Climate disasters making home insurance a tricky prospect

Good morning and happy Monday!

I was lucky enough to spend some time with family down in Texas for the holiday weekend, and even luckier that a prairie rainstorm dampened the ranch grasslands enough for a little fireworks show (captured here with some fancy long-exposure tricks on my phone).

It was an especially moving display because just a few months ago, part of the ranch was burned in a 1 million-acre wind-whipped grass fire — but after some monsoon moisture, the ecosystem had bounced back with a fresh layer of green. That tenuous relationship between the land, rainfall and potential disaster was on my mind when I read Michael Booth's story about the future of insurance in Colorado, where we're no strangers to drought, wildfire and hail (more on that below).

We've got that and more Colorado news to get to in today's Sunriser, so let's get moving, shall we?

Eric Lubbers

CTO & Newsletter Wrangler

THE NEWS

ENVIRONMENT

Colorado is trying to keep people insured as climate disasters mount. Here's how it's going.

50-100%

The insurance price hikes that some Colorado homeowners could face because of climate threats

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No. 2

Colorado's rank among states with the costliest hail damage, behind only Texas, which has nearly six times the population

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The disasters that cause the most damage to Colorado homes — primarily wildfire and hail — are becoming more common as the climate changes. And those costly damages are getting harder and more expensive to insure. Michael Booth talked to a panel of insurance experts and consumer advocates about Colorado's upcoming high-risk property insurance pool, the future of insurability and things homeowners can do.

READ MORE

* Watch this panel ☀We're broadcasting the panel discussion this article was based on tomorrow at 6 p.m. on YouTube, including a live chat with reporter Michael Booth. Click here to RSVP.

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WILDLIFE

As the BLM plans another wild horse roundup, Colorado officials wonder about the point of new mustang task force

Four years into an aggressive federal campaign to thin wild horse herds across the West, Colorado officials fed up with helicopter roundups tried something unique — a state-federal working group to collaborate on mustang population control. Then the U.S. Bureau of Land Management went ahead and proposed its next helicopter roundup. Jennifer Brown has more on the working group's existential crisis.

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* Rio Grande fish dodged the endangered list, could still lose a third of population in next decade. It's usually a great day when a species is no longer considered threatened or endangered by federal standards. But as Shannon Mullane reports, it's a bittersweet moment for both the Rio Grande chub and sucker as they may have escaped the most pressing dangers of extinction, but also don't get the federal protections that come with it.

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SUN INVESTIGATIONS

New law will make it tougher for Colorado HOAs to foreclose on homes

"(This bill) really gets at the pieces of this process and how it works that we were really seeing lead to the most devastating foreclosures."

— Melissa Mejia, director of state and local policy at the Community Economic Defense Project

House Bill 1337, signed into law last month by Gov. Jared Polis, creates a series of hurdles for HOAs before they can file for foreclosure on homes — and gives homeowners a second chance at keeping properties even after they've been sold at auction. Jesse Paul explains the new law, which is a reaction by lawmakers to The Sun's investigation into the practice of HOA foreclosures.

READ MORE

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FACT BRIEF

Were all Colorado Supreme Court justices appointed by Democrats?

Twice a week, reporter Justin George investigates a claim being made on social media and brings us the facts. One big factor in answering this question: Colorado hasn't had a Republican governor in 17 years.

READ MORE

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COLORADO SUNDAY

Rural Colorado town's battle against solar project raises questions about the cultural cost of clean energy

In the tiny town of Norwood, along the Utah border, residents agreed that the state must move toward renewable energy. But when a plan was unveiled to install thousands of solar panels over 640 acres of sagebrush and cedar, there was little support. So then, what is the balance among clean energy, agriculture, small town values, and preserving wildlife and those vistas that make Colorado, Colorado? Mark Jaffe explores that debate in this week's Colorado's Sunday story.

READ MORE

Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler

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THE COLORADO REPORT

* Law enforcement agencies along the Front Range are getting a new recruit: drones. More than 1,400 law enforcement agencies across the country are using drones, including at least 20 in Colorado.

— KUNC

* Colorado No. 1 in share of women leading at the municipal level. This year, the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University placed Colorado at the top of a national list for the highest share of women serving in municipal government — at 46.1%.

— The Denver Post

* Are there turquoise mines in Colorado? Yes! Hear more from a Cripple Creek turquoise miner. KRCC's Shanna Lewis asks Clint Cross, who has been mining turquoise near Cripple Creek for decades, about how to process the gemstone and how Colorado's turquoise compares to other places.

— Colorado Public Radio

* Here's how unusual it is for Denver to have consecutive 100-degree days. Denver will have the potential to make July weather history as a ridge of high pressure moves in from the west, bringing highs in the upper 90s and low 100s starting Thursday.

— 9News

= source has article meter or paywall

Section by Olivia Prentzel | Reporter

THE OPINION PAGE

COLUMNS

* The longer it takes for Biden to make the call, the tougher it will be to beat Trump. There's time for a pre-convention mini-primary to take hold, but only if Biden agrees soon to step aside.

— Mike Littwin

* It's 2016 all over again. Will Democrats get it right this time? Republican enthusiasm feels high. Democratic enthusiasm feels low. What if Democratic leaders are wrong about keeping Biden?

— Trish Zornio

* In Colorado, the groundswell for Biden to step aside is a fast-approaching hurricane. A new candidate would inject optimism and energy into what has become a moribund slog to Election Day.

— Diane Carman

The Colorado Sun is a nonpartisan news organization, and the opinions of columnists and editorial writers do not reflect the opinions of the newsroom. Read our ethics policy for more on The Sun's opinion policy and submit columns, suggest writers or provide feedback at [email protected].

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Thanks for starting off your week with us! Before we go, there's still time to vote for your favorite businesses in Colorado. Just click here to vote for Colorado's Best. Voting ends on July 17! Have a great week!

— Eric and the whole staff of The Sun

The Colorado Sun is part of The Trust Project. Read our policies.

Corrections & Clarifications

Notice something wrong? The Colorado Sun has an ethical responsibility to fix all factual errors. Request a correction by emailing [email protected].