Bente Birkeland
Bente Birkeland has been reporting on state legislative issues for KUNC and Rocky Mountain Community Radio since 2006. Originally, from Minnesota, Bente likes to hike and ski in her spare time. She keeps track of state politics throughout the year but is especially busy during the annual legislative session from January through early May.
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Republicans in more than 30 states have introduced bills to criminalize or limit the rights of protesters. Simultaneously, some Democratic-led states are working to better protect protesters.
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Reports of psychosis associated with new cannabis concentrates have half a dozen states proposing new regulations They're also proposing more taxes to fund research about the unknowns in concentrates.
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Voting machine engineer Eric Coomer was falsely accused of rigging the election against former President Donald Trump by the conservative cable network. He faced death threats and has been in hiding. -
Weeks after the mass shooting in Boulder, Colo., the push for a statewide ban on assault-style weapons is losing steam, even among prominent Democrats who say it is the wrong strategy. -
Immediately following the shooting in Boulder that killed 10 people, some Colorado Democrats said they would push for a statewide ban on assault-style weapons. Now support for a ban is waning.
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Some see these legal fights as another way to take on viral misinformation, one that's already starting to show some results. -
After 10 people were killed at a grocery store in Boulder, Colo., state Democrats say they're considering joining seven other states and D.C. by banning "assault-style" weapons. -
No governor expects they'll have to lead their state through a global pandemic when they take office, but the last year has thrust them all into the spotlight, including Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado. -
Voting technology companies are using lawsuits to take on false claims that they were involved in stealing the 2020 election. They say the flood of election disinformation has hurt their bottom line.
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As the GOP split reverberates across the U.S., the head of one Colorado county Republican Party insinuates that COVID-19 is a hoax, calls on militia group for security and faces calls to resign.
