Headlines Wednesday, June 17, 2026
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New round of Colorado laws to go into effect on July 1; Boulder police officer arrested on domestic violence charge; ICE presence confirmed in Longmont KGNU News
New round of Colorado laws to go into effect on July 1
The newest round of Colorado laws will go into effect on July 1st. Some laws were recently passed, while others have been waiting months.
One of the laws going into effect on the first is the banning of 3D printed firearms and components. Which has been an ongoing conversation within the state for the past year.
Another of the laws going into effect allows an injured person to bring a cause of action for claims of injury caused by sexual orientation or gender identity change efforts against a licensed mental health professional and allows the cause of action to be commenced at any time without limitation.
Boulder police officer arrested on domestic violence charge
The Erie Police have arrested a Boulder Police officer on a domestic violence charge.
According to a Boulder Police news release, Officer Mathew Herkalo, age 24, faces misdemeanor charges of domestic violence harassment and official misconduct. The incidents occurred on Monday while Herkalo was off duty.
In the statement, released Monday, BPD said Herkalo has been put on paid leave per department policy.
ICE presence confirmed in Longmont
The Colorado Rapid Response Network (CORRN) has confirmed ICE presence in Longmont on Tuesday morning. No detainments were made. They say around 7:00 AM, a dark grey SUV was parked outside of a house near 21st Avenue and Mt. Sneffels St.
The occupant of the car, a white male is believed to be the same person confirmed to be in the area a week and a half ago. The last time, he was seen wearing a vest that read ICE across the chest, this time he did not have the vest on.
Following being questioned, the man drove off.
The Colorado Rapid Response Network, or CORRN, is a coalition of organizations working together to respond to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, activity in the state.
Utah out of time to fast-track scrapping Grand Staircase-Escalante’s resource management plan
Two months ago, Utah Republican Mike Lee tried to use an obscure law to get Congress to throw out the resource management plan for the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument.
But now, he’s run out of time to get a simple majority in Congress.
The Congressional Review Act allows for a simple majority in Congress to throw out an agency rule. In this case, the “rule” was the guiding document for recreation, grazing, and cultural sites for six tribes on the nearly 2 million acres that make up the southern Utah monument.
But that vote would have to take place within 60 days of Lee introducing his resolution, a deadline passed last week, meaning he’d now need 60 votes to scrap the plan. Scott Braden with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance says Grand Staircase is a beloved landscape, and the public was upset when they heard what Lee was proposing.
“And they were more than happy to contact their members of Congress, and this was happening across the nation. So the reason that we stopped this and the clock ran out is because there wasn’t the political will to bring it forward for a vote.” He says Lee’s attempts to roll back protections for public lands are deeply unpopular with people in the Mountain West.
Scott Braden, executive director of the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, says these kinds of actions to overturn a resource management plan are completely unprecedented. “What it probably would have done is created a lot of fighting and uncertainty, and that’s bad for everybody, no matter where you fall,” he states. Supporting more grazing or less grazing, more off-road vehicle access or less. Stability is important. That’s what would have gone out this window if this thing had passed.”
He credits the public reaching out to their congressional representatives and opposing Lee’s resolution, making it difficult to get a vote for such an unpopular proposal to the Senate floor.
Lee has not yet responded to a request for comment.
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