A state Capitol tradition – the lobbyist-sponsored breakfast – is coming to an end.
Thanks to the voter-approved Amendment 41 ban on gifts to state officials, Colorado lawmakers will no longer nosh on free bagels and sip complimentary coffee before the daily legislative session.
“This is the leaner – and after this, no doubt – meaner, legislature,” said Senate President Joan Fitz-Gerald, D-Jefferson County.
The top leaders of the legislature on Tuesday concluded that the breakfasts had to end. In an e-mail, the lawmakers notified the breakfast-peddlers to take their griddles and go.
Most days, before the daily debates hit the chamber floors, lawmakers, lobbyists and Capitol staffers gather on the second floor outside the Old Supreme Court chambers for breakfast.
“We do find it disappointing that we can’t do it,” said Jeremy Schupbach, a lobbyist for nonprofits serving the developmentally disabled.
He said his group, called Alliance, was scheduled to provide “bagels, muffins and juice, and a lot of good conversation” on Jan. 12.
