Dear Friends and Supporters,

It is hard to believe that our session is 1/4 over already. There have been over 475 bills go before the committees in
the House and Senate so far and less than 30 have been "killed." Of course, with the change in the parties in
control of the House and Senate will result in many bills getting through the system on to the Governor's desk that
for the most part reflect the Democrat Party's philosophy of "more government, more regulations, more regulations
on businesses, a more complex world to live in, less individual responsibility, more money going to lawyers, and
less choice in our K-12 education system. A depressing list, isn't it? We need to make sure that we prevail in the
next election.

VALENTINES

Loveland has been called "A Town with a Heart." Miss Valentine of Loveland, Tessa Berry, was at the Capitol on
Monday with her parents, sister, and chaperones from Loveland. I was pleased to be able to introduce Tessa to the
House body and read her well written speech. Tessa is President of her Senior Class at Loveland High School and
is very active in other events.

LEADERSHIP LOVELAND

Annually, a group of about 50 people from Loveland and Fort Collins that are Chamber of Commerce members
come to the Capitol to meet their legislators, visit the House and Senate floors, and to ask questions. I really
enjoyed meeting our group and I heard that they felt their trip was very profitable to them.

INDEPENDENCE INSTITUTE

An independent think tank called the Independence Institute gave a compelling presentation to about 10 Senators
and House members. They pointed out how the State could save several hundred millions of dollars every year by:

1) Selling off some state assets

2) By combining or eliminating some state programs and divisions

3) The consolidation of some departments, boards, and commissions

4) Sentencing reform (treat non-violent drug possessors instead of incarcerating them)

5) Medicaid Reform

6) Realign education strategies

7) Procurement and collection reform

8) Competitive Outsourcing.

The total of these savings would be $347.5 million on the low end and $615.15 million on the high end. The
Independence Institute team met with the Governor's office also. I read in the Rocky Mountain News today that
550,000 small businesses are "going out of business" this year. All of us know many people at home where their
budget is very tight. Maybe your own budget is tight - like mine. Why is it bad to think that government's budget
should be tight? We need new and creative thinking on how we can make government more efficient!!! Believe me,
we have a long ways to go.

If you want to look at the details of the Independence Institute report, go to www.IndependenceInstitute.org and
look for the report called "Priority Colorado."

PRISON MINISTRIES

I finished the week off by attending a lunch hosted by Prison Fellowship. Chuck Colson, a former top aide with
President Nixon during the Watergate time, started Prison Fellowship in 1976 because of his "born again"
conversion to Christianity. Now, Prison Fellowship is in 108 countries and all 50 states. They plan to have a much
larger presence in Colorado by being a major part of 20 different ministries going to 27 adult prisons and 8 youth
prisons from June 2-12, 2005. They bring in teams of people from all over the nation and give "yard presentations"
with singers, speakers, motorcycles and sport cars. The cost is well over $250,000 at no cost to the taxpayer.

They have set up three IFI (Interchange Freedom Initiative) prisons in Iowa and another state. Arkansas and
Missouri are looking very closely to doing this. Colorado needs to do the same. This program allows Prison
Fellowship to do all of the training and programs in a prison at no cost to the taxpayer with the prisoners
volunteering into the program. The recidivism rate from this program is 8%. Nationally, the recidivism rate without
these programs is over 70%. Colorado's recidivism rate is 52.5%.

The speaker today with Prison Fellowship, Mark Early, read a Bible verse: II Cor. 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in
Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." If the man and
women's hearts change on the inside, their actions will change when they get out of prison on the outside. Ninety
percent of our 2,000,000 prisoners get out someday and become our neighbors.

TOWN MEETING

There will be a "Town Meeting" this coming Saturday, 2/19, at Perkins Restaurant, located at 2222 West
Eisenhower in Loveland from 8:30 AM to 10:00 AM. Discussions will include the budget, constitutional
amendments, education issues, transportation, and the opportunity for questions and feedback.

As I have stated in previous updates, it would take several pages of writing to tell you of what happens at the
Capitol in one week. I only have room to tell you of a few highlights. Thanks for taking the time to read this and
always feel free to email or call me about any issue that is on your mind that I can help you with at the State
Capitol.

Thanks for your prayers and support. Please remember to pray for our troupes abroad and our elected leaders in
Washington, DC.

For many of the important bills we are covering, open the file below called Bills in The News 02142005

Best Regards,
Rep. Jim Welker
House District 51