Helen Collins, who was part of a slate of at-large City Council candidates recruited by anti-tax activist Douglas Bruce, says Colorado Springs may pay dearly because a 527 political organization with union ties was involved in the April 5 municipal election.
The political organization, registered under the name Save Colorado Springs Now, was funded primarily by the Housing and Building Association of Colorado Springs and the political arm of the Greater Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce. Other donors included the Colorado Springs Police Protective Association.
The group campaigned against Bruce and two other members of the slate, Ed Bircham and Richard Bruce.
“Debbie Wamsley, the registered agent for the 527, used to be the head of the AFL-CIO in Denver,” Collins said in an email.
“The new City Council members will now feel they are obligated to their donors who want to do nothing but spend, spend, spend, just like the Federal government,” she wrote. “I hope the new City Council proves me wrong.”
Springs citizens “need to wake up and ask for transparency,” Collins said.
“Your article points to how much Colorado Springs citizens and city government are bowing to unions and special interest groups,” she said.
Convenient words form the only slate member who put her money where her mouth was in the her Slate’s campaign.
Pat Collins herself needs to wake up and be transparent about ‘Active Citizens Together’ and ‘the Slate’ are themselves special interest groups.
With very few, and very narrow special interests that the larger public rejected by a large margin.
Correction – the only one who did NOT donate to the campaign.
It’s unfortunate that Helen would throw in with a group headed by tax cheat Bruce on a slate that violate campaign finance laws and the city charter by failing to file required individual campaign finance reports and running as a “party” as defined by the city charter. She should get her own business in order before attacking the WINNING candidates.
Not so Fast…….You are totally wrong and don’t know the facts. Of course, you don’t like to use your real name when you make false accusations.
Bernie Herpin…My business has been in order for a long time. Every one of the new City Council members had a campaign finance violation which the city swept under the carpet. The city doesn’t follow it’s own code.
Before you call anyone a tax cheat, you need to let the due process of law take place. Innocent until proven guilty.
As for the winners….Congrats! Prove me wrong by not following in line with how the city has been operating by bluffs and scare tactics. I would hope you wouldn’t spend billions of dollars on SDS without more research, transparency, and a bottom line.
Fact: you contributed $1000 to your joint campaign, 1/10th of the other slate members. Fact: you used your middle name, Pat(rice) in letter(s) to the editor before becoming a slate member – of course you don’t want the public to know you were the third-ranking non-paid petition signature gatherer for the Ugly 3 and issue 300, so you didn’t use the name Helen.
Fact: the city followed its own code, but your hero cited state election policy just to make false accusations. Your house may be in order but it’s made out of glass. Still throwing stones I see.
Was it scare tactics or foresight that my great grandparents came to a state whose rainfall can’t support trees below 7000′, built the Moffat tunnel, Homestake, Fountain Mutual and other water systems, transformed the front range with non-native trees and grasses? Oh yeah, Collins, Kasameyer and Bruce, without children, will resort to scare tactics instead of foresight for generations to come.
Collins conflates federal deficit spending with local, prudent building for the future, yet wanted a city council stipend as a double-dip addition to her navy retirement! Is that how it works with petitioners? Doug Bruce, Nozolino, Collins and Stinehagen are currently between jobs, yet my taxes go to support their PERA and DoD pre-50 retirements!
NotsoFast…..Wrong again. Just goes to blogging….Accusations, no fact. All talk, no action.
You’re wrong on the campaign contributions and the city did not follow it’s own code.
Wagnerian….Another no namer. Wrong again….I have been employed since I retired from the Navy. Thanks for the compliment of pre 50. I have had a lot of experience in budget where we don’t have to go into excessive debt to fund future generations. The excessive debt Colorado Springs has bought into will affect children and grandchildren to come. The scare tactics will continue….
Wagner… Dougie drew Pera at age 59, not pre 50, but it was only based on his short State Rep term and maximum 5-year (tax-avoided) county commissioner earnings. Being famous for dodging taxes, it’s doubtful he paid much self-employment FICA tax. But should he claim that entitlement from the rest of us honest taxpayers, having a Pera account makes him subject to FICA’s 50% windfall penalty. Other than that you are spot on.
Patrice, aka Helen… more facts as long as you close your eyes to them: water law precedes statehood in Colorado; COS bought Arkansas water rights before Pueblo dam was built. It is you who is All Bruce-Talk, All sour grapes, and ZERO chance to take action as a responsible council member. Don’t dare mention my children and grandchildren when their contribution to society inevitably replaces yours! Unless you produce your own, mine will be the ones who carry you. and Dougie. and Nozolino, be it in prison or in the nursing home.
The time to tout Collins’ experience would have been in advance of the polls, but her handler/illegal campaign manager/co-candidate kept them all from attending nearly every public appearance. Now that the public has spoken, she comes across as nothing more than a sore loser, one who even Doug admits the public does not want to hear from. As for current employment, Collins filed public candidate affidavits stating she only has earnings from the CSPD, and asset income from the DFAS, an IRA and some cryptic CAFS (?) annuity(?). None of those indicate experience or responsibility in budget matters, so maybe it was better she didn’t mention it to the public before. If she were on CSPD payroll, City policy requires employees to resign before announcing political candidacy. Even if she’s a part-time CSPD contractor, that’s enough of a conflict of interest to disqualify her from city council.
Seems the voters have no sympathy for one-trick amateurs like Tony Tyler, Tony Carpenter, and the jobless like Gallagher. Now add five more to that list.
Wagnerian…I attended nine forums and was on three radio shows……And again, you’re wrong. i don’t work for the CSPD and am gainfully employed. If you did some research, my 20 years in the Navy gave me ten times the experience of the new City Council members. I see we’re off to a great start with closed door sessions.
NotsoMuch….Do you live for the blogs? How’s Texas working out for you?
Ms Collins just denied a personal financial disclosure statement, see
http://www.springsgov.com/units/cityclerk/clerkdocs/GetDoc.asp?DocID=29754&Show.
Her comment to an unrelated ‘notsomuch’ in Texas shows her lack of attention to detail: ‘notsofast’ is the blogger here. In addition to unrelated Navy investigative work, such mistakes disqualify her from city clerical positions, much less council budget and policy matters.
not proud of it, but I did spend a week in Texas one night, miz C. Heard the fishing’s great there but I don’t fish. Once again you came up empty; indicative of your 20-year track record on the water? Go fish.
Methylated Masteron…
[...]Springs ‘bowing to unions and special interest groups,’ Collins says – City Desk : Colorado Springs Gazette, CO[...]…