Gov. Jared Polis saws through more than 200 executive orders to make Colorado ‘more efficient’
Governor says the project is unrelated to Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency
Elliott Wenzler/VailDaily
Gov. Jared Polis used a table saw on Thursday to shred 208 executive orders. And with paper bits still flying through the air, he signed a new order formally repealing them.
The gimmick and press conference came as Polis announced he wants to improve the state government’s efficiency.
“We should remove any unnecessary burden or workload from our state employees so they can focus on their highest and best tasks: serving the people of Colorado,” he said from his office inside the state Capitol in Denver.
The governor’s administration chose orders they could abolish for various reasons, including them being unnecessary, outdated and obsolete. The oldest one, from 1920, directed the state adjutant general to “maintain peace and good order.”
Others dealt with issues from a grasshopper infestation in 1958 to cattle scabies in 1982.
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Republican lawmakers criticized Polis’ press conference.
“This is a step in the right direction, but it falls short of undoing the damage caused by policies that have made it increasingly unaffordable for Coloradans to live in our state,” Minority Leader Rose Pugliese said in a news release.
Polis said the announcement was unrelated to the recently proposed Department of Government Efficiency, an advisory body that would report to President-elect Donald Trump and would be run by businessmen Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.
“Well I hope they got it from me, but I doubt it,” Polis said, adding the project has been ongoing for about six months.
Polis, who has made national headlines for social media posts related to the incoming Trump Administration, fielded several requests from reporters at the press conference about his approach to working with the incoming president and at times completely dodged the questions.
“Colorado is a proud part of the United States of America,” he said when asked how he would work with the incoming president. “We’re proud of our country, and we always have an important relationship with the federal government.”
He went on to criticize Trump’s plan for tariffs but said he would support the administration working to move the Bureau of Land Management’s headquarters to Grand Junction from Washington D.C.
Copies of the executive orders will still be available at the History Colorado Center.
The shredded papers will be given to a local artist to turn the pieces into artwork that can be hung at the Capitol.
