the initiatives. Bruce submitted petitions Aug. 9 with 28,000 signatures, far more than the 16,000 required to place the measures on the ballot.
08/15/2005	Myth of the $400 Million Cut
The state budget is expected to increase substantially through 2009-10. Yet in a quote for the August 7 Denver Post, Governor Bill Owens's spokesperson Dan Hopkins claims, "We are going to have to cut $400 million from the next state budget if Referendum C doesn't pass." What's really going on?
08/11/2005	Don`t Let TABOR Go Up in Smoke
Colorado has gotten through the hard part of budget reform. It has beaten the addiction of profligate state spending. It can weather the current crisis without returning to the old bad habits. It can do all this without a permanent timeout from TABOR.
08/10/2005	Bruce petitions for tax cuts
Anti-tax crusader Douglas Bruce submitted petitions Tuesday for two ballot proposals that would cut Colorado Springs government budgets by $10.4 million. The referendums, which could appear on the Nov. 1 ballot, would eliminate the city’s property tax, reduce its sales tax and end Colorado Springs Utilities’ streetlight fee. It also would bar the city from assuming debt longer than 10 years and require it to pay off outstanding debt in its general fund within five years.
08/01/2005	Spending county dollars � taxpayer dollars
$221,833,822. Is that the latest jackpot for the Colorado State Lottery? No, it is the total amount for El Paso County�s 2005 budget. It is a dollar amount that is almost too large to comprehend � a figure that is made up primarily of taxpayers� dollars.
04/22/2005	Building auction pushed: Bruce fights plans for parking garage
Gripping a cashier’s check for $1 million, El Paso County Commissioner Douglas Bruce offered Thursday to buy a government building that’s scheduled for demolition to make way for a parking garage.
03/29/2005	Who’s wasting the most time?
Two of El Paso County’s top political leaders have been bickering over who’s wasting time during meetings. Commissioners Jim Bensberg and Douglas Bruce have argued often during the panel’s twiceweekly meetings since Bruce took office in January.
03/26/2005	Bruce wants developers to pay more
El Paso County Commissioner Douglas Bruce said he will oppose new neighborhoods or other construction starting July 11 unless development companies pay upfront for the impact on public services.
02/28/2005	Rocky Mountain Revenue Grab
Colorado Governor Bill Owens used to be so enamored of his state's constitutional caps on spending that he instructed fellow Republicans about the merits of tax and expenditure limits. But that was then. These days you'll find Governor Owens crafting rationales to bust those caps and spend the extra loot that comes with a growing economy.
12/05/2004	Mr. Right puts heart into latest crusade
TABOR author Douglas Bruce, recently elected to the El Paso County Commission, says his battles can get a bit lonely.
11/24/2004	Bruce promotes abortion ban at Memorial
A 2-month-old policy approved by Memorial Hospital’s Board of Trustees says the medical center no longer will perform “elective” abortions, but Douglas Bruce wants the city to draft an ordinance prohibiting such procedures at Memorial. The county commissioner-elect told the Colorado Springs City Council on Tuesday that if it didn’t take action by the end of the year, he’ll circulate a petition and let citizens decide it as an election issue.
11/12/2004	Tax foe Bruce joins system
No one has done more to limit government in Colorado than Douglas Bruce, self-described terrorist, patriot and pain in the neck.
11/09/2004	Bruce opposes $1 sale of equestrian center
Newly elected county commissioner Douglas Bruce is trying to derail a plan to sell Penrose Equestrian Center, the government-owned horse show complex southwest of downtown Colorado Springs. Bruce argued Monday that El Paso County’s plan to sell the com
10/05/2004	Bruce Suggests County Road Funds Be Withheld From City
El Paso County Commission candidate Douglas Bruce requested Monday that the board yank $3 million in road funding from Colorado Springs. Board members soundly rejected the idea. But Bruce said he will reintroduce the plan in January if elected, leading to fears that an improving relationship between the city and the county could erode.
09/30/2004	Memorial axes women`s choice
Memorial Hospital`s sudden elimination of no-questions-asked abortions has left reproductive rights advocates wondering why the public was never consulted.
08/24/2004	TOPS tax extension overturned
A judge Monday overturned the 2003 election that extended Colorado Springs’ Trails, Open Space and Parks tax, saying the ballot wording was illegal. It is thought to be the first time in Colorado history that a judge has overturned an election because the ballot wording violates the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights.
01/30/2003	The father of tax limits offers a radical diet for lean times.
But to anti-tax activist Douglas Bruce, the Corral is the ideal setting for talking about the state's budget mess and his not-so-modest proposals for getting out of it.
01/01/2000	What Government Does to Tax Limiters
The state's foremost anti-tax activist has been known to accuse state legislators of being both exceedingly greedy and hopelessly stupid, to question their sanity as well as their honesty, to scold and bully and upbraid the very people he's trying to persuade to do the right thing -- which, in Bruce's view, usually comes down to keeping their mitts off the wallets of hardworking, God-fearing taxpayers like Douglas Bruce.