Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources

Wednesday, January 28, 2026·55m·▶ Watch / Listen

A low-drama Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources docket cleared without dissent: two water authority nominees advanced, the annual water-project eligibility resolution sailed through, and SB26-010 rewrote farm-and-ranch tax definitions to fold in pasture-based hog and poultry operations.

Key Actions

·Agricultural Property Tax DefinitionsPassed

+ 2 more actions

Notable Quotes

“It doesn't matter if you graze chickens or cattle, agriculture is agriculture.”
Brandon Melnikoff (Colorado Farm Bureau) · witness — The Farm Bureau's framing of the bill's core aim—extending the ag tax classification to pasture-based operations beyond traditional cattle and sheep.

+ 2 more quotes

Votes

Referred to Committee of the Whole and with a recommendation that it be placed on the consent calendarAction

Yes (6)Marc Catlin, Nick Hinrichsen, Cathy Kipp, Byron Pelton, Rod Pelton, Dylan Roberts

Excused (1)Jessie Danielson

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TranscriptPreview

Good. All right. Good morning. The Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee will come to order for the first time in this 2026 legislative session on Wednesday, January 28th. Ms. Jackson, please call the roll. Senator Catlin. Here. Senator Henrickson. Here. Senator Kip. Here. Senator Pelton B. Here. Senator Pelton. R. Here. Senator Danielson. Excused. Mr. Chair. Here. All right, we have a quorum and are ready to get started. Just for everyone that is here or tuning in, we are going to start with our confirmation hearings and then we'll go to the resolution and the bill that we have in front of us. So. So with that, we'll invite Mr. Jim Griffiths from the Colorado Water Resources and Power Development Authority to tell us about our nominations to their board. Good morning. It's actually where that cord goes into the table. That little gray button? Yep. Press it down. There you go. Oh, no, wait till it turns green. Just press it. There you go. Thank you. It's my first time. Yeah. I'm Jim Griffiths with Colorado Water Resources and Power Development Authority. I'll first start with Karen Wagsland. She's applying to continue to represent the Yampa White…

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