Rep. David Schultheis wanted to make sure Monday that no illegal residents get state assistance with their heating bills this winter.
When Democrats wouldn’t allow debate or a vote on an amendment he proposed to that end, the Colorado Springs Republican complained that the majority party was trying to make the divisive issue of illegal immigration go away.
“I was muffled,” he said. “I’m hopeful that the Democrats will begin to realize this is a serious issue.”
But it turns out that Schultheis was trying to close a loophole that does not exist. According to the state Department of Human Services, 77 of 113,000 applicants for energy assistance in Colorado last year were rejected because they were here illegally.
Democrats now question how serious Schultheis and other Republicans really are about immigration policy this election year, the first since the Democrats wrested control of the House and the Senate from Republicans in 2004.
“I think they’re trying to make political headway,” said Rep. Terrance Carroll, D-Denver. “They don’t want the facts to get in the way of making political points on this.”
Schultheis denied any political motivation and said Republicans will be attaching similar residency clauses to spending bills throughout the session.
“If they’re already doing it, what is the problem with doing it in statute?” he said. “If the Dems were really on board with this issue … they would have no problem adding this.”
Republicans have another complaint, too: Democratic House Speaker Andrew Romanoff’s plan for all immigration bills to be heard in a single committee hearing. That reduces immigration to “a one-day news event, and it goes away,” said Republican House Minority Leader Joe Stengel.
Romanoff, who says Democratic-sponsored immigration bills will soon join the GOP proposals already introduced, said he expects all the bills to get a fair hearing.
Rep. Bernie Buescher, D-Grand Junction, whose HB 1200 survived Schultheis’ attempted amendment Monday, called it an unnecessary distraction. Buescher’s bill, the result of Democrats’ negotiations with Republican Gov. Bill Owens, includes $20 million in heating assistance this year.
“What we’re trying to do here is good policy, and the policy is to get funds to low-income folks who need assistance,” Buescher said.
Staff writer Jim Hughes can be reached at 303-820-1244 or jhughes@denverpost.com.
